rs, we have returned with congressman john lewis to the sacred story of the civil rights movement for guidance and inspiration. and we are grateful and honored to be here in selma today. and i'm especially pleased to be on this platform with the daughter of wholesale williams, who carries on -- of hosea williams, who carries on in her father's tradition and the daughter of george wallace, who carries a different tradition. 50 years later, issues at the hayes -- the heart of race historic issues of equity cry out again with fresh urgency. our nation's political life calls a new -- anew for acts of faith in the promise of a perfect union. may we become worthy of a legacy

-- of the legacy and go forward in courage. thank you. [applause] >> good afternoon. to the faith in politics delegation, to all of the foot soldiers, and to all of my christian brothers and sisters in christ, i am the mayor of somaelma and then here to send greetings to you, all of you that have joined us for this momentous occasion. president obama is not here yet, however i want to extend the courtesy to them as well as to the bush family. i say to president barack obama thank you for coming to some a once again. on behalf of the city council

and to all of the citizens of soma in -- selma, we thank you for being here today on this historic occasion. into the first lady of the united states of america, -- and to the first lady of the united states of america -- [cheers] -- mrs. michelle obama, the first lady of selma alabama wishes you, each of you, warm welcome and cheer. thank you for being here, mr. president, former president george bush and his wife. we appreciate your coming to selma on this occasion equally as well. this is a very -- this is a very

humbling occasion for us all. i'm happy to be here at this time and this season. we have come a long way, the we yet have a long way to go because we still have many, many bridges to cross. selma is not the selma of 1955. this state of alabama is still not the state of alabama of 19 five. the majority -- 1965. the majority of the people of this state are praying that with god's help we will eventually get it right. so that those who might follow us might have a better quality

of life. the very powerful movie "selma" is having to reveal those bridges of life. i want to thank oprah winfrey and i want to think even given a --eva dubonnet. and i want to thank the whole entire cast and paramount movies for making it. [applause] and as i close, there is a little girl here in selma, alabama, who submitted a recipe to mrs. obama about two years ago about healthy living.

that team selected her recipe from all of the 50 states of these united states to be the winner. [no audio] [applause] and she was selected last year to be the poster child for the whole united date in healthy -- whole united date in healthy living. -- whole united states in healthy living. [applause] another little girl, though she would not call herself little, jade armstrong. she spent much of last year addressing the issue of immigration. she was in the 11th grade at selma high school. the president responded to her letter, thanking her for letter about immigration.

he might even use some of her points to draw on. thank you very much ,jada. and lastly, thanks to all of you who have come to soma -- selma today. my hope and prayer is that each of you will come back one day again and have a pleasant and safe drive home. i want to thank the volunteers, and there are many, who we've asked to be part of this process. i know they are just regular citizens. thank you so much for volunteering. may god bless us, and god continues to bless us. [applause]

>> i am hank sanders. i want to say great day to everybody. isn't it great day? i want to acknowledge every leader of every stripe, because it is not easy to be a leader. so i knowledge you. -- acknowledge you. i specifically want to acknowledge my wife who is the architect and moving force of bloody sunday celebrations and commemoration starting back in the 1970's and continuing every single year up to today. [applause] i want to acknowledge all of those organizations that have over the years worked with

bloody sunday and the bridge crossing jubilees, including enacting the voting rights museum 21 -- 21st century youth leadership movement at the trinity college. and dr. mitchell, and so many other organizations and groups. i specifically want to say to the president how much we appreciate him coming. we believe he is one of the greatest presidents of all time -- [cheers] -- and we are glad to have him in i want to make three points. putting razor under attack in a way -- voting rights are under attack in a way to they have not been under attack since 1965.

the supreme court of the united states has gutted section five, which was the enforcement provision. now, we have requirements sweeping across the country from photo id to vote, and proof of citizenship to register. less voting days, less registration days, less voting hours. less registration hours. and many other ways. we must stop this march back to the past. we have to recall that we had the right to vote, or at least lachman had the right to vote in the 1870's. and it wasn't long before it was lost. we cannot lose it again. we must do everything in our power to preserve the right to vote, and making universal.

