Lynda Blackmon Lowery to Be Honored by Harlem Theater Groups & Organizations

Voza Rivers/New Heritage Theatre Group and the Loire Valley Theatre Festiva invite you to join the gala celebration of Lynda Blackmon Lowery, March 21 at 6 p.m. (EST)

56 years ago, Lynda Blackmon Lowery set out on the historic voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery and across the Edumud Pettus Bridge. She was the youngest of the official participants and walked a total of 54 miles.

Two weeks earlier, at the age of 14, she received 37 stitches on her face and the back of her head after being beaten unconscious by Dallas County Sheriff deputies. Still, she was determined to finish what she, her friends and neighbors from the George Washington Carver Homes in Selma had started — to convince the Governor of Alabama, the President of the United States, and the U.S. Congress to pass the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which guaranteed African Americans the right to vote.

Blackmon Lowery was inspired to join the movement after hearing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. speak at Brown Chapel AME Church, across the street from the housing project where she lived. She remembers Dr. King telling the congregation that you could convince anyone to do anything with “Steady, loving, confrontation.” These words became her mission, both as a young activist being led by John Lewis, Amelia Boynton and others, and as a lifelong crusader for better healthcare for women.

Registration for the event is free, and those who register will be able to stream the musical drama, Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom, from March 20 through March 22.

Source: Voza Rivers/New Heritage Theatre Group