Lawmakers in Selma: Lessons of Bloody Sunday still relevant in America today

Bloody Sunday may have happened 59 years ago, but the violence of that day is also about "what is happening right now" in America, a congressional delegation said Saturday as they gathered on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma.

"It's an opportunity for us to remember, for us to reflect, and we rededicate ourselves to make sure this never happens again," said Selma native and U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell as she welcomed the delegation. She represents Alabama's seventh congressional district and was first Black woman elected to Congress in Alabama in a regular election.

Eleven members of congress joined Sewell for the weekend's events. U.S. Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Las Vegas, chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, said that this weekend is not just about what happened of 59 years ago, but also "what is happening right now" in the U.S.

"This is an opportunity to not only reflect on progress, Congressman John Lewis would expect us in our generation to continue our portion of this race towards justice, opportunity and freedom," Horsford said.

Selma Mayor James Perkins Jr. said Sewell "has been an excellent public patron" to the city, helping it get resources it needs from Washington. He added that the city is still recovering from the damage done by Hurricane Zeta in 2020, and damage from a tornado last year.

"We are a recovering, resilient community, Perkins said, "but it takes a lot of people doing a lot of work to get this work done."

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He acknowledged the help from the Faith and Politics Delegation in helping the city recover, saying "they come with the power and the passion to do the work."

"We here in Alabama are custodians of American history," Sewell said. "This is an opportunity to showcase the progress that has been made in Alabama."

Victor Hagan is the Alabama Election Reporting Fellow for the USA TODAY Network. He can be reached at vhagan@gannett.com. To support his work, subscribe to Advertiser.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Lawmakers: Selma's Bloody Sunday still relevant in America 'right now'