After Selma@50: Keep Marching!

My heart and spirit were in Selma this weekend, where more than 500 UUs, including many of our faith’s leaders, joined together with the families of Jimmie Lee Jackson, Rev. James Reeb, and Viola Liuzzo. While I couldn’t be there in person, the vivid images and stories coming out of Selma from our fellow UUs, Love People and justice partners made it feel as though I were. You can listen to the recordings from visionary leaders like the Rev. C.T. Vivian, a veteran of the civil rights movement with Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Opal Tometi, one of the founders of #BlackLivesMatter and Executive Director of Black Alliance for Just Immigration, Rev. Dr. William Barber II, leader of the North Carolina NAACP and Forward Together movement, along with many others, on the Living Legacy Project (LLP) website. While there, you can watch the the Reeb, Liuzzo, and Jackson families being given Courageous Love Awards, recognizing the sacrifices of their family members.

Love in Selma on the Edmund Pettus Bridge this past weekend

Whether you were there in body or spirit, here are some other ways to connect with the events in Selma:

• Check out the great short video documentary from the New York Times on Rev. Clark Olsen who was with Rev. Reeb when he was brutally attacked in Selma.
• Read through this great Storify from UUWorld and be inspired by the photos and reflections shared throughout the past few days.
• Join our webinar on Black Lives Matter next Tuesday, March 17 at 4pm Eastern/1pm Pacific.

It was repeated often throughout the weekend that #BlackLivesMatter is a civil rights framework of this generation. Are you wondering what you can do to harness the energy after Selma and ways to support this growing movement? Join our upcoming SSL webinar on Black Lives Matter- the movement, organizing for racial justice, solidarity and more- next week, Tuesday March 17 at 4pm EST/1pm PST. Join us at www.anymeeting.com/uuajustice1 for our webinar featuring young adult UU leaders Jova Lynne Vargas and Kenny Wiley. Click here to RSVP and let us know you’ll be joining us.

In faith,

Audra Friend

Communications Coordinator, Multicultural Growth & Witness, UUA

P.S. Tomorrow the new Standing on the Side of Love website will launch, featuring powerful images directly out of Selma. We are excited to launch our new site on the heels of the love pouring out of Selma, and the rallying cry from so many, including President Obama, that our work to end white supremacy and work for racial justice is clearly not yet done.