Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission commemorates 59th anniversary of Bloody Sunday

SELMA, Al. – The Arkansas Martin Luther King Jr. Commission made their annual trip to Selma, Alabama this weekend to commemorate the 59th anniversary of Bloody Sunday.

This year’s event marks the 59th anniversary of when a group of Civil Rights marchers were beaten by state troopers as they attempted to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma.

Arkansas MLK Commission gathers in Selma, Alabama

The march played a huge role in launching the Civil Rights movement and has taken on a symbolic role in the history of race relations in the United States.

The purpose of the civil protest was to demand the right to vote, which consisted of 525 African American demonstrators.

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