the second point is this, it's great to come and celebrate. but this must be more than a celebration. it must be more than a commemoration. it must be a time to recommit to the full universal right to vote and we need to do that in our hearts and in our spirits. in our lives. if not, 50 years from now, we won't have anything to celebrate, or anything to commemorate. we must do everything we can. the final point is, we must restore the full effectiveness of the voting rights act. [applause] it's not enough to have a milquetoast voting right act of section five. it's not enough to have a very weak section five.

we have to have the full effectiveness of section five of the 1965 voting rights act. i know that there are some people who say we can't get it. but if you will recall in 1965, there was not a chance that we would have the voting rights act. but there were some people who went forward. one side had everything. they had all of the laws and law men, all of the guns and gun men. all of the business and jobs, all of the banks and money all of the radio stations and television stations. they had everything, and the other side and have nothing. but they took marching feet and singing songs and they took praying prayers and a spirit of nonviolence, and we got the most effective piece of civil rights legislation that was ever enacted by the congress of the united states.

that's the spirit we have to go forth and make sure that we have universal voting rights. not just for black people, but for everybody. if we do that, this commemoration will have been a great success. i thank you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please st shortly. live coverage on american history television, on c-span3. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, please

welcome the president of the united states and mrs. michelle obama, accompanied by president bush and his is laura bush, and congressman john lewis. ♪ [applause] [cheers]

>> good afternoon, again. i have the distinct pleasure to this time to introduce to you and to bring to the podium, alabama state governor. [applause] >> president obama, mrs. obama president bush, mrs. bush, congress and lewis, congress and sewall, mayor evans.

it is an honor for me to be on the stage with you today, and to welcome all of these people to this great state of alabama. it's a personal honor for me to join in today's historic occasion on the edmund pettus bridge that has become a monument itself to the struggle for civil rights over the past 50 years. this bridge represents the strength and determination, the loss and pain that have come to define the civil rights movement in america. it's an honor for me to stand here among you today on behalf of the state of alabama. 50 years ago, approximately 600 people marched across this very bridge on their way to montgomery to demand the right to vote. those marchers, many who were nameless, had a bold vision to change the culture of america.

selma stood poised, center stage, as a series of historical events unfolded around us, as the fight for civil day in our nation's history as the route to montgomery was met with violence. we have all seen the images and heard the stories of those men and women who desired the right to vote. this nation was founded by men of many nations and backgrounds. it was founded on the principle that all men are created equal. in 1965 the rights of man were threatened because every man did not have the right to vote. we as a state and a nation are forever changed for having learned the lessons the bold leaders of 1965 taught us. leaders like dr. martin luther

king and my good friend congressman lewis and so many of you who were involved in this movement. we need more men and women who are not afraid to stand up and work for what they believe in. alabama is a different state today than it was in between1965 and so is our nation. we have come a long way since the events of that bloody sunday. selma changed america. selma changed the world. today we honor the memory, the work and sacrifice of those who saw a better vision for our state and our country. and it is extremely important for younger generations to know about the sacrifices that were made on this bridge and in the entire civil rights movement.

but we choose to look beyond those ugly scars and focus on what alabama really is and what it can be. alabama is my sweet home. i was raised here and i have a great love and respect for all the people who call themselves bam alabamans. it is a place where economic opportunity abounds and there are good paying jobs and our children can get a good education. children of all backgrounds. it is a place where neighbors love and care for one another and they work together on issues that are important to all of us. so, while we look back on a difficult chapter in alabama's history it is important that we write a new chapter together where opportunities exist for everyone regardless of race or religion or politics. as we reflect on the past 50

years, i think it is important to ask what will alabama look like like? what will our nation look like 50 years from now? that is up to our people. it is up to our leaders. it is up to those who have a bold vision that make america and alabama better and stronger than it was in 1965. as leaders, may we never lose vision or the boldness to do great things no matter how hard the struggle is. for without vision the people may perish. 50 years ago the eyes of the world were on alabama. today, i invite you to look at alabama again. our state is a place where we can all call sweet home alabama. may god bless this great nation and may god bless there great

