A brutal attack by state and local law enforcement officers on peaceful demonstrators marching for equal voting rights 61 years ago serves as a vivid reminder for today about the dangers of unchecked power and the erosion of individual freedoms.
That was a key message delivered by AFGE National President Everett Kelley on March 5 at the Tabernacle Church in Selma, Ala. – as part of an annual commemoration of the violent event, which became known as Bloody Sunday. President Kelley gathered with civil rights and labor leaders on March 8 at the site of that March 1965 attack – the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala.
On March 7, 1965, about 600 unarmed protestors were attacked by Alabama state troopers and sheriff’s deputies while attempting to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma on their way to the state capital in Montgomery in support of equal voting rights. The televised attack served as a major catalyst for passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that summer.
The courage and collective action demonstrated by those voting rights activists resulted in laws being strengthened, rights being protected, and institutions being made more accountable, Kelley said.
“Progress did not come easily. It came because ordinary people stood together and insisted that America live up to its promise,” he said.
Their struggles also serve as a reminder for today about what can happen if we take our rights for granted.
“Today, we are witnessing attacks on the very public servants who keep this nation running. Federal workers – the men and women who care for our veterans, secure our borders, inspect our food, respond to disasters, protect our environment, and administer Social Security and Medicare — are too often portrayed as expendable, as obstacles, as less than the professionals they are. Their expertise is dismissed. Their rights are challenged. Their commitment to the Constitution is questioned.
“Let us be clear: attacking federal workers is not reform. Undermining public servants does not strengthen democracy. Silencing the voices of those who serve the American people weakens the very foundation those marchers fought to secure.
“Bloody Sunday reminds us what happens when power goes unchecked and when people’s rights are disregarded. It also reminds us what is possible when people come together in solidarity — across race, across region, across profession, and across generations.”
President Kelley further reflected on the current fights AFGE and other federal labor unions are waging against the Trump administration during a labor roundtable held March 7 as part of the annual commemoration.
“Over the past year, we have faced unprecedented challenges from efforts to strip bargaining rights and weaken union protections to legal battles defending our contracts and our members’ voices,” he said. “But through every challenge, we remain committed to the belief that labor rights and civil rights go hand in hand, and that working people deserve a strong voice both in our democracy and in the workplace.”
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