Stacey Abrams will be the guest speaker during an annual event that coincides with Selma’s re-enactment of the “Bloody Sunday” march across the Edmund Pettus bridge.
The former Democratic candidate for Georgia governor is scheduled to speak at the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King Unity Breakfast that proceeds the bridge crossing. Birmingham's CBS 42 News also reported that during the breakfast, to be held March 1, Abrams will be presented with the Martin and Coretta King National Unity Award.
Since her unsuccessful bid for the governor's office in 2018, Abrams has become a national figure on voting rights and voting access. Her political committee, Fair Fight 2020, has raised millions of dollars toward a campaign to influence election policies in battleground states.
This year marks the 55th anniversary of “Bloody Sunday,” which occurred on March 7, 1965. That day, more than 500 peaceful demonstrators attempted to march from Selma to Montgomery but only made it six blocks before being attacked by law enforcement officers at the bridge.
U.S. Rep. John Lewis was among the civil rights activists participating in the march. He was badly beaten and suffered a fractured skull.
Lewis usually returns for the re-enactments, but a spokesman said Lewis is unsure if he will attend this year as he continues to undergo treatment for pancreatic cancer.
Thousands of people are expected to participate this year in the symbolic walk across the Pettus Bridge, plus a host of other events during the multi-day commemoration.
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