state of alabama forever. thank you very much. >> good afternoon, america. welcome to my hometown of selma. to president apdnd mrs. bush to president and mrs. obama, to all of you, it is indeed a great day to be in selma, alabama. as the daughter of selma i have crossed this bridge many times. many times i have felt the weight carried by the brave foot soldiers of the voting rights movement. many times i have thanked them for their courage that they displayed in the face of extreme

hatred. i first began to understand the history of the edmond pettis bridge when i was five years old. my mom started to explain to me the events that took place on that bridge. it was hard for me to understand what it was like to drink from a separate water fountain because that was not the selma i knew. my selma was fully integrated. my selma further clear-- nurtured me. my selma led me to believe a little black girl could achieve any of her dreams. i was encourage ed tod to dream my dreams because of the foot soldiers that crossed the edmond pettis bridge. any dared to confront a wall of alabama state troopers, unarrangement, undaunted and unafraid. we can not celebrate how far we

have come without acknowledging however we need to still go. there is unfinished business unfinished business of the voting rights movement. it is person for all of us to know that the story of selma is a story of america. it is america's struggles. it tells us that ordinary americans can collectively work to achieve extraordinary social change. the cause of the tpaotfoot soldiers marched for is still important today, and as we as americans we must become ever vigilant to protect the gains of the past and expand and promote their legacy. selma is now. every generation faces its own social and political struggles. there is still much work to be done. in fact, it frswas a person 105

years old who was my special guest at the state of the union, as many passed her in the hall they would say mrs. boynton who said get off my shoulders. there is plenty of work to do. so i say to you america there is plant of work to do. may weal leave selma -- may we all leave selma inspired by the foot soldiers of continuing their legacy of fighting for quality and justice for all. i have the great honor of introducing somebody i didn't know how to address when i first came to congress. do i call him colleague? do i call him congressman lewis? do i dare call him john? he is a civil rights icon and a hreullittle black girl from selma

stands in his shadow. it is because of you john, that so many of us get to walk the halls of congress, to get the sit in the oval office. it is because of you, john, and your bravery and the bravery of those foot soldiers. it is because of your bravery and the bravery of those foot soldiers that i get to be alabama's first african-american congresswoman. [applause] congresswoman: to say thank you is not enough. we know we have unfinished business to do, john. and i promise we know there is much work to do. i present to you the civil rights icon john lewis. john lewis: thank uyou, my dear.

thank uyou, my sterbgs -- sister, my colleague, for those kind words of introduction. my beloved brothers and sisters members of the american family on this day, we as a nation have a great deal to be thankful for. jimmy lee jackson, jimmy lee jackson, whose death inspired the selma march along with so many others did not make it to see this day. but you and i are here. we can bear witness to the

distance we have come and progress we have made in 50 years and we must use this moment to recommit ourselves to do all we can to finish the work that still is left to be done. get out there and push and pull until we redeem the soul of america america. now i want to thank president barack obama and mrs. obama, president bush press george bush and mrs. bush for being here today. i want to thank all the members of the cabinet and the administration who are here my colleagues in the congress, all the elected officials including the great give robert bentley and including the phaeurmayor of selma george evans and all other

american people. i would like for all members of congress in our delegation just to stand. [applause] john lewis: thank you. i want to thank the group for bringing us together one more time and the core leaders of our delegation senator tim scott senator sherry brown, and the representatives. thank you so much. it sis good to mrs. boynton of course our first contact when we came to sell ma in 1962. she was registering people to vote long before we arrived. i'm also glad it see the daughter of governor george

wallace here peggy wallace kennedy. thank you for being here, peggy. i want to thank each and every one of you who marched across the bridge on bloody sunday. you didn't have to do it but you did it. thank you! i will tell you it is good to be in selma one more time just one more time. people often ask me why do you come back? what purpose does it serve? we come to sell ma to be renew renewed. we come to be inspired. we come to be reminded that we must do the worbgk that we are called to do. on march 7, 1965 a few innocent children of god, some carrying

small things, a plain purse or a backpack were inspired to walk 50 dangerous miles from selma to montgomery to demonstrate the need for voting rights in the state of alabama. on that day on that day, 600 people marched into history, walking two by two down the sidewalk sidewalk. not interfering with trade and commerce. not entering with traffic. it was a kind of military discipline. we were so peaceful, so quiet

