Selma Marchers Worry About Future of Voting Rights Act

Sixty-one years after Bloody Sunday, civil rights leaders gather in Alabama to commemorate the historic event and voice concerns about potential Supreme Court rulings.

Published on Mar. 8, 2026

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Thousands are gathering in Selma, Alabama this weekend to commemorate the 61st anniversary of Bloody Sunday, the 1965 attack on civil rights marchers that helped spur passage of the Voting Rights Act. However, the celebrations come as the U.S. Supreme Court considers a case that could limit a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, raising fears that hard-won voting rights gains could be rolled back.

Why it matters

The Voting Rights Act was a landmark civil rights law that dismantled barriers to voting for Black Americans in the Jim Crow South. Selma's Bloody Sunday was a pivotal moment that galvanized support for the legislation. Now, with the Supreme Court potentially poised to weaken the law, civil rights leaders worry that the progress made since 1965 could be endangered.

The details

On March 7, 1965, state troopers attacked a group of peaceful civil rights marchers, including John Lewis and Hosea Williams, as they attempted to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma. The violent crackdown, known as Bloody Sunday, shocked the nation and helped spur passage of the Voting Rights Act later that year. Now, 61 years later, the Supreme Court is considering a case that could limit a key provision of the law that has helped ensure minority voters have a chance to elect their preferred candidates.

  • The March 7, 1965 attack on civil rights marchers in Selma became known as Bloody Sunday.
  • The Voting Rights Act was passed later in 1965, in part due to the national outrage over Bloody Sunday.
  • The Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on a case regarding the role of race in drawing congressional districts.

The players

Charles Mauldin

A 78-year-old who was one of the marchers beaten on Bloody Sunday in 1965.

John Lewis

One of the leaders of the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches, including Bloody Sunday.

Hosea Williams

Another leader of the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches, who was with John Lewis on Bloody Sunday.

Hank Sanders

A former Alabama state senator who helped start the annual commemoration of Bloody Sunday in Selma.

Shomari Figures

A U.S. Representative from Alabama whose district was redrawn by the federal court.

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What they’re saying

“I'm concerned that all of the advances that we made for the last 61 years are going to be eradicated.”

— Charles Mauldin (abc7chicago.com)

“The feeling is a profound fear that we will be taken back - a greater fear than at any time since 1965.”

— Hank Sanders, Former Alabama State Senator (abc7chicago.com)

“I think coming to Selma is a refreshing reminder every single year that the progress that we got from the Civil Rights Movement is not perpetual. It's been under consistent attacks almost since we've gotten those rights.”

— Shomari Figures, U.S. Representative from Alabama (abc7chicago.com)

What’s next

The Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on a Louisiana case regarding the role of race in drawing congressional districts. A ruling prohibiting or limiting that role could have sweeping consequences, potentially opening the door for Republican-controlled states to redistrict and roll back majority Black and Latino districts that tend to favor Democrats.

The takeaway

The annual commemoration of Bloody Sunday in Selma serves as a powerful reminder that the hard-won voting rights gains of the civil rights movement are not guaranteed and remain under threat, even decades later. As the Supreme Court weighs a case that could weaken the Voting Rights Act, civil rights leaders are sounding the alarm that the progress made since 1965 could be in jeopardy.