National

Plans for 2 Separate Selma Marches Cancelled as Groups Unify

Published

11 years ago

February 17, 2015

Oakland Post

Bernard Lafayette (Courtesy Photo)

By George E. Curry
NNPA Editor-in-Chief

WASHINGTON (NNPA) – A very public conflict between the Bridge Crossing Jubilee, Inc., the local group that has been commemorating the 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery March for more than four decades, and the largely White-run The Faith & Politics Institute, a Washington-based group that had organized competing marches in Selma and Montgomery on the weekend commemorating the 50th anniversary of “Bloody Sunday,” has been resolved with both groups agreeing to participate in a single march in Selma, a coalition of organizations has announced.

“The organizations in the unified committee will sponsor one march, the sacred Bloody Sunday re-enactment march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge on Sunday, March 8, 2015,” the 10 major organizations said in a joint press release. “No organizations in the unified committee will sponsor and or participate in any other march.”

The Faith & Politics Institute, which focuses on bringing people together to reflect on spiritual values and hold conversations across racial, religious, ideological and party lines, had announced plans to hold a march led by President Obama in Selma on Saturday, the day before the big march, and a separate march and rally on Sunday in Montgomery that would have competed directly with the annual bridge-crossing ceremonies. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), who was brutally beaten on “Bloody Sunday,” is closely affiliated with the Faith & Politics Institute.

In an “Open Letter” to the group, dated Feb. 11, Alabama State Senator Hank Sanders of Selma wrote, “It appears to me that Faith and Politics has set out to not only diminish but to destroy Bloody Sunday. You not only scheduled another march on Saturday in Selma but you scheduled a march and rally in Montgomery on Sunday during the afternoon when the sacred Bloody Sunday March takes place in Selma. It would have been so simple to hold your events in Montgomery on Saturday and join the events in Selma on Sunday. However, the arrogance of power has caused you to try to diminish the sacred Bloody Sunday March and Commemoration and change history.”

After publication of Sanders’ letter, representatives from 10 organizations – including the Bridge Crossing Jubilee, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), Rainbow PUSH, the National Action Network (NAN), The Faith in Politics Institute, and the National Voting Rights Museum in Selma – came together to resolve the conflict.

The end result is that President Obama will speak in Selma on Saturday, March 7, the actual anniversary of the Bloody Sunday, but there will be no march in Selma that Saturday or in Montgomery on Sunday. The Faith in Politics Institute and local organizers have clashed before.

“This was not the first time I am sorry to say that the issue of who will be among those on the front lines has recently become a bone of contention. Faith and Politics has insisted that only members of the Faith and Politics delegation be on the front lines,” Sanders wrote. “We have insisted that some of the nearly 600 other individuals who were also on the Bridge on Bloody Sunday in 1965 be included. In 2013 when Vice President Biden was here, Faith and Politics wanted to allot only 30 places for survivors of Bloody Sunday with 270 places for members of their delegation, including congressional staff members. When an agreement was worked out that it would be half and half, Faith and Politics then had the Secret Service give virtually every place to members of the Faith and Politics delegation. It seems that you value status, power and money far more than you value blood, sacrifice, struggle and history.”

According the Sanders, “In the 17 or so years that Faith and Politics has been coming to the Bridge Crossing Jubilee, not once have you organized a March or contributed in any way. You raise millions of dollars by claiming to sponsor the Bloody Sunday March but never paid for even a chair, a porto-toilet, water or anything else. You never organized other people to come if they were not in your delegation. You just show up and insist on privilege even though you refused to be a co-sponsor because you could not be the sole sponsor. This is about your privilege and power. Bloody Sunday is about sacredness, sacrifice and struggle.”

Other organizers said that in the annual jousting for positioning in the march, attempts were made to remove Charles Steele, Jr. president of SCLC, from the front of the line even though Dr. Martin Luther King’s old organization organized the original march.

Messages seeking comment were left Tuesday for both the interim president and communications director of The Faith & Politics Institute but were not returned by press time. The federal government, schools, and many offices in the nation’s capital were closed Tuesday because of inclement weather.

Event organizers said Bernard Lafayette, board chairman of SCLC and an early organizer in Selma, played a key role in brokering an agreement between the sparring groups. Lafayette, an ordained minister and longtime civil rights activist, has credibility in both camps and conducts conflict resolution training around the world.

