On the recordMay 14, 1996
I believe that designating the route from Selma to Montgomery as a National Historic Trail is very fitting and appropriate. The march from Selma to Montgomery was a turning point in the journey to the Voting Rights Act of 1965. It was a long and difficult journey. Before the civil rights movement, most blacks in the South could not vote. There were certain political subdivisions in the South--from Virginia to Texas--where 50 to 80 percent of the population was black, but there was not a single black registered voter. The few who were allowed to register were harassed, intimidated, and even beaten when they tried to exercise their precious right to vote. In Lowndes County, AL, between Selma and Montgomery, the county was more than 80 percent black, and there was not a single registered black voter. In Selma, the county seat of majority black Dallas County, only 2.1 percent of voting age blacks were registered to vote.
Source
govinfo.gov
