Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Mar 21, 1965 One Nation One Day in Selma

I am so proud of my Father who was there, who took part in this, who recorded this, who still today, a peace activist member of Veterans for Peace, who helped just a little bit that day along with many others, we must continue to do the same.
I'm humbly privileged to share this moment in history with you 
and this letter from him to you...

Dear folks;

Over the years I've come to believe everything happens for a reason, and this is no exception:

I'd been searching for decades for negatives I'd taken on March 21, 1965 at the beginning of Martin Luther King's auspicious march from Selma to Montgomery.

Then, on March 16 (which happens to be the date a federal judge ruled Alabama could not block the proposed march), while searching for tax records, I came upon a file box.

In it were packets stuffed with envelopes of hundreds - maybe a thousand or more - of old negatives.  

I selected one packet, extracted an envelope, slid out a negative, and even recognized it in the dim light of our garage.

On today's date - April 4th - in 1968 - Martin Luther King was shot dead, at age 39, while standing on a balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis Tennessee.

So it feels appropriate that I send out some photos of what possibly was the most auspicious event in MLK's life.

This was actually the third time they started out.  The first attempt ended violently on the Selma-side of the Edmund Pettus bridge with beatings, tear gas, and attacks by police dogs.

The second was a "token" march to the bridge while awaiting a federal decision on the legality of the march.

I'd love to someday identify the children in this picture!

The media descended on MLK during a rest stop about a mile outside of Selma.  

(The guy at upper right puts me in mind of a '60s "undercover" federal agent….)

I'd read reports that the Alabama National Guard & State Police were summoned to protect the marchers, but no mention of troops from Ft. Hood, Texas.

I recall photographing them too, and hope to find those negatives someday.

I've never been one to recognize faces, but that's surely Jessie Jackson on the left?

Resuming the march.  Notice the leis around the necks of leaders?  

They were presented by a group of people in the next photo.

 I am so sorry, for our Hawaiian friends, about the blurry quality of this shot.

 I was stumbling backward, trying to frame everybody in the viewfinder!

I've seen estimates from 3,000 to 10,000 marchers.  All I know is it was a lo-o-o-o-ng line stretching back to Selma on that day.

 I hope these 48 year-old photos still hold some meaning for you.  

Alan J.