U.S. Congress Approves Voting Rights Act of 1965 - Selma, AL
Posted by: 
hoteltwo
N 32° 24.384 W 087° 01.144
16S E 498207 N 3585483
Describes the events and actions that led to President Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Marker is at the intersection of Broad Street and Water Avenue.
Waymark Code: WMNMA9
Location: Alabama, United States
Date Posted: 04/02/2015
Views: 4
Marker text:
Television coverage of 'Bloody Sunday' shocked millions and galvanized support for Congress to remove obstacles that prevented minorities from voting. President Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 on Aug. 6. As a result, many blacks won local elections in the South.
In 2007, a bridge crossing reenactment attracted presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. When Obama won the Democratic nomination the following year, he spoke of the bridge in Selma in his acceptance speech. In 2009, nearly two million witnessed the inauguration of America's first black president.
"Selma," the Oprah Winfrey and Ava DuVernay film about voting rights, was nominated for the Best Picture Academy Award shortly before the 50th anniversary of 'Bloody Sunday.'
Marker Name: U.S. Congress Approves Voting Rights Act of 1965
Marker Type: Urban
Addtional Information::
Erected by the Alabama Tourism Department.
More info on the Voting Rights Act of 1965: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voting_Rights_Act_of_1965
Another marker, The Selma Movement, was located in this exact spot right up to the placement of this different marker.
Date Dedicated / Placed: 2015
Marker Number: Not Listed
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Visit Instructions:
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