no one saying a word. some of us were left bloody right here on this bridge. 17 of us were hospitalized that day. but we never became bitter or hostile. we kept believing that the truth we stood for would hold the final point. this city on the banks of the bengal -- alabama river gave birth to a move that changed it nation forever. our country will never be the same because of what happened on this bridge. eight days after bloody sunday the president of the united states lin bane -- lyndon baines

johnson delivered one of the most important speeches ever made on voting ratesights. he said the time for justice has come. i believe sincerely that no force can hold it back. he went on to say it is right in the eyes of man and god that it should come. he said at times history an fate meet at a single time in a single place to shape a turning point in man's search for freedom. he said so it was at lexington and concord, so it was at appomattox. so it was in selma, alabama. each of us must go back to our homes after this celebration and build on a legacy of the march

of 1965. the selma movement exists today so we can all do something. so i say to you don't give up on saying that has great meaning. don't get lost in a sea of despair. stand up for what you believe. because in the final analysis we are one people, one family, the human family. we all live in the same house, the american house. the world house. we are black, we are white, we are hispanic asian american, native american. but we are one people. thank you. [applause] john lewis: my beloved brothers

and sisters it is a great honor for me to return to my home state of alabama to present to you not just to introduce to you but to present to uyou the president of the united states. if someone had told me we would cross there bridge that one day i would be back here introducing the first african-american president i would have said you are crazy, you are out of your mind. you don't know what you are talking about. president barack obama. [applause]

president obama: you know i love you back. it sis a rare honor in this life to follow one of your heroes. and john lewis is one of my heroes. now, i have to imagine that when a younger john lewis woke up that morning 50 years ago and made his way to brown chapel heroics were not on his mind.

a day like this was not on his mind. young folks with bed rolls and backpacks were milling about. veterans of the movement, trained new colorado com -- new colorado comers in that. describe what tear gas does to the body for giving information to contact their loved ones. the air was thick with doubt and anticipation and fear. and they comforted themselves with the final verse of the final hymn they sung. no matter what may be the test god will take care of you.

lean weary one upon his breast, god will take care of you. and then his nap sack stocked with an apple, a toothbrush and a book on government, all you need for a night behind bars john lewis led them out of the church on a mission to change america america. president and mrs. bush, governor bentley, mayor evans congresswoman sewell reverend strong, members of congress, elected officials, foot soldiers, friends fellow americans

americans, as john noted there are places and moments in america where this nation's destiny has been decided. many are sites of war. concord and lexington. appomattox. gettysburg. others are sites that symbolize the daring of america's character. independence hall and seneca falls. kitty hawk and cape canaveral. selma is such a place. one afternoon 50 years ago so much of our turbulent history. the state of slavery and anguish of civil war. the yoke of segregation and tyranny of jim crow. the death of four little girls in birmingham and the dream of a

baptist preacher. all that history met on this bridge. it was not a clash of armies but a clash of wills. a contest to determine the true meaning of america. and because of men and women like john lewis joseph flowers, jose williams, amelia boynton diane nash, ralph abernathy andrew young fred shuttlesworth. dr. plant martin -- dr. martin luther king jr. the idea of a just america and fair america and inclusive america and generous america that idea ultimately triumphed.

as is true across the landscape of american history we can not examine this moment in isolation. the march on selma was part of a broad are campaign that spanned generations generations. the leaders that day part of a long line of heroes. we gather here to celebrate them. we gather here to honor the courage of ordinary americans willing to endure billy clubs and the chasening rods, tear gas and the trampling hoof and despite the gush of blood and splintered bone would stay truth to their north star and keep marching toward justice. they did a scripture instructed for joy and hope, be patient in tribulation.

be constant in prayer. in the days to come they went back again and again. when the trumpet call sounded for more to join the people came. black and white. young and old. christian and jew. waving the american flag singing the same anthems full of faith and hope. a white newsman, bill plant, who covered the marches then and is with us today quipped that the growing number of white people lowered the quality of singing. to those that marched those gospel songs must have never sounded so sweet. in time their chorus would well up and reach president johnson.

