Images of peaceful protesters, including Lewis, who were beaten by police circulated widely in the days and weeks after the events and still resonate today.
Lewis, who then served more than three decades in the House, had returned to the bridge annually to recreate the march with other legislators and community leaders.
The call from Clyburn, the House’s majority whip and lead member of the Black Caucus of Congress, adds momentum to long-standing efforts to rename the bridge. Pettus, his namesake, was a Confederate Brigadier General and US Senator before becoming the great dragon of the Ku Klux Klan of Alabama.
The renewed momentum comes as the debate over monuments to the Confederacy is amplified in the wake of national protests against systemic racism and police brutality.
“I think they will take a nice photo of that bridge named Pettus, put it in a museum somewhere, dedicate it to the Confederacy, and then they will rename that bridge and paint it, redecorate it – the John R. Lewis Bridge, “added Clyburn.” I think that will give the Selma people something to mobilize. “