With a truce now in place, march organizers are looking to the future with a list of activities that will span five days, from Thursday, March 5, through Monday, March 9.

Thursday’s activities will include a play about Jimmie Lee Jackson, whose death was the impetus for the Selma-Montgomery March, and a memorial for the martyrs of the Civil Rights Movement. Friday’s activities will include a session on women in the Civil Rights Movement, an educational summit, a session on organizing tactics, and a mock trial.

Saturday’s highlights include a parade, a voting rights workshop, breakout sessions on such topics as environmental justice and mass incarceration, a film festival capped by the Freedom Flame Awards Gala and an Old School blues show and dance.

The Sunday schedule begins with a Martin Luther and Coretta Scott King Unity Breakfast, a pre-march rally at famed Brown chapel AME Church with the bridge crossing at 2:30 pm, followed by a rally and salute to the movement’s foot soldiers. The march from Selma to Montgomery will take place on Monday, ending with a rally at the Alabama State Capitol.

A complete listing of events is posted on the website www.selmajubilee.com.

The joint press release stated, “The Living Legends Dialogue on Saturday, March 7, 2015 will feature Diane Nash, Bob Moses, Claudette Colvin, Dr. Bernard Lafayette and the youth leaders of the Black Lives Matter Movement.”

The coalition said it was also welcoming back “the foot soldiers and leaders of the Voting Rights Movement,” including former Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) President John Lewis, Amelia Boynton, Dick Gregory, and former SCLC stalwarts Joseph Lowery, C.T. Vivian, Andrew Young, Diane Nash, Bernard Lafayette and Jesse Jackson.

“Ten major civil rights organizations have unified to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of Bloody Sunday and the Selma-to-Montgomery Marches,” they said in a joint press release. “We have jointly created more than 40 events for this historic anniversary weekend…”

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Oakland Post: Week of December 24 – 30, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – December 24 – 30, 2025

Published

16 hours ago

December 25, 2025

Oakland Post

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Desmond Gumbs — Visionary Founder, Mentor, and Builder of Opportunity

Gumbs’ coaching and leadership journey spans from Bishop O’Dowd High School, Oakland High School, Stellar Prep High School. Over the decades, hundreds of his students have gone on to college, earning academic and athletic scholarships and developing life skills that extend well beyond sports.

Published

5 days ago

December 20, 2025

Oakland Post

NCAA football history was made this year when Head Coach from Mississippi Valley State, Terrell Buckley and Head Coach Desmond Gumbs both had starting kickers that were Women. This picture was taken after the game. Courtesy photo.

Special to the Post

For more than 25 years, Desmond Gumbs has been a cornerstone of Bay Area education and athletics — not simply as a coach, but as a mentor, founder, and architect of opportunity. While recent media narratives have focused narrowly on challenges, they fail to capture the far more important truth: Gumbs’ life’s work has been dedicated to building pathways to college, character, and long-term success for hundreds of young people.

A Career Defined by Impact

One of his most enduring contributions is his role as founder of Stellar Prep High School, a non-traditional, mission-driven institution created to serve students who needed additional structure, belief, and opportunity. Through Stellar Prep numerous students have advanced to college — many with scholarships — demonstrating Gumbs’ deep commitment to education as the foundation for athletic and personal success.

NCAA football history was made this year when Head Coach from
Mississippi Valley State, Terrell Buckley and Head Coach Desmond
Gumbs both had starting kickers that were women. This picture was
taken after the game.

A Personal Testament to the Mission: Addison Gumbs

Perhaps no example better reflects Desmond Gumbs’ philosophy than the journey of his son, Addison Gumbs. Addison became an Army All-American, one of the highest honors in high school football — and notably, the last Army All-Americans produced by the Bay Area, alongside Najee Harris.

Both young men went on to compete at the highest levels of college football — Addison Gumbs at the University of Oklahoma, and Najee Harris at the University of Alabama — representing the Bay Area on a national level.

Building Lincoln University Athletics From the Ground Up

In 2021, Gumbs accepted one of the most difficult challenges in college athletics: launching an entire athletics department at Lincoln University in Oakland from scratch. With no established infrastructure, limited facilities, and eventually the loss of key financial aid resources, he nonetheless built opportunities where none existed.

