The year was 1965 and the struggle for Civil Right was heating up in the United States. Thousands, Black & White, gathered with Martin Luther King to participate in an event which would be marked as the turning point towards improvement, especially in Alabama. Their march from Selma to Montgomery drew national attention to the Civil Rights movement's efforts to secure Blacks' constitutional right to register for and participate in the election process. The ensuing outcry, that engulfed the entire country, shamed Lyndon Johnson and the US Federal Government into enacting legislation forcing George Wallace ( Alabama's governor ) to honor all voting rights. Present, during this historic event, was a 22 year old Canadian photographer named Lynn Ball. He returned with a series of provoking pictures which captured Americans at their most shameful and bravest. From shots of the racist crowds, including law enforcement, to those marching with Mr. King , those moments have forever been captured to remind us of how far we have come and to help us honour those who risked their lives for what they believed in. The Owen Sound Emancipation Festival is proud to announce that an exhibit of 28 of the most striking photos from the Selma march has been loaned to us and will be on display at Grey Roots Museum & Archives beginning July 31st as part of the annual Speakers' Forum event. Doors open at 6:00 PM and admission is $20 at the door or online at www.emancipation.ca. This is an exhibit of historic importance, a "must see" as we celebrate the 50thanniversary of the Selma March and thank those lead the way in this struggle. The evening will also include a Coffin Ridge cash bar, a tribute to Owen Sound's own Tommie Earlls and a presentation by Elizabeth Abbott, a noted historian, author and speaker whose research covers many aspects of Slavery and little know stories of that period.

source: media release, Emancipation Festival