This is a guest opinion

This year is significant for many reasons, not the least of which is that it marks 58 years since foot soldiers attempted to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge (named for a Confederate leader and member of the Alabama Ku Klux Klan) as part of a 50 mile plus trek to the state capitol in pursuit of the right to vote. When marchers originally attempted to cross the bridge on March 7, 1965, they were violently attacked and beaten. Civil rights organizer Amelia Boynton Robinson was brutally beaten as she attempted to cross the bridge, where Sheriff Jim Clark and a host of deputies were stationed. Clark and his officers promptly unleashed a bloody beating on Boynton Robinson, John Lewis, Hosea Williams, and countless others.

The impetus for the march was the killing of Jimmie Lee Jackson, who was beaten and shot in the stomach as he tried to protect his mother. Jackson was a deacon and civil rights activist who wanted a better life for himself, his family, and the Black community. Others, such as Universalist minister and pastor James Reeb, were beaten and killed.

Those experiences were a sobering reminder that for Black Americans, no right has ever come easily. Whether voting rights, the right to buy a home, the neighborhood in which to buy a home, or access to equitable education or quality health care – nothing has come easily for Black people. In a nation built on slavery and the exploitation of Black lives, I’m not sure we could expect anything else. But the sacrifice of lives, wealth and health has been staggering. It has meant that the pursuit of basic rights cost our ancestors their hope for physical safety, their sense of comfort, and – in many cases – their lives or those of their family members.

In the same way a great sacrifice was required for every right that we hold dear, those of us living today must prepare ourselves – mentally and educationally – to not only fight for equal rights but to continue imagining the lives that we want for ourselves and future generations. Then we must vow to never relent until that imagination is reality. In the face of death or marginalization, we must never relent in our quest for justice today and tomorrow.

I offer this assessment as many in the South prepare to commemorate the Selma to Montgomery March. But my thoughts also come on the 10th anniversary of the gutting of the Voting Rights Act of 1965; it was gutted in June 2013 when the Supreme Court struck down sections 4 and 5. My thoughts also come on the eve of a decision in the Merrill vs. Milligan decision, which is about challenging inequitable and unfair districting lines.

From the 1950s and 1960s to the present day, Alabama continues to be at the center of the voting rights movement. But more importantly, it continues to be a reminder that the fight for voting rights has never ended – it has simply evolved. While our ancestors were initially kept from crossing the bridge through force and great violence, we are once again at a crucible. Today, many Black Americans in Alabama and beyond are questioning whether the law is on our side and whether our government will protect us. The commemoration of “Bloody Sunday” and the ultimate Selma to Montgomery March should serve as catalysts to keep moving forward.

In addition to organizing to protect and expand the right to vote, we should also remember that everything we hold dear is on the line. That is true across the nation, but it has particular resonance here in Alabama where the Black community has been assaulted time and time again. That means that Black people are not only struggling to protect and expand the right to vote, but many are also struggling with aging infrastructure and underinvestment in our cities. For instance, Selma was recently the site of a devastating tornado. The tornado highlighted infrastructure problems and historic underinvestment. Some of the families who were displaced during the tornado have been living in hotels since Jan. 12. They need resources and funds as well as contractors and developers who not only want to help but understand the history of injustice and how it shows up in Black communities.

In a year of many commemorations, this is an opportunity to remember and recommit. Our ancestors went as far as they could go. We have the torch, and we must remember that freedom requires sacrifice. I’m glad to see future generations eager to do their part in the pursuit of freedom. For instance, recently several students from Alabama walked out of schools after being told they could not talk about events that occurred in Black history prior to 1970. Students in Florida also staged a walkout. Students understand that we all have something to contribute. They are doing what was in their power to do, and that is all we can ask of one another. Resist where and when you can in any way that you can.

Dr. Adia Winfrey is executive director of Transform Alabama and a fellow of the Black Southern Women’s Collaborative.