Rights movement. I spent ten days staying in Selma’s Hotel St. James, just feet from the Edmund Pettus Bridge where one of the most important moments in the Movement that came to be known as Bloody Sunday happened on March 7, 1965 as civil rights marchers were beaten, tear gassed, and killed by Dallas County Police as the marchers tried to cross the bridge on their way to Montgomery. The Hotel St. James is incredibly special, and what I discovered ten years ago was that on any given night, one can sit at the bar, and inevitably sitting next to you and often available for incredible conversation will be one of the children still living in Selma, of the heroic marchers on that fateful day- many of whom had put up Dr. King in their homes during the important time in the Movement.
Returning to Selma, to cover the 50th anniversary, I was determined, despite the fact that the 42 rooms had been booked for months if not years, to get a room in this hotel to experience the 50th anniversary. My wife Rachel, and almost three year old daughter Dawson and I checked in on the Tuesday, before the weekend when the rooms were all booked, knowing that we could likely be forced to check out as the weekend approached, but also knowing from experience that once in a hotel, there are always cancellations, and if the hotel management comes to appreciate you, they tend to look after you. Liking one another was not difficult. Each time I have stayed in the Hotel St. James, the best part about the experience is the beautiful spirit of the hotel staff, themselves mostly, from Selma. This year, the excitement of the commemoration was overwhelming. And we felt privileged to make friends with the entire staff, including the waiters and waitresses in the restaurant, all of whom particularly loved our adorable red haired baby girl Dawson. On the Friday morning, as we were having breakfast, our waitress, “Skaii” a beautiful young woman whose family had moved from the south to Detroit, and then back, who we had befriended, leaned over and said, “The beautiful 103 year old woman sitting in a wheel chair at the table next to you is Mrs. Amelia Boynton Robinson, who helped lead the march as a young woman in 1965, and was beaten unconscious, and became one of the most important inspirations of the American Civil Rights Movment.” And as we realized who this was, my heart sped with excitement, and as I stood to walk over to pay my respects, our baby girl Dawson wanted to come too. Mrs. Amelia Boynton Robinson smiled with affection and love as Dawson reached to touch her hand, and for several minutes, after then kissing Dawson’s hand, she went on to tell Dawson stories about marching with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. , the Civil Rights Movement, and about how they contributed to achieving the Voter Registration Act. This has become for me one of the most precious and meaningful photographs that I have ever made. I have also been overwhelmed and grateful by the extraordinary response it has received. And this photograph will hang prominently in our home as we will always want Dawson to remember and be inspired by Mrs. Amelia Boynton Robinson, one of our country’s national treasures and true heroes.
©David Turnley, all rights reserved. Selma, Alabama, 2015.
Returning to Selma, to cover the 50th anniversary, I was determined, despite the fact that the 42 rooms had been booked for months if not years, to get a room in this hotel to experience the 50th anniversary. My wife Rachel, and almost three year old daughter Dawson and I checked in on the Tuesday, before the weekend when the rooms were all booked, knowing that we could likely be forced to check out as the weekend approached, but also knowing from experience that once in a hotel, there are always cancellations, and if the hotel management comes to appreciate you, they tend to look after you. Liking one another was not difficult. Each time I have stayed in the Hotel St. James, the best part about the experience is the beautiful spirit of the hotel staff, themselves mostly, from Selma. This year, the excitement of the commemoration was overwhelming. And we felt privileged to make friends with the entire staff, including the waiters and waitresses in the restaurant, all of whom particularly loved our adorable red haired baby girl Dawson. On the Friday morning, as we were having breakfast, our waitress, “Skaii” a beautiful young woman whose family had moved from the south to Detroit, and then back, who we had befriended, leaned over and said, “The beautiful 103 year old woman sitting in a wheel chair at the table next to you is Mrs. Amelia Boynton Robinson, who helped lead the march as a young woman in 1965, and was beaten unconscious, and became one of the most important inspirations of the American Civil Rights Movment.” And as we realized who this was, my heart sped with excitement, and as I stood to walk over to pay my respects, our baby girl Dawson wanted to come too. Mrs. Amelia Boynton Robinson smiled with affection and love as Dawson reached to touch her hand, and for several minutes, after then kissing Dawson’s hand, she went on to tell Dawson stories about marching with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. , the Civil Rights Movement, and about how they contributed to achieving the Voter Registration Act. This has become for me one of the most precious and meaningful photographs that I have ever made. I have also been overwhelmed and grateful by the extraordinary response it has received. And this photograph will hang prominently in our home as we will always want Dawson to remember and be inspired by Mrs. Amelia Boynton Robinson, one of our country’s national treasures and true heroes.
©David Turnley, all rights reserved. Selma, Alabama, 2015.
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