and he would send them protection and speak to the nation echoing their call for america and the world to hear. we shall overcome. what enormous faith these men and women had! faith in god, but also faith in america america. the americans who crossed this bridge, they were not physically imposing but they gave courage to millions. they held no elected office but they led the nation. they marched as americans who had endured hundreds of years of brutal violence, countless daily indignities. but they didn't seek special treatment, just the equal

treatment. promised to them almost a century before. what they did hear will reverberate through the ages. not because the change they won was preordained. not because their victory was complete complete. but because they proved that non nonviolent change is possible. that love and hope can conquer hate hate. as we kphrepl rate their a-- commemorate their achievement we are well served to remember at the time of the marches many in power condemned rather than praised them. back then they were called communists or half breeds or outside agitators. sexual and moral degenerates and

worse. they were called everything but the name their parents gave them. their faith was questioned. their lives were threatened. their patriotism challenged. and yet what could be more american than what happened in this place? [applause] president obama: what could more profound profoundly vindicate the idea of america than plain and humble people unsung, the down trodden the dreamers not of high stations not born to wealth or privilege, not of one religious tradition but many coming together to shape their country's course. what greater expression of faith in the american experiment than this? what greater form of patriotism is there than the belief that america is not yet finished,

that we are strong enough to be self-critical and each successive generation can look upon our impression perfection -- imperfections and make it nation to more closely align with our highest ideals. that is why selma is not some outlier in the american experience. that is why it is not a museum or a static monument to behold from a distance. it is instead the manifestation of a creed written into our founding documents. we the paoepleople, in order to form a more perfect union we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal. these are not just words. they are a living thing a call

to action, a road map for citizenship and an insistence in the capacity of free men and women to shape our own destiny. for founders like franklin and jeff for leaders like lincoln and f.d.r., the success of our experiment in self-governance rested on engaging all of our citizens in this work. and that is what we celebrate here in selma. that is what this movement was all about. one leg in our long journey toward freedom. american instinct that led the gunman and women to bid up the torch and cross this bridge, that is the same instinct that joe's revolution of her tyranny. the same instinct that led women

to reach for the ballot, workers to organize against an unjust this -- unjust status quo. the idea held by generations of citizens who believe that america is a constant work in progress, who believe that loving this country requires more than singing its praises or avoiding uncomfortable truths it requires the occasional disruption, the willingness to speak out for what is right, to shake up the status quo. that is america. [applause] that is what makes us unique. that is what cements our reputation as a beacon of opportunity. young people behind the iron curtain what is he selma and eventually tear down that wall. young people would hear bobby

kennedy talking about ripples of hope and eventually banish easterners of apartheid. young people in burma went to prison rather than submit to military rule. they saw what john lewis had done. this generation of young people can draw strength from this place where the powerless to change the world's greatest tower and -- power and push their leaders to expand the battery -- boundary of freedom. they saw that idea made real here in selma, alabama. they saw it manifest itself here in america. because of campaigns like this, the voting rights act was passed. political and economic and social barriers came down and the change in these men and women brought is visible here today in the presence of african

americans who run boardrooms, served in elected office from the congressional black caucus all the way to the oval office. [applause] because of what they did, the doors of opportunity's long open and not just for every american. women marched, latinos marched, asian-americans, gay americans, americans with disabilities, they all came through those doors. [applause] their endeavors gave the entire south the chance to rise against by transcending the past. what a glorious thing, dr. king might say. and what a solemn debt we o

we. which leads us to ask, how might we repay that debt? first and foremost, we have to recognize that one day of commemoration, no matter how special is nowt enough. if the selma taught us anything, it is that our work is never done. the american experiment in self-government gives purpose to each generation. selma teaches us that action requires that we shed our cynicism. when it comes to the pursuit of justice, we can afford neither complacency nor despair. just this week i was asked whether i thought whether the department of justices ferguson report shows with respect to

race, little has changed in this country. i understood the question. the report narrative was sadly familiar. it evoked the kind of abuse and disregard for citizens that its bond the civil rights movement -- that spawned the civil rights movement. but i reject the notion that nothing changed. this is no longer ascension by law or by custom and before the civil rights movement, it surely was. [applause] we do it is service to the cause of justice by intimating that bias and discrimination are immutable. that racial division is inherent in america. if you think nothing has changed in the past 50 years ask someone who lived through the selma or chicago or los angeles of the 1950's. asked the female ceo who once

