Congressman Greg Landsman (D-OH-01) joined a bipartisan congressional delegation in Selma, Alabama, this weekend to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, honoring the 600 marchers attacked on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in 1965.听听
Landsman joined the bipartisan pilgrimage from Selma to Montgomery, led by Congressman James Clyburn (D-SC-06), to honor Civil Rights icons and reflect on our nation鈥檚 history.听
Paul Booth Sr., a Cincinnati community leader and public servant, joined Landsman on the Congressional Civil Rights Pilgrimage.
During the 60th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, when the threats to our multi-racial democracy are unyielding, released the following statement:
鈥淥n this day 60 years ago, our ancestors endured brute physical violence,鈥 said Glenn Harris, president, Race Forward. 鈥淐ivil Rights activists were beaten for no reason other than having the audacity to demand the right to vote. While those who opposed voting rights assaulted the bodies of brave freedom fighters, they could never extinguish our ancestors鈥 yearning for the ballot box. In the same way our ancestors persisted, we must persist today in our fight against those determined to turn back not only the progress of the past decades, but the very notion that everyone deserves the right to thrive in this country鈥.
Many state legislatures have proposed or enacted restrictive voting laws. reported that 鈥 in 2024, between January 1 to December 31, 10 states enacted 19 restrictive voting laws, 3 states enacted 3 election interference laws, and at least 21 states enacted 32 expansive voting laws. Between 2021 and 2024 the number of restrictive voting laws has nearly tripled the amount passed between 2017 and 2020.鈥澨
鈥淲hile our struggle may look different from that of our ancestors, make no mistake that we are indeed in the same struggle,鈥 Harris added. 鈥淭he good news is that the fight of our ancestors shows us how to organize and prepare for this moment.听 We have the persistence, stamina, and hope needed to continue our righteous organizing for justice.鈥
鈥淥ur job in this moment is to harness the courage, the tenacity and the drive of people like ., , , and so many others. We don鈥檛 need to be perfect, but we do need to be tenacious.鈥澨
鈥淩egardless of how dire the circumstances may appear, we must never give up,鈥 Harris concluded. 鈥淲e will win if we remain in the struggle. This is not a battle we fight alone, but together in solidarity. Our collective power is what will carry us through these times and toward the just, multiracial democracy we all deserve.”