The March to Real Freedom

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The Civil War, though ended, would leave a long lasting scar in the nation. Southerners lost both the war and their labor force. In 1865 the thirteenth amendment abolished slavery. The amendment was a big step towards equality by granting freedom to the slaves. However, it did not grant African Americans the right to vote, nor could this amendment prevent discrimination and mistreatment of African Americans. Due to the continuing inequity, the suffrage movement gained momentum.. African Americans had gained their freedom, and now they wanted the right to vote. The reason for this desire was not because they simply wanted to be involved with politics, but rather the ability to vote would make them more equal with their oppressors. Equality was something that many African Americans were willing to die for, and many would become martyrs. Resistance campaigns would sprout all over the country, but one of the most significant movements occurred in Selma, Alabama. The Alabama Voting Rights Project, AVRP, was centered on Selma (meaning "high point" in the Civil Rights Movement), Alabama.1 Selma would be the home to some of the most important campaigns for voting rights. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, SCLC, coordinated mass protest campaigns and voter registration drives in Selma as well as other southern regions.2 The Selma Movement would become known worldwide after the event known as Bloody Sunday occurred.3 Bloody Sunday took place March 7, 1965; it was the first of three marches. The march from Selma to the capitol, Montgomery, took place in order to protest the death of activist Jimmy Lee Jackson and the denial of voting rights.3 Over six hundred marchers led by the SCLC and the SNCC,... ... middle of paper ... ... n.d. Web. 24 May 2014. . "Selma to Montgomery March (1965)." Selma to Montgomery March (1965). N.p., n.d. Web. 23 May 2014. . "Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)." Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). N.p., n.d. Web. 23 May 2014. . "The Voting Rights Act of 1965." Civil Rights Division Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 May 2014. . United States. National Park Service. "We Shall Overcome -- Selma-to-Montgomery March." National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, n.d. Web. 23 May 2014. .

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