SELMA, Ala. – Rep. John Lewis, who was attacked with tear gas and police’s billy clubs on Bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama, in 1965, made an unexpected, inspiring appearance at the 55th anniversary remembrance of the protest, leading marchers across the Edmund Pettus Bridge on Sunday.

Lewis, who was recently diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, was not expected to be at the event until an announcement from his office the morning of the final day of Jubilee, the annual events marking the voting rights protests in Selma.

“I thought I was going to die on this bridge. But somehow and some way, god almighty helped me here," he said of what he experienced 55 years ago.

Lewis then told the crowd on the bridge to keep fighting today.

"We must keep the faith, keep our eyes on the prize," he said. "We must go out and vote like we never ever voted before. Some people gave more than a little blood. Some gave their very lives."

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Lewis’ appearance overshadowed the presidential candidates posturing for Alabama’s voters allegiance ahead of the state's primary on Tuesday. All of the major candidates seeking the Democratic Party’s nomination except Bernie Sanders were expected to be in Selma over the weekend.

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Former Vice President Joe Biden, fresh off his decisive South Carolina primary victory, spoke at Brown Chapel, as did Michael Bloomberg.

Biden earned the endorsement of U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell and U.S. Sen. Doug Jones before Biden’s remarks.

Protesters turn their backs on Bloomberg

When Ryan Haygood saw democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg get up in front of the audience at Brown Chapel AME Church, he hoped the former mayor of New York would take the opportunity to “right a wrong.”

He didn't, so Haygood turned his back on him – literally, joining a group of about seven other people in protest after Bloomberg didn't address his mayoral administration's controversial stop-and-frisk policy.

Bloomberg was invited to speak during Selma’s Jubilee, an annual event marking “Bloody Sunday” when hundreds of protesters were beaten and battered while marching across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in 1965.

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The event has long been an opportunity for national candidates to share their platforms and drum up support from black voters. Bloomberg already faced an uphill climb before he stepped up to the pulpit at Brown Chapel.

But Haygood was open to what Bloomberg had to say.

Bloomberg gave an anecdote about how as a young Boy Scout he helped walk Amelia Earhart’s mother to the polls, an instance that resonated with him because as a woman, she had not always had the right to vote.

“There are so many still being denied the right to vote simply because of the color of their skin,” Bloomberg said. “The voter suppression did not end. If it had, Stacey Abrams would be Gov. Abrams.”

Bloomberg hammered hard on voter suppression, as did Biden and keynote speaker Abrams. It was the controversial stop-and-frisk program that Bloomberg supported during his time as mayor that Haygood hoped he might atone for.

Bloomberg made no mention of the program, which has gotten him significant criticism during his campaign.

“I was sitting there really wrestling with the fact that 55 years ago 600 or more people assembled at this church and they prayed and prepared to be brutalized by Alabama state troopers about a half a mile up the bridge,” Haygood said.

“Then comes Michael Bloomberg who when he was the mayor of New York City presided over those very kinds of police brutality practices and policies. So in my mind, I thought, though I was surprised to see him come through the doors, I thought he would use this space to atone for that.“

When it became apparent to Haygood that Bloomberg was not going to “atone for that” he quietly stood and turned his back to the candidate. Slowly, about seven people beside him stood and also turned their backs. A few more people across the church did the same.

They stood for about 30 seconds before Bloomberg realized what was happening. He paused, then stumbled over his words before picking back up with his speech.

“There’s a direct connection to the police brutality on Bloody Sunday and that brutality he presided over in NYC. So I thought he would lean into the moment, to really acknowledge it, take responsibility for it and atone for it,” Haygood said. “And not only did he not do that, it was clear to me that he wasn’t even going to address the issue at all. And so I wrestled with it. So I felt like I had to do something to acknowledge that that’s not OK especially in this sacred space. This is a space that changed the world.”

Despite not openly acknowledging the small protest, Haygood said he’s confident Bloomberg understand what was happening.

“I think he came in with prepared remarks. I don’t think he thought carefully about the audience,” Haygood said. “He could have given that speech anywhere. This is not anywhere. There’s a reason why every year, you get the highest elected officials in the land, all the candidates for president, I think, they all came. There’s a reason they come to this church. It’s because the people here have power and the history is powerful, and the history informs the present. So he’s not free to dismiss what he did as the mayor of one of the largest city’s in the country. Hundreds of thousands of lives devastated and he could have atoned for that here. It was a missed opportunity for him.”

Follow Montgomery Advertiser reporter Kirsten Fiscus on Twitter @KDFiscus

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