Mass Meeting Kicks Off Silver Jubilee

From the West Alabama Newsroom–

The 25th annual Bridge Crossing Jubilee officially kicks off Thursday night with a mass meeting at the historic Tabernacle Baptist Church, the site of the first mass meeting of the Voting Rights Movement.

Bernard Lafayette is one of only a few leaders of the Selma Movement who is still alive today.

“We had our first mass meeting at Tabernacle. It was Mr. Boynton’s memorial service, he died, Sam Boynton, Mrs. Boynton’s husband. So, we had a memorial service and on the flyer, it said Memorial Service for Mr. Sam Boynton and Voter Registration,” he said.

Lafayatte trains people from all over the country in the principles of Kingian non-violence at the Selma Center for Non-Violence, Truth and Reconciliation.

He said the Jubilee commemorates the history while recognizing that the fight for equal rights is not over.

“And that’s the value of this celebration, that we must continue to struggle and to fight and that is the key to making things different. Time is neutral. We have to use the time in order to change the times.”

The Jubilee features five days of activities commemorating Bloody Sunday, the Selma to Montgomery March and the signing of Voting Rights Act of 1965.