Historic Brown Chapel AME Church Joins Action Fund To Celebrate 60th Anniversary Of ‘Bloody Sunday’ In Selma

The events will also highlight the preservation efforts of Selma's historic Brown Chapel AME church.

Civil and communal leaders will join the historic Brown Chapel AME Church and the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund on March 9 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama.

“Bloody Sunday” memorializes the march on the Edmund Pettus Bridge led by Congressman John Lewis and Rev. Hosea Williams.

While they and others peacefully walked for civil rights and racial justice, they faced violence by law enforcement. The march captivated America and pushed support for the National Voting Rights of 1965.

The 60th anniversary of Bloody Sunday coincides with Selma Jubilee Weekend, which begins March 7.

Alongside a coalition that includes the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the weekend features programming commemorating the legacy of activism and the continued fight for social equity. Furthermore, the events will highlight the ongoing effort to preserve the Brown Chapel AME Church, the launching ground for the Selma marches.

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According to a press release, the NAACP LDF will conduct a panel discussion, “Making Democracy Deliver,” on March 8. Speakers, including Joy Ann Reid and Rep. Shomari Figures (D-AL), will discuss strategies that continue Lewis’ legacy of advocacy and how to organize in the face of oppression.

The next day, the 60th anniversary of “Bloody Sunday,” a press conference will call attention to the restoration project for the Brown Chapel AME Church.

Led by Action Fund Executive Director Brent Leggs, alongside special guest Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC) and Brown Chapel AME’s pastor, Rev. Leodis Strong, speakers will emphasize the church’s storied place in civil rights history while addressing the heightened need to restore its building operations.

Later, at the Commemorative Sunday Worship Service, Equal Justice Initiative Founder Bryan Stevenson will deliver a keynote address on the legacy of “Bloody Sunday” and the ongoing fight for progress in the nation. Strong intends to follow his address with an encouraging sermon.

Other local leaders expected to attend include Congresswoman Terri Sewell (D-AL) and Al Perry, president of the historic Brown Chapel AME Church Preservation Society.