Foot Soldiers Park

09/01/2026

Tameka Dirton lives in Selma’s public housing community. She started working with our programs — learning Selma’s history and her civic responsibilities. Inspired by Dr. King, now, she’s paying it forward as a member of our Civic Engagement Corps (CEC) – working to see the change she wants to see in Selma.
Watch Tameka tell her story, in her own words.

08/28/2026

If you've ever wanted to experience Selma's history the way it deserves to be experienced — not through a textbook, but through the eyes of those who lived it — our Selma Historic Tours are for you.

Our guided tours visit 23 historic locations over 2–3 hours, led by knowledgeable guides with direct lineage or personal connection to the Civil Rights Movement. Veteran foot soldiers. Their descendants. Living history.

Every ticket purchase and every donation helps us preserve Selma's sacred sites and ensure these stories are never lost.

Visit footsoldierspark.org/tours to book a tour or support our historic preservation work. We'd love to see you in Selma! 🤎

08/20/2026

It was a powerful night of remembrance and renewal. We commemorated the 61st anniversary of the signing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, bringing together civic leaders, elected officials, community members and foot soldiers to recommit themselves to finish what the Civil Rights Movement started.

This year was of particular importance as the fight to protect our voting rights has recently intensified with the Supreme Court decision to weaken Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.

Our CEO Kimberly Smitherman challenged every person in the room and Selmian to step up to the moment and lead.

Read more and check out pictures of the staff dressed in their finest! bit.ly/FSPGalaBlog2026

Foot Soldiers Park marks the 61st anniversary of the VRA and challenges Selmians to recommit to protecting voting rights.

08/11/2026

🆅🅾🆃🅸🅽🅶 🆁🅸🅶🅷🆃🆂 🅴🅳🆄🅲🅰🆃🅸🅾🅽
For more than a decade, the Supreme Court has weakened the Voting Rights Act and stripped away protections that once stopped discriminatory voting changes before they could take effect.

The John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act was written to restore those protections and respond to the barriers communities are still facing today.

This bill would rebuild federal review for jurisdictions with a record of voting discrimination, strengthen legal protections against racial discrimination, and require advance public notice of election changes so communities can respond.

The urgency is real.
When protections are weak, harmful laws and maps can move forward before people have a fair chance to fight back. That is why people must stay informed, organize locally, and demand action at both the state and federal level to protect fair access to the ballot.

08/07/2026

Dallas County voters are heading back to the polls August 11 for a special primary.
Learn why it matters and what’s on your ballot. Check out our election guide >> bit.ly/Aug11ElectionInfo

08/06/2026

61 years ago, the Voting Rights Act was signed — 5 months after Jo Ann Bland marched on the Edmund Pettus Bridge for the right to vote.
This year, the Supreme Court gutted it. Alabama went from two Black-held congressional seats to one within weeks.
No victory is permanent. Read more bit.ly/VRA61Years

08/06/2026

🆅🅾🆃🅸🅽🅶 🆁🅸🅶🅷🆃🆂 🅴🅳🆄🅲🅰🆃🅸🅾🅽
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is one of the most important civil rights laws in U.S. history, written to enforce the Fifteenth Amendment and tear down barriers that kept Black Americans and other communities of color from the ballot box. It outlawed tools like literacy tests, brought federal oversight to places with a history of voter suppression, and required certain voting changes to be reviewed before they could take effect, helping drive major gains in voter registration and representation for people who had been excluded for generations.

This year, the Supreme Court sharply weakened one of the VRA’s key protections, Section 2, making it much harder to challenge discriminatory voting rules and maps in court. That decision did not erase the Fifteenth Amendment or the Voting Rights Act, but it did strip away key enforcement tools that helped turn those promises into real protection in Black people’s lives.

On this anniversary, the lesson is clear: the right to vote means little without laws strong enough to protect it and how easy those laws can be weakened if people are not paying attention. Honor the legacy of the Voting Rights Act by knowing your rights, making a plan to vote, watching what happens to voting laws where you live, and demanding that lawmakers restore and strengthen voting protections so every community has a real voice.

08/02/2026

We apologize for any confusion regarding the address of tonight’s Gala. The Gala is happening right now at Finesse Kotoure Event Facility which is located at 2427 N board street. Please share this post, we hope to see you there!

07/31/2026

🎟️ 𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗧 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗘 𝗧𝗢 𝗥𝗦𝗩𝗣 🎟️ In 1965, people walked out of this city and across that now iconic bridge and changed what was possible in this country. On August 6 of that year, the Voting Rights Act was signed into law.

Sixty-one years later, we're still here. Still celebrating. Still marching.
Join us TOMORROW NIGHT for our 5th Annual Voting Rights Birthday Gala!
📆 August 1
🕔 6:30 PM
📍FSP Admin Suites | 104 Lauderdale Street, Selma
Dinner, cocktails, and good company. Semi-formal, 18 and up.

RSVP 🔗 bit.ly/FSPGalaRSVP2026

Questions? ☎️ Jasmyn Bowie (334) 349-3961

07/30/2026

📕TONIGHT!📕 We look forward to powerful conversation about the incredible book, One Person, No Vote by Carol Anderson. As we approach the 61st anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, the timing couldn't be more appropriate.

Will you be joining us?
🔗 bit.ly/FSPBookClubJoin