[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 2]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 2904]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 HONORING THE HEROES OF SELMA, ALABAMA

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DAVID N. CICILLINE

                            of rhode island

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 5, 2012

  Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, 47 years ago this month, nearly 8,000 men 
and women from every walk of life took to the streets in Selma, Alabama 
in three successive marches to demand full and equal rights for every 
American.
  These ordinary heroes were brutally beaten by Alabama State Troopers 
as they crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma on Sunday, March 7, 
1965. The horrifying images of Bloody Sunday, as it would become known, 
were captured on film and broadcast around the world--ultimately 
helping to galvanize national support for civil rights.
  Undeterred, the marchers returned twice more, walking the streets and 
highways of Alabama in an unflinching show of support for equality. 
Among them were Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Ralph Abernathy, and our 
colleague Congressman John Lewis. I had the great honor last year of 
marking this important civil rights moment by traveling to Selma with 
Congressman Lewis and participating in a reenactment of this march. It 
was, without question, one of the most extraordinary moments of my 
life.
  I would also like to take a moment to recognize the extraordinary 
achievement of my colleague, Congresswoman Terri Sewell, a member of 
this year's freshman class, who grew up in and now represents Selma, 
Alabama. Congresswoman Sewell was born in Alabama the same year as the 
Selma marches, and as the first African-American woman elected to 
Congress from Alabama and a Rhodes Scholar, I believe that her success 
is a testament to the lasting legacy of the brave men and women who 
risked their lives for equality almost a half century ago.
  I join my colleagues in saluting the heroes of Selma, Alabama today.

                          ____________________