Under his leadership, Lincoln University introduced:

Football
Men’s and Women’s Basketball
Men’s and Women’s Soccer

Operating as an independent program with no capital and no conference safety net, Gumbs was forced to innovate — finding ways to sustain teams, schedule competition, and keep student-athletes enrolled and progressing toward degrees. The work was never about comfort; it was about access.

Voices That Reflect His Impact

Desmond Gumbs’ philosophy has been consistently reflected in his own published words:

“if you have an idea, you’re 75% there the remaining 25% is actually doing it.”
“This generation doesn’t respect the title — they respect the person.”
“Greatness is a habit, not a moment.”

Former players and community members have echoed similar sentiments in public commentary, crediting Gumbs with teaching them leadership, accountability, confidence, and belief in themselves — lessons that outlast any single season.

Context Matters More Than Headlines

Recent articles critical of Lincoln University athletics focus on logistical and financial hardships while ignoring the reality of building a new program with limited resources in one of the most expensive regions in the country. Such narratives are ultimately harmful and incomplete, failing to recognize the courage it takes to create opportunity instead of walking away when conditions are difficult.

The real story is not about early struggles — it is about vision, resilience, and service.

A Legacy That Endures

From founding Stellar PREP High School, to sending hundreds of students to college, to producing elite athletes like Addison Gumbs, to launching Lincoln University athletics, Desmond Gumbs’ legacy is one of belief in young people and relentless commitment to opportunity.

His work cannot be reduced to headlines or records. It lives on in degrees earned, scholarships secured, leaders developed, and futures changed — across the Bay Area and beyond.

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Families Across the U.S. Are Facing an ‘Affordability Crisis,’ Says United Way Bay Area

United Way’s Real Cost Measure data reveals that 27% of Bay Area households – more than 1 in 4 families – cannot afford essentials such as food, housing, childcare, transportation, and healthcare. A family of four needs $136,872 annually to cover these basic necessities, while two adults working full time at minimum wage earn only $69,326.

Published

5 days ago

December 20, 2025

Oakland Post

Affordable housing is the greatest concern for consumers, it’s followed by the cost of groceries. Courtesy photo.

By Post Staff

A national poll released this week by Marist shows that 61% of Americans say the economy is not working well for them, while 70% report that their local area is not affordable. This marks the highest share of respondents expressing concern since the question was first asked in 2011.

According to United Way Bay Area (UWBA), the data underscores a growing reality in the region: more than 600,000 Bay Area households are working hard yet still cannot afford their basic needs.

Nationally, the Marist Poll found that rising prices are the top economic concern for 45% of Americans, followed by housing costs at 18%. In the Bay Area, however, that equation is reversed. Housing costs are the dominant driver of the affordability crisis.

“The national numbers confirm what we’re seeing every day through our 211 helpline and in communities across the region,” said Keisha Browder, CEO of United Way Bay Area. “People are working hard, but their paychecks simply aren’t keeping pace with the cost of living. This isn’t about individual failure; it’s about policy choices that leave too many of our neighbors one missed paycheck away from crisis.”

The Bay Area’s affordability crisis is particularly defined by extreme housing costs:

Housing remains the No. 1 reason residents call UWBA’s 211 helpline, accounting for 49% of calls this year.
Nearly 4 in 10 Bay Area households (35%) spend at least 30% of their income on housing, a level widely considered financially dangerous.
Forty percent of households with children under age 6 fall below the Real Cost Measure.
The impact is disproportionate: 49% of Latino households and 41% of Black households struggle to meet basic needs, compared to 15% of white households.

At the national level, the issue of affordability has also become a political flashpoint. In late 2025, President Donald Trump has increasingly referred to “affordability” as a “Democrat hoax” or “con job.” While he previously described himself as the “affordability president,” his recent messaging frames the term as a political tactic used by Democrats to assign blame for high prices.

The president has defended his administration by pointing to predecessors and asserting that prices are declining. However, many Americans remain unconvinced. The Marist Poll shows that 57% of respondents disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy, while just 36% approve – his lowest approval rating on the issue across both terms in office.