In Selma, Voters Explain How They’ll Turn Their Fury Into a November Win

Black voters and civil rights leaders gathered in Alabama in May 2026 for the All Roads Lead to the South National Day of Action to protest a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that significantly weakened the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The demonstrations served as a mobilization effort to organize voters ahead of November midterm elections in response to judicial changes regarding redistricting.

The events began with a prayer service at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Selma, Alabama. Following the service, faith leaders and protesters marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, concluding with an afternoon rally at the state capital building in Montgomery. According to reporting from The Root, the rally featured speakers including Rev. Dr. Bernice A. King and NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson, along with representatives from various national advocacy, faith-based, and civil rights organizations.

Legal Impact of Louisiana v. Callais

The National Day of Action was triggered by the Supreme Court’s ruling in the case of Louisiana v. Callais. In this decision, the court struck down Louisiana’s addition of a second Black majority voting district, labeling the move as unconstitutional gerrymandering.

Legal experts indicate that the ruling functionally gutted the Voting Rights Act by establishing that race cannot be used as a consideration when drawing district lines. This decision is expected to denigrate the power of the Black vote and lead to a decrease in Black representation within the U.S. Congress.

Participants at the rally expressed a resolve to channel their frustration over the ruling into electoral action. The goal for organizers and attendees is to secure a victory in the November midterm elections that would be impossible for conservative lawmakers to manipulate through redistricting.

Perspectives from Protesters

The demonstrations drew a diverse group of attendees from across Alabama. Asad Williams, a 15-year-old from Huntsville who attended with his father and younger brother, told The Root that he felt it was necessary to stand with his community to prevent the weakening of their votes through redistricting.

“I came out here to support my people and stop the prejudice in the law from people who are trying to redistrict our cities to weaken out votes,” Williams said. “I can’t really stand by and see our people get our power taken away from us. I want to stand with my people, and support them to represent our culture.”

The Root

Williams noted that while the Supreme Court’s decision was not surprising, he has encouraged his family and friends to remain strong, stating that efforts to take power away from Black communities have been a recurrence in American history.

Camille Anderson-Finley, 61, a recent resident of Montgomery, described her participation as a necessity. She told The Root that living in the heart of the civil rights movement made it impossible for her to ignore the current stakes surrounding voting rights.

Sylvia Swayne, a 28-year-old trans white woman from Birmingham, emphasized the importance of cross-community solidarity. Swayne argued that the trans community and other allies must show up for Black voters to move Alabama forward.

“The Black vote is under attack, and if we aren’t all free, none of us are free,” Swayne said, adding that the current tactics are a playbook that has been used before to separate people and remove power. “I insist that young people step up and show up, vote on Tuesday [during the primaries], and be in solidarity. It’s now or never.”

The Root

Scale and Historical Context

The Alabama rally acted as the center of a larger movement encompassing more than 50 associated events listed on the All Roads Lead To the South website. Organizers reported that more than 275 partner organizations were involved, with 5,000 registrants and more than 600 people scheduled to gather specifically in Montgomery.

The structure of the National Day of Action was a deliberate callback to the 1965 nonviolent marches from Selma to Montgomery. Those historical marches were instrumental in the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 later that year, a piece of legislation that the current protesters argue is now being dismantled by the judiciary.