How bloodshed in Selma led to the US Voting Rights Act 1965

In March 1965, hundreds of peaceful civil rights protesters in Selma were brutally beaten by Alabama state troops. They had been marching to demonstrate against the denial of voting rights to Black Americans. The bloodshed in Selma prompted President Lyndon B Johnson to push for the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant pieces of legislation ever passed by Congress. The landmark Act was brought in to tackle racial discrimination during elections and to guarantee the rights of African Americans to vote. Farhana Haider has been listening to the archive. A version of this programme was first broadcast in 2020. Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more. Recent episodes explore everything from football in Brazil, the history of the ‘Indian Titanic’ and the invention of air fryers, to Public Enemy’s Fight The Power, subway art and the political crisis in Georgia. We look at the lives of some of the most famous leaders, artists, scientists and personalities in history, including: visionary architect Antoni Gaudi and the design of the Sagrada Familia; Michael Jordan and his bespoke Nike trainers; Princess Diana at the Taj Mahal; and Görel Hanser, manager of legendary Swedish pop band Abba on the influence they’ve had on the music industry. You can learn all about fascinating and surprising stories, such as the time an Iraqi journalist hurled his shoes at the President of the United States in protest of America’s occupation of Iraq; the creation of the Hollywood commercial that changed advertising forever; and the ascent of the first Aboriginal MP. (Photo: Civil rights leader Dr Martin Luther King at the Selma to Montgomery march. Credit: Getty Images)

You can listen to How bloodshed in Selma led to the US Voting Rights Act 1965 online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

How bloodshed in Selma led to the US Voting Rights Act 1965 is an episode from Witness: Witness Black History by BBC.

This episode is 9:53 long.

This episode was published on Mar 7, 2025.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Witness: Witness Black History when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.