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These three Overviews show the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama in 1965; fifty years later in 2015; and in the present day.
This bridge became a symbol of the Civil Rights Movement on March 7, 1965 – now known as “Bloody Sunday” – when peaceful demonstrators seeking to cross it on a march from Selma to Montgomery were brutally attacked by Alabama state troopers. The Selma to Montgomery marches were organized to demonstrate the constitutional rights of black voters and were sparked by the fatal shooting of activist Jimmie Lee Jackson several days prior. Ultimately, televised footage of the violence on the Edmund Pettus Bridge sparked national outrage and spurred President Lyndon Johnson to respond (in support of the protestors), ultimately paving the way for the passage of the Voting Rights Act in August 1965. In 2015, more than 40,000 people gathered to commemorate the anniversary of Bloody Sunday and were led across the bridge by Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush, Representative John Lewis (who was present at Bloody Sunday), and activist Amelia Boynton Robinson.
32.405556°, -87.018611°
Source imagery: Associated Press and Maxar
https://dailyoverview.tumblr.com/post/619943436010897408