Black Church Leaders March in Selma After Supreme Court Weakens Voting Rights Act
Nearly 100 faith and voting rights leaders gathered in Selma, Alabama, on May 16, 2026, for the All Roads Lead to the South rally. The march came in response to a Supreme Court ruling that struck down a key provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Participants marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge toward the Alabama State Capitol in Montgomery.
Nearly 100 faith and voting rights leaders gathered in Selma, Alabama, on May 16, 2026, for a rally and march in response to a recent Supreme Court decision that weakened a key provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
The event, called All Roads Lead to the South, was organized by Black Voters Matter, the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, and the NAACP's Legal Defense Fund. Organizers expected approximately 5,000 attendees, with over 50 satellite events held across the country for those unable to travel to Alabama.
The march began with a prayer service at Selma's historic Tabernacle Baptist Church, the site of the first mass voting rights meeting in 1963. Participants then marched silently across the Edmund Pettus Bridge toward the Alabama State Capitol in Montgomery, retracing the route of the 1965 civil rights marches.
The Supreme Court's 6-3 ruling in Louisiana v. Callais, issued on April 29, 2026, declared Louisiana's attempt to add a second Black-majority congressional district unconstitutional. Justice Samuel Alito's majority opinion questioned whether compliance with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act justified drawing districts based on race. The ruling has prompted states including Tennessee and Alabama to redraw congressional maps in ways that critics say reduce Black political representation.
The Rev. Bernice A. King, daughter of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., called the ruling a "shameless assault on Black political power" but said she expected it to galvanize voting rights activists nationwide.
U.S. Sen. Cory Booker addressed the crowd, warning against losing the rights and liberties won by previous generations. Montgomery Mayor Steven L. Reed and Tennessee State Sen. Charlane Oliver also spoke.
Pastor Mike McBride, lead pastor at The Way Christian Center in Berkeley, California, described Selma as "the hallowed ground of our struggle" and called on the Black prophetic church tradition to lead the response.
The crowd chanted "we won't go back" and "we fight" throughout the march. Gospel songs and prayers marked the event, reflecting the Black church's historic role in the civil rights movement.
