Alabama State University News February 26, 2016 Alumnus Frederick Reese Receives Congressional Gold Medal By Lois G. Russell ASU alumnus and civil rights foot soldier, the Rev. Frederick D. Reese, was honored with the Congressional Gold Medal during a ceremony at the White House. Alumnus Frederick D. Reese was awarded a Congressional Gold Medal in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 24, for his role as a "foot soldier" of the Civil Rights Movement and as an organizer of "Bloody Sunday," the historic event that led to the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Dozens of foot soldiers who participated in that 1965 march across Selma's Edmund Pettus Bridge attended the ceremony held Wednesday in Emancipation Hall at the White House. Reese and U.S. Representative John Lewis (D-Ga.), who was severely beaten when the marchers first tried to cross the bridge, were selected to actually receive the Congressional Gold Medal on behalf of all of the foot soldiers. Reese, a 1951 ASU graduate and a longtime Selma minister, was the president of the Dallas County Voters League during the '60s. He invited the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to come to Selma and join the protest for voting rights. "I am certainly honored to be able to stand here and look into such beautiful faces, and to recall how good God has been," Reese said. "Truly this is a great honor. For when we think about the many difficult roads that we have traveled, and the many beatings we might have taken...but God saw fit to allow us to be here at this hour. I don't know what you told Him when you woke up this morning, but I told him 'thank you.'" The ceremony included speeches by House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions and U.S. Representative Terri Sewell also spoke. Sewell, a native of Selma and Alabama's first black congresswoman, released the following statements about the event: "I am proud to have Rev. Frederick D. Reese of Selma receive this great honor on behalf of the Foot Soldiers who participated in 1965 Selma to Montgomery Marches. Rev. Reese was the leader of the Dallas County Voter League that first invited Dr. King to Selma. For over fifty years, Rev. Reese has stood as a stalwart of the voting rights movement. His acceptance of this Congressional Gold Medal is emblematic of everyone who marched, prayed and died in the pursuit of civil and voting rights in America. "As a direct beneficiary of their sacrifices, I am honored that we finally pay tribute to these heroic men and women with the highest civilian honor Congress can bestow. It is because of the Foot Soldiers that I have the privilege of being the first black Congresswoman to represent the State of Alabama. While we can never truly repay the Foot Soldiers for the sacrifices they made, we honor their legacy by continuing the ongoing fight to preserve and protect the voting rights of all Americans." About the Congressional Gold Medal Since the American Revolution, Congress has commissioned gold medals as its highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions. The medal was first awarded in 1776 by the second Continental Congress to General George Washington. About the 1965 Marches from Selma to Montgomery Voting rights activists were brutally attacked by Alabama state troopers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma on March 7, 1965. This day, now known as Bloody Sunday, was the first of three planned, peaceful protests from Selma to Montgomery. Nearly 2,500 Foot Soldiers led by Dr. Martin Luther King attempted a second march two days later on March 9, 1965, now known as "Turnaround Tuesday." Ultimately, an estimated 8,000 Foot Soldiers left Selma on March 21, 1965, and successfully marched to Montgomery to peacefully protest restrictive voting laws that prevented African-Americans from voting. These marches led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 on August 6, 1965. SANDRA M. PHOENIX Executive Director HBCU Library Alliance sphoenix@hbculibraries.org<mailto:sphoenix@hbculibraries.org> www.hbculibraries.org<http://www.hbculibraries.org/> 800-999-8558, ext. 4820 404-592-4820 Skype: sandra.phoenix1 Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/hbculibraryalliance1/ 1438 West Peachtree NW Suite 200 Atlanta,GA 30309 Toll Free: 1.800.999.8558 (LYRASIS) Fax: 404.892.7879 www.lyrasis.org<http://www.lyrasis.org/> Honor the ancestors, honor the children.