Selma: Personal Response

Selma Movie Poster by eastwoodsabre.com

In the film Selma, the black community is not easily allowed to vote despite the fact that voting has been a legal right to US Citizens and legal residents despite race as described in the 15^th amendment since 1870. Martin Luther King Jr. inspires the black community of Selma, Alabama, where more than 50% of the population is black and yet they are still denied their right to vote, to stand up in a non-violent protest movement with him to make the change.  After multiple deaths of blacks and whites, in the year of 1965 the Voting Rights Act was fulfilled thanks to Mr. King. I really enjoyed watching this film because it allowed me to learn in more detail about the extreme unfairness and struggle the black community had to go through to simply fulfill their natural right to vote. Although throughout the movie I saw many individuals, whom are repulsively racist and nonhuman, I also saw kind and loving people whom made me believe back again in humanity. This movement attracted many religions, races, and ethnicity to come together and support the black community despite knowing their lives would be at risk. As part of the Latino community, I myself have witnessed discrimination and I have also been involved with protests regarding the Latino and immigrant rights such as The Dream Act. These experiences strongly influence my evaluation of this film because I can strongly relate to the hurt caused by the unfairness and discrimination supported by the law itself. The law is said to protect us, but in history the law has harmed the black community and other minority groups such as Latinos and to this day the law continues to do so. I simply cannot justify under any circumstances the violent and discriminating actions of the white people shown in the film or of any one today because it is nonhuman to do such things to anybody. 

Martin Luther King Jr at the Selma march with other protesters of all races and religions- by thedailybeast.com