On this date: Selma Freedom March ~ begins (Category : Events)
default, on 1/4/2011
Selma Freedom March
"The Southern Christian Leadership Conference wanted to march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, as a response to Jimmie Lee Jackson's death. Jackson was killed by a state trooper as he attempted to save his mother from being hurt by police during a nighttime protest in Marion.
The Selma March was banned, but nearly 600 marchers participated anyway. Police started to harass the demonstrators, using tear gas and beating them. The March was later named "Bloody Sunday" due to the severe police brutality that occurred during it.
President Lyndon Johnson reacted to the incident in Selma by asking for a comprehensive voting rights bill eight days later.
Congress passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and President Johnson signed the act into law. It prohibited literacy tests, but not poll taxes.
Voting Rights Act of 1965, Civil Rights Act of 1964; 14th and 15th Amendments."
Copyrighted and submitted by a DayInBlackHistory.com contributor (T.O.).