Get to know your ancestors storiesthe lives they lived, their hardships and triumphs. Questioning the historical accuracy of selma the new. About 600 people began a 50mile march from selma to the alabama state capitol in montgomery on march 7, 1965. Black in selma is the expansive autobiography of j. Our city is best known for the 1960s selma voting rights movement and the selma to montgomery marches, beginning with bloody sunday in march 1965 and ending with 25,000. Chestnut later cowrote in his book, black in selma, the march to. Located on the banks of the alabama river, the city has a population of 20,756 as of the 2010 census. The film captures this gruesome assault quite accurately and. In fact, kings main aim in the phone conversation was to persuade johnson to appoint a black to the.
Selma does a magnificent job of recreating important historical. The issue of historical accuracy continues to dog selma, though its hard to gauge how much the brouhaha contributed to the films inability to land best director and actor oscar nods. Selma tells the civil rights story through black eyes. Johnsons portrayal in selma has come under fire for historical accuracy by historians who argue its unfair to depict johnson as having an. He is the author of seven books, including, most recently, no end save. Selma is a 2014 historical drama film directed by ava duvernay and written by paul webb. Oscar season is here, which means a flurry of factbased. In 1963 the student nonviolent coordinating committee sncc endeavoured to register african american voters in dallas county in central alabama. The backlash against its supposed historical inaccuracies may have led the. Selma suffers as a piece of history, i would guess, because director ava. It could serve as a common frame of reference for all of selmas citizens, black and white, and certainly for people in other places, including other parts of alabama. Contrary to the portrait painted by selma, lyndon johnson and martin luther king jr.
Selma does a magnificent job of recreating important historical scenes, such as the events of 7 march 1965 known as bloody sunday in which alabama state troops. Selma, alabama cnn in 1965, alabama state troopers and local deputies stopped and clubbed black activists as they marched peacefully from selma to. Readers react to questions about the accuracy of a new film in its. Controversy over whats fact and fiction in selma film. Johnson thought the public pressure generated by a march from selma to montgomery, the capital of alabama, would be helpful, and he hoped there. The selma to montgomery march was part of a series of civilrights protests that occurred in 1965 in alabama, a southern state with deeply entrenched racist policies. The movie selma has a glaring flaw the washington post. The historical accuracy of selmas story has been the subject of controversy about the. Selmas economy was stimulated by the emergence of the cotton trade throughout alabamas black belt. The director of the african american history museum weighs in on. Four black girls walking down stairs in the birmingham, alabama 16th street baptist. Opinion a historical controversy about selma the new. Returning to selma, chestnut was the towns first and only african american attorney in the late 1950s. The flawed history of selma warts and all finally, we have a major film on civil rights in which african americans are the heroes in their own story.
Leaving no doubt that shes prepared to defend her movie against attacks on grounds of historical accuracy, selma. But so far as the scope of the movie goes, martin luther kings. Selma was a trading center and market town during the antebellum years of king cotton in the south. Places to go selma to montgomery national historic trail. It can also be reached via alabama 14 just a 45minute drive west of prattville. The school has expanded over the years, from its initial enrollment of four students to graduating more than 4,000 students. Selma, in the heart of the black belt, became a focus for black registration drives in the early 1960s and, in 1965, was chosen by african american civil rights leaders as the site from which to launch a march on montgomery, the state capital, to dramatize the plight of the disfranchised.
The focus of those efforts was the county seat, selma, where only about 1 or 2 percent of eligible black voters were registered. Angie detoro is among those who attends almost every year. Selma has won critical raves for its depiction of martin luther king jr. Our city is best known for the 1960s selma voting rights movement and the selma to montgomery marches, beginning with bloody. I drive from colorado to tennessee to pick up my mom and sister, then continue the drive to alabama. Although selma is impressive in most of its historical accuracy. Chestnut later cowrote in his book, black in selma, the march to montgomery was the first enterprise id ever seen involving black. Selma is a city in and the county seat of dallas county, in the black belt region of south central alabama and extending to the west.
Selma questions are nothing new for historical films. In 1965, dr martin luther king jr led a campaign in selma, alabama. Opinion a historical controversy about selma the new york times. The film stars actors david oyelowo as king, tom wilkinson as president lyndon b. They intended to protest discriminatory practices that. The director of the african american history museum weighs. Even when a history films trying to be accurate, it may fall short because of the very nature of the medium.
Selmas pilgrimage draws visitors from near and far to experience its diverse history and architecture. Family trees are just not complete without the details available in. Selmadallas county historic preservation society, selma, al. And apparently the writers of my school history book lied, only 1 million. Her current projects include the black belt dna project, hosted by family tree dna, with the goal of reconnecting alabama black belt families whose ties were torn apart by slavery, the civil war and the diaspora and a pictorial history of selma, alabama, with donald stone. Factchecking best picture nominee selma duvernay has said that her goal was to capture the complexity of every character in the film, including. It is based on the 1965 selma to montgomery voting rights marches led by james bevel, hosea williams, martin luther king jr. This search engine lets you search up to 2,804,127 pages of free genealogical data with a single query. Selmadallas county historic preservation society home.
It made it very easy for me to look up specific dates, marches, etc. Selma university, an historically black college hbcu, opened its doors on january 1, 1878, with the goal of instructing black baptist ministers and freedmen. Located on the banks of the alabama river, the city has a population of 20,756. Selma, which is nicknamed the queen city of the black belt and the butterfly capital, is the county seat of dallas county, alabama. Henry allen, selmas first black firefighter and fire chief, poses at his former high school now the r. Still a city of slaves selma, in the words of those. Born in selma in 1930, chestnut left home to study law at howard university in washington, dc. Located 12 miles outside selma off highway 22 south, this fascinating historic and archaeological site offers ruins to explore and period artifacts to see alabama historical commission. This is a great book to use if you need information. The truth about selma, my latest book, dares to broach this forbidden subject.
The selmadallas county historic preservation society is pleased to accept nominations for its beautification awards honoring residential and business property owners who have contributed to the cultural, aesthetic, environmental, and. I gave this book 5 stars becuase it is a great research tool and it tells the story of selma in 1965 very well. The 11th annual black belt african american genealogy conference and family history fair will be held on saturday, february 18, 2017 at the selmadallas county public library in historic selma, alabama. Discover more about your ancestors than names and dates in selma newspapers. Controversy over whats fact and fiction in selma film the irish times. Johnson was enthusiastic about voting rights and the president urged king to find a place like selma and lead a major demonstration. Historian questions accuracy of selma portland press. A film with black history at its core and created by african americans opens up a. The school enrolls approximately 540 students and since its founding has been the major project of the alabama. Selma, alabama, newspaper archives 1864 genealogybank. Johnson thought the public pressure generated by a march from selma to montgomery, the capital of.
Home selmadallas county historic preservation society. Johnson tom wilkinson to discuss the issue of black people being denied their legal right to vote. By distorting an essential truth about the relationship between. W elcome to selma, alabama the county seat of dallas county, in the black belt region of south central alabama and extending to the west. The historical and political issues in selma world. Further boosts to its early economy included steadily increasing steamboat traffic on the river throughout the 1820s and 1830s and the chartering of the selma and tennessee rivers railroad in 1836. Hudson middle school, which was were he first became involved in advocacy, in selma. Director ava duvernays film follows the 1965 voting rights march from selma, alabama to the state capitol in montgomery. He is the author of more than a dozen books on history, race and museum scholarship.
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