The John and Lillian Miles Lewis Foundation has unveiled two new plaques to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the first Selma-to-Montgomery March.
On March 7, 1965, also known as “Bloody Sunday,” 25-year-old John Lewis and fellow Civil Rights leader Hosea Williams stood alongside 600 other marchers at the end of the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama.
After state troopers ordered the group to disperse, marchers were given two minutes to leave. Williams asked to have a word with the state troopers, and shortly thereafter, they were attacked and beaten, including Lewis, who suffered a skull fracture. He was one of almost 60 people treated for injuries at the local hospital, according to the National Archives.
Read this story now for free
To continue reading, sign up for our newsletter and get unlimited access to WABE.org
You can select your preferences for news and local content. We will never share your email address. Learn how your newsletter sign-up will support WABE and Public Media