MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WIAT) - This weekend marks sixty years since Bloody Sunday, when hundreds crossed the Edmond Pettus Bridge in Selma to fight for voting rights. The Southern Poverty Law Center honored those who lost their lives Friday with a wreath laying, marking the start of the Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee weekend.
"History forgotten is history repeated," said Tafeni English-Relf, the director of the Alabama office of the SPLC. "We honor and we share the story so that people know how far we’ve come and just all of the significant gains that we’ve made as a country when we all come together.”
The SPLC wants the younger generations to take away the message "the march continues” from the 60th anniversary of Bloody Sunday.
"What we saw back then, 60 years ago, is that the power is with the people, and that has not changed,” said Congresswoman Nikema Williams.
Williams filled the congressional seat of the late John Lewis, the man who began the wreath laying commemoration for those who lost their lives during the Civil Rights Movement. Williams says no one can fill the shoes Lewis left behind.
"He showed me the way and so I know what my work is and I know my obligation to this next generation to pick up the mantle and take it one step further,” Williams said.
The congresswoman says while the fight may not be as explicit as it was 60 years ago, there are still fights for freedom and justice. Williams says the wreath laying Friday was a revival ceremony for her and a commitment to her work ahead.
"A lot of people will tell you what young people aren’t paying attention to or what young people are not doing, but we have proof right here in Montgomery, Alabama as young people are leading the march over to the State Capital so that they can do the call to action," said Williams. "Because it’s not just about a commemoration, it’s about the work that continues and the young people are continuing that work.”
University of Alabama senior Nila Segobin is part of the generation picking up this mantle.
"We are the reason, we are the people who need to get out there and make a change,” Segobin said.
Segobin says while this is her first time being on the frontlines of advocacy, it won’t be her last.
"Being here and knowing that I can do this again and again, over and over again, and get more people," she said. "It’s like I can bring two more people, I can bring three more people, so one voice is just a start.”
Segobin says it’s been a great impact on her to be in Montgomery and see firsthand the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement.
"A lot of people just talk about the march, and they don’t talk about what happened afterwards or even what goes on afterwards, so just being here and knowing the aftermath of everything makes you want to be more advocate to different things,” said Segobin.
SPLC President and CEO Margaret Huang says the aftermath is a continued fight for justice and freedom.
"The most important thing is for everyone to feel they actually have a personal stake in this. We’re not doing this for one group of people, we’re doing this for all Americans," Huang said. "We recognize that everyone in this country has rights that need to be respected and we want our government, our civil rights protections, to apply to everyone.”
Huang says 60 years ago, the 40 martyrs showed courage when facing death knowing they stood for a just cause fighting for voting rights for everyone. She wants to see people come this weekend to remember what the fight is about.
“The conversation about Civil Rights in 2025 is not the same conversation that it was in 1965, but we’ve also seen attacks," said Huang. "We’ve seen attacks on the ideas of inclusion and diversity. We’ve certainly seen attacks on people calling for equal justice under the law and we recognize that we’re at a moment of peril.”
The SPLC hopes people are inspired at events happening all through the weekend. A march across the Edmond Pettus Bridge in Selma will take place this Sunday. You can find information on the Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee events at the link HERE.