might have been assigned to the secretarial pool if nothing has changed. as her gay friend of his is easier to be out in american now than it was 30 years ago. to deny this progress, this hard-won progress, our progress would be to rob us of our own agency, our capacity, our responsibility to do what we can to make america better. of course, mr mistake is these are just -- a more common mistake is the suggestion ferguson is an isolated incident that racism is banished, the work that drew men and women to selma is now complete and whatever racial tensions that remain are the consequences of those wanting to play the race card. we don't need the report to know that is not true. we just need to open our eyes and ears and hearts to know this

nations racial history still casts its long shadow upon us. we know the market is not yet over. we know the race is not yet won. we know reaching that destination requires admitting as much, facing up to the truth. we are capable of bearing a great burden. james baldwin once wrote. once we discover that the burden is reality and a live where reality is, there is nothing america cannot handle if we look squarely at the problem. this is work for all americans not just some. not just whites, not just blacks.

if we want to honor the courage of those who marched that day, all of us are called to possess a moral imagination. all of us need to feel the fierce urgency of now that change depends on our action our attitudes, the things we teach our children. if we make such an effort, no matter how hard it may sometimes seem, laws can be passed. consciences can be stirred. consensus can be built. with such an effort, we can make sure our criminal justice system serves all and not just some. we can raise the level of mutual trust that policing is built on, the idea that police officers are members of the community they risk their lives to protect it. citizens in ferguson, new york,

cleveland, just what the same thing and people here marched for 50 years ago, the protection of the law. [applause] together, we can address under sentencing and overcrowded prisons and the stunted circumstances that rob to many boys of the chance to become men and the nation of too many men who could be good dads and good workers and good neighbors. [applause] with effort, we can rollback poverty at the roadblocks to opportunity. americans don't accept a free ride for anybody. nor do we believe in equality of outcomes but we do expect equal opportunity and if we really mean it, if we're not just given lip service, but if we really mean it and are willing to sacrifice for it, we can make sure every child gets an education the double to this -- suitable to this new century. one that expands imagination and

gives children the skills they need. we can make sure every person willing to work as the dignity of a job and a fair wage and a real voice and sturdier rungs on the ladder to the middle class. and with effort, we can protect the foundation stone of our democracy for which so many marched across this bridge and that is the right to vote. [applause] right now, in 2015, 50 years after selma, there are laws across this country designed to make it harder for people to vote. as we speak, more such laws are being proposed. meanwhile, the voting rights act , the culmination of so much blood, so much sweat and tears,

the project of so much sacrifice in the face of want. the voting rights stance weekend. it is good your subject to political ranking. how can that be? the voting rights act was one of the crowning achievements of our democracy, the result of republican and democratic efforts. [applause] president reagan signed its renewal when he was in office. president george w. bush side its renewal, 100 members of congress have come here today to honor people who are willing to die for the right to protect it. if we want to honor this day, let that 100 go back to washington and gather 400 more and together, planned to make it their mission to restore that law this year. that is how we honor those on this bridge. [applause]

of course, our democracy is not the task of congress alone. or the courts alone. or even the president alone. if every new voter suppression law was struck down today, we would still have in america one of the lowest voting rate among free peoples. 50 years go, registering to vote here in selma and much of the south meant guessing the number of jellybeans in a jar, the number of bubbles on a bar of soap, risking or dignity and sometimes your life. what is our excuse today for not voting? how do we so casually discard the right for which so many thought? -- fought?

