Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Glory: From St. Mel to Selma and Back Again


Malik J. Fountain visited Selma, Ala. on the 50th anniversary of the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge for voting rights. That march took place on March 7, 1965, a day that would go down in history as Bloody Sunday as Civil Rights leaders were beaten by police. Two weeks later on March 21, thousands, including ed by Dr. Martin Luther King, came to Selma to again attempt to march across the bridge to the state capital in Montgomery. Also among those who marched that day, successfully arriving at the state capitol in Montgomery on March 25, was Paul J. Adams, who would later found Providence-St. Mel School in Chicago, where Malik is currently a student and where his father graduated in 1978. On the 50th anniversary of the Selma march, Mr. Adams went back to trace his steps. Malik and his father and brothers joined Adams for the journey. Together they walked across the bridge in Selma, remembering the sacrifices of the past and determined to help create a better future. 

Photos by: Malik J. Fountain
"Glory" by: Common and John Legend 
No Copyright Infringement Intended