[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 92 (Tuesday, June 5, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E765-E766]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO SHEYANN WEBB CHRISTBURG

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. TERRI A. SEWELL

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 5, 2018

  Ms. SEWELL of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Sheyann 
Webb Christburg, a leader in the American Voting Rights Movement. A 
trailblazer in every sense of the word, Sheyann was only eight years 
old when she dared to march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma on 
Bloody Sunday. She courageously participated in the March from Selma to 
Montgomery which led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. 
Today, we pay tribute to Sheyann as one of the youngest foot soldiers 
for justice.
   Sheyann was born in Selma, Alabama, in 1956 to parents John and 
Betty Webb as one of eight children. Growing up in public housing, she 
attended a segregated public school. As Sheyann walked to her third 
grade class one morning in January 1965, she stumbled across a meeting 
at Brown Chapel AME Church. There, she saw an uncommon sight for 
Alabama in the 1960s--both black and white people congregated together 
outside of the church. Noticing how powerful the moment was and never 
one to shy away, a curious Sheyann stepped inside to find Dr. Martin 
Luther King's aide Hosea Williams speaking to the crowd. Williams' 
words instantly caught her attention: ``If you can't vote, then you're 
not free, and if you ain't free, children, then you're a slave''.
   Sheyann's participation in the mass meetings were not free from 
criticism. Upon returning to school, she was reprimanded for being late 
and attending potentially dangerous meetings. The Birmingham Church 
bombing had just taken place a few years prior, and her parents were 
worried that she would be a target for violence. Being involved in the 
Voting Rights Movement was dangerous, as it could jeopardize her 
parents' jobs or get them kicked out of public housing. But that did 
not stop her, Sheyann was determined to blaze her own trail towards 
freedom.
   For her 9th birthday, Sheyann asked her parents to register to vote 
and stood in line with them at the local Dallas County courthouse for 
an entire day before they were registered. Sheyann was not deterred by 
her teachers either. Despite their warnings, she continued to skip 
class becoming the only child to regularly attend the mass meetings at 
Brown Chapel.
   Sheyann was often accompanied to the after-school meetings by her 
schoolmate friend Rachel West. The two girls became particularly close 
with Dr. King himself. ``What do you want?'', he would often ask the 
girls. ``Freedom!'' They would yell back, going back and forth louder 
and louder until they would all collapse with laughter. ``Do you young 
ladies have your marching shoes on?'', he would ask them. Sheyann 
always had her marching shoes on.
   On March 7, 1965, Sheyann marched with the Southern Christian 
Leadership Conference (SCLC) across the Edmund Pettus Bridge on what 
later became known as Bloody Sunday. She was beaten with billy clubs 
and sprayed with tear gas. Despite being terrified by the violence that 
erupted, she was determined to continue to march. Sheyann kept 
attending mass meetings at Brown Chapel AME Church and marched again 
with SCLC towards Montgomery on March 21, 1965. Her enthusiasm was 
arguably too much even for Dr. King, who told her she did not have to 
march all the way to Montgomery and had her picked up by a van and 
driven back to Selma.
   Sheyann's activism continued long after the marches. In junior high 
school, she became one of the first black students to integrate into an 
all-white school in Selma. She was pushed down stairs, called bad 
names, and was suspended from school--all while receiving no support 
from the administration. But Sheyann remained unbought and unbossed in 
her activism throughout her life, graduating from Tuskegee Institute in 
1979.
   Today, Sheyann continues her outreach and civic engagement through 
her company, KEEP Productions Youth Development Mentoring and Modeling 
Program, where she works with youth ages two to eighteen to help them 
blaze their own trails to success. Because Sheyann knows firsthand how 
impactful childhood opportunities can be, her program assists youth in 
helping them build self-esteem, confidence, and find purpose in their 
lives. In addition, she also works with youth groups across the State 
of Alabama to organize development workshops and training programs that 
help young people obtain the skills they need to succeed.
   Sheyann remains vocal about her experiences in the Voting Rights 
Movement, writing the book `Selma, Lord, Selma' which was eventually 
turned into a movie. She speaks to numerous religious, community, and 
educational institutions throughout the world and regularly appears on 
national talk shows.
   On a personal note, I am privileged to have known Sheyann Webb 
Christburg all my life as a native daughter of Selma and my former 
babysitter. Sheyann has made such an incredible imprint on my life as a 
mentor, confidante and friend. To know Sheyann, is to be inspired by 
Sheyann. Her courage in the face of adversity, her moral compass on 
issues of social justice and her heart of gold are her trademark and 
standard bearers. I know that it is because of her influence on my life 
that I am Alabama's first Black Congresswoman. To say thank you doesn't 
seem an adequate reflection of my sincere gratitude.
   On behalf of the 7th Congressional District, the State of Alabama 
and this nation, I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the 
tremendous accomplishments and extraordinary contributions of Sheyann 
Webb Christburg--an American icon of the Voting Rights Movement. We pay 
tribute to her bravery as a trailblazer and honor her continued efforts 
to motivate and uplift up children across the State of Alabama and this 
nation.

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