Florida A&M University’s Sociology and Criminal Justice Club hosted their third Thursday Lecture Series, where Catrena Carter and Faya Rose Touré spoke about the 51st annual Selma Bridge Crossing Jubilee, in FAMU’s Perry Paige Auditorium.
Every year the Bridge Crossing Jubilee Inc. hosts the commemoration of the historic event and the struggle for the right to vote by gathering at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge in a festival of music, art and historical remembrance in Selma, Ala.
The dates for the Bridge Crossing Jubilee this year will be March 3-7, with March 7 being the day of the Selma-to-Montgomery reenactment march.
Founder of Selma’s Bridge Crossing Jubilee Faya Rose Touré gave a history lesson about the importance of voting, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and taught students songs about the men who died for African-American’s right to vote.
“Two-hundred thousand black men (and) 40,000 died. We sing this song for the forgotten ones. We sing this song for the brave and the strong, who fought for our rights,” Touré sang.
Catrena Norris Carter, national coordinator of Selma’s Bridge Crossing Jubilee, explained for the first time FAMU’s Sociology and Criminal Justice Club is in partnership with the Bridge Crossing Jubilee.
“We have all the local schools involved, but with Florida A&M, we wanted your youth volunteers to be an intimate part of the planning and execution of the event,” Carter said.
Kayla Crawley, president of Sociology and Criminal Justice Club, is currently negotiating with SGA to fund the trip to Selma for FAMU students.
“I have a meeting with SGA about funding the entire trip. If that goes through then it will be open to the university,” Crawley said.
Last year about 200,000 people were in attendance. Attendees included President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.
This year they will host a hip-hop summit where Doug E. Fresh, rapper better known as the Human Beat Box, will be the host and moderator.
For more information or communication, contact Kayla Crawley at Kayla1.crawley@gmail.com or 850-843-7064