#130 - Don't Like Sad Sundays

Good-bye Rep. Lewis

The rains gushed outside our window this morning, but the skies were clear in Selma, AL.

On TV, Don and I watched the horse drawn wagon, carry Mr. Lewis's casket over the Edmund Pettus bridge. 

The wagon made a few stops along the way. Each time, the gentleman holding the reins, stood, removed his black top hat and placed it over his heart.

The horses and wagon traveled over the very bridge, where Mr. Lewis was beaten during a peaceful protest march in 1965. Red rose pedals covered the pavement, this time.

Renaming the Bridge

​I hope others join in and work to rename this bridge for John Lewis. There is no need to have the name of a KKK leader, in bold letters.

This bridge is a sad reminder of Bloody Sunday. But with a new name, it can be a hopeful symbol of progress. John Lewis marched for African American voting rights in 1965. He continued to stand up for voting rights until his final days.

Looking Back and Forward

Seeing the procession on TV, took me back to our visit to Alabama, in 2013. Don and I crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge and thought about the marches in 1965.

Don and I also visited the nearby, isolated community of Gee's Bend. We stayed in the home of Mary Ann Pettway. We heard stories about her community, that helped us better understand what happened in Selma. 

Mary Ann shared memories of the day Dr. King came to her Baptist Church. He persuaded many in her tiny community, to register to vote and to join the march in Selma. Mary Ann's stories were especially powerful to hear, knowing that her last name originally belonged to the plantation owner, who once owned her enslaved relatives.
 
100 Days 100 Years

In exactly 100 days, it will be Election Day! During these months ahead, I'm going to think more about those who have struggled and worked for that right. I'll think about John Lewis and Dr. King. I'll think about Mary Ann and her family. I'll also think about those women suffragettes, who marched 100 years ago... so I could vote!