In honor of Black History Month, our New Releases this month features a home movie taken by Ray Jeoffroy of Amarillo that captures scenes of civil rights demonstrators launching what is most likely the third march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama on March 21, 1965. The marches were a part of the Selma Voting Rights Campaign, a movement that sought to combat racial inequality and the obstruction of voting registration for African Americans. Attracting thousands of participants, not to mention national and international coverage, the march became an integral part of the 1960s American Civil Rights Movement, which ultimately led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. 

In the footage, protesters gather outside the Brown Chapel while law enforcement vehicles and personnel line the surrounding streets. After the marchers depart, others congregate outside of the church, which also served as the headquarters for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization co-founded by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. While the event has been recently re-examined through its cinematic depiction in the Oscar-nominated movie Selma, this home movie offers a firsthand look at the ground operations of the movement, providing a glimpse of what it was like to be there, on the street, without bias or dramatization. 

Enjoy this footage, and enjoy celebrating African American heritage all year long. Check back next month for more new releases from the Archive!