how do we give away our power, our voice in shaping america's future? why reported to someone else when we could take the time to go to the polling place? we give away our power. so much has changed in 50 years. we have endured war and we fashioned piece. -- peace. we have seen technological wonders. we take for granted conveniences that our parents could have scarcely imagined. but what has not changed is the imperative of citizenship. that willingness of a 26-year-old begin or unitarian minister or a mother of five to decide they love this country so

much that they would risk everything to realize its promise. that is what it means to love america. that is what it means to believe in america. that is what it means when we say america is exceptional. for we were born a change. we broke the old aristocracies declaring ourselves not by bloodlines but endowed by our creator with certain a new n unintelligible -- unalienable rights. that is why we argue and fight with so much passion and conviction. we know our efforts matter. america is what we make of it. look at our history. we are lewis and clarke. we are pioneers who braved them

familiar followed by a stampede of farmers and miners and entrepreneurs. that is our spirit. that is who we are. we are sojourner truth. women who could do as much as any man and then some. we're susan b anthony shut the system until the lot resulted that truth. that is our character. we are immigrants stone away on ships to reach these shores, the hubble masses -- huddled masses, holocaust survivors, the lost boys of sudan. we are the hopefuls drivers across -- strivers because we want our kids to have a better life. we of the slaves who built the white house and the economy of the south.

the cowboys who opened up the west, the countless laborers who laid rail and raised skyscrapers and organized for workers rights. we are the freshfaced gis who fought to liberate a continent and we are the tuskegee airmen and the japanese-americans who fought for this country even as their own liberty had been denied. we are the firefighters who rushed into the buildings on 9/11, the volunteers who signed up to fight in afghanistan and iraq. we are the gay americans whose blood ran in the streets of san francisco and new york just the way it ran down the stretch. we are storytellers, writers poets, artists who have bore unfairness and despise' and give voice to the voiceless. we as inventors of gospel and jazz and blues, bluegrass and

country and hip-hop and rock and role and our very own sound with all of the reckless joy of freedom. we are jackie robinson, enduring scorn and pitchers coming straight to his head and stealing home anyway. we are the people like stan hughes wrote of -- langston hughes wrote of. we are the people emerson wrote of whom for truth and honor's sake stand fast and suffer long nor never tired so long as we can see far enough. that is what america is. not stock photos or airbrushed history or feeble attempts to define some of us as more american than the others. [applause]

we respect the path but we don't pine for the past. we don't fear the future. we grab for it. america is not some fragile thing. we are large, containing multitudes. we are boisterous and diverse and full of energy, perpetually young in spirit. that is why someone like john lewis at 25 could lead a march. that is what the young people here today and listening all across the country must take away from this day. you are america. unconstrained by habit and convention, unencumbered by what is because you are ready to seize what ought to be. for everywhere in this country

there are first steps to be taken. there is new ground to cover. the armoire bridges to be crossed. -- are more bridges to be crossed. and it is you, the most diverse and dedicated generation in our history who the nation is waiting to follow. selma shows us that america is not the project of any one person. because the single most powerful word in our democracy is the word "we." "we the people." "weyesd we can." what a glorious task we are

given to continually tried to improve this great nation of ours. 50 years from bloody sunday from our march is not yet finished. but we are getting closer. 239 years after this nation's founding, it is not yet perfect but we are getting closer. our job is easier because somebody already got us through that first mile, someone already got us over that bridge. when the torch feels too heavy we will remember these early travelers and draw strength from their example and hold firmly to the words of the prophet isaiah -- those who hope in the lord will renew their strength, they will store on the wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be -- we are those who walk so we

could run. we must run us our children sore and we will not go where he or we believe in the power of an awesome god and we believe in this country's sacred process -- promise. blessed united states of america. thank you, everybody. [applause]

>> as we stand here, we are convinced of the eternal truth be planted in the minds and hearts of our and justice -- ancestors when they're reminded us you were able to take that which was meant for able and turn it to good. that you could take rugged -- we have come to do a little bit of patting each other on the back and patting ourselves on the back but to realize our congratulatory moment is on limit possible because we stand -- is only made possible because we stand on the shoulders of others. emission -- we want to shout to the top of our lungs that the

mission as not been abandoned. we come to confess our sins and failures in our personal and collective lives. we declare to the world we still have faith in you, in ourselves our system of government, the city of selma. become to pay our respects to those who have gone before us because we surely cannot pay the debt we owed to them will stop bless us now and help us to go forward in the spirit of those who stood here worked, bled, suffered here, but did not stop here. in the blessed name of our lord and savior and all that is holy, we pray. amen, amen, and amen. [applause]

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