Today, March 7, the 59th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, U.S. Congressman Terry Sewell (AL-07) will bring three former infantrymen who participated in the Selma to Montgomery march as guests to his 2024 State of the Union address. I'm coming. Sheyan Webb-Christberg, Benny Lee Tucker and Joanne Brand deliver President Biden's annual address Thursday, exactly 59 years after peaceful protesters were assaulted on the Edmund Pettus Bridge. He will join Congressman Sewell in the process. Vote. Congressman Sewell also invited Perry County Commissioner Albert Turner Jr. of Marion, Alabama. His father, Albert Turner Sr., led the Montgomery March on the Selma River and served as an advisor to Martin Luther King Jr.
“As President Biden's State of the Union address falls on the 59th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, I can think of no better person to be my guest than some of the original foot soldiers who took part in the march from Selma to Montgomery,” said Congressman Sewell. No,” he said. . “These people are risking their lives and bodies for the right to vote for all Americans, and their lives are a testament to the power of ordinary Americans to achieve extraordinary social change. We hope their presence will draw attention to the sacrifices so many have made in the name of equality and justice for all, as the right to vote faces new threats.”
Sheyan Webb Christberg is a native of historic Selma, Alabama, known as Martin Luther King Jr.'s “least freedom fighter.” At just eight years old, she later participated in the historic march for the right to vote. She became known as Bloody Sunday. Ms. Sheyan's work began in her early childhood when she was one of the first children to integrate the Dallas County public school system. She also continued her journey as a freedom fighter when, against her parents' wishes, she began attending civil rights meetings held at her AME church, Brown Chapel. Since Bloody Sunday, Sheyan has collaborated with many giants of the civil rights movement and is the author of Selma, Road, Selma, a book detailing her experiences on Bloody Sunday.
Benny Lee Tucker moved to Selma in 1962 to attend Selma College. He had received a scholarship and intended to become a Baptist preacher. However, after two years in Selma, he became a civil rights activist and worked very closely with Martin Luther King Jr., serving as his bodyguard. He participated in the Bloody Sunday, Turnaround Tuesday, and successful marches from Selma to Montgomery. He then served on the Selma City Council for 16 years.
Joanne Brand grew up in Selma, Alabama, during the height of racism and the civil rights movement. As a result of racial segregation, Mr. Brand lost his mother, who died in a “white” hospital waiting for a transfusion of “black blood.” After losing his mother, it was Joan's grandmother who encouraged him and his sister to become active in the civil rights movement. She became the youngest person to be jailed for civil rights demonstrations at the time. At the age of 11, on March 7, 1965, she participated in the Selma to Montgomery march led by John Lewis and Hosea Williams. Currently, she is the owner and operator of Journeys for the Soul, a travel agency specializing in civil rights tours. She is in Selma.
