This weekend marks the 50th anniversary of “Bloody Sunday,” the moment the civil rights movement in America came to a violent turning point on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama.
State and local law enforcement teargassed hundreds of protesters and beat them with clubs as they peacefully marched against legally condoned voter suppression in the Deep South. Ultimately, their fight for justice helped usher in the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Hip-hop mogul and activist Russell Simmons hosted a discussion about this defining moment in American civil rights history. Check out the Twitter chat below.
Stay tuned to msnbc for special coverage honoring the 50th anniversary of Selma.
Sarah Muller