Civil rights activists reenacting a 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery , Alabama , are doing more than just reliving an important part of American history -- they are bringing a new message to an old fight . Two days after NAACP President Ben Jealous -- along with organizer the Rev . Al Sharpton and the Rev . Jesse Jackson -- were joined by thousands of people , both young and old , to mark the 47th anniversary of Bloody Sunday , their journey through Alabama continues . Participants say this year -- an election year -- is about more than just remembering , it 's about raising consciousness . `` Right now , we are seeing the Voting Rights Act attacked more consistently across the country than we have seen since it was passed . '' Jealous said . Since crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge on Sunday , marchers are continuing on to Montgomery to bring attention to what they call a modern-day attack on voting rights . `` We need people to understand that not only is history not very distant , but we stand on the precipice of repeating it , '' Jealous said . The NAACP leader said strict voter ID laws that wo n't allow people to vote without a driver 's license or passport are unnecessary and will make it difficult -- and in some cases impossible -- for 5 million people to vote . `` We need to make sure that the principle of one person , one vote , is respected , '' he said . New marchers -- including a Latina student from Idaho who came with other members of a campus organization called Movimiento Activista Social , and senior citizens from Boston -- all made the trip to Alabama to fight voting restrictions nationwide . Some older activists came to relive a turbulent time in American history . As a girl , Amelia Boynton , who was born in 1911 , sent a letter to the Rev . Martin Luther King Jr. asking him to participate in the march . This time , she could n't make the journey on foot , so Boynton is being driven along the route . She is joined by another elderly woman who was 11 and a member of the NAACP youth council on March 7 , 1965 . On that day , protesters fighting for the right to vote tried to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge and were beaten back by police officers and attacked by dogs . The brutal attack became known as Bloody Sunday . This month , the Alabama House of Representatives unanimously passed a resolution to gather and preserve a collection of accounts from current and former members of Congress who were involved in civil rights marches in the state . Jealous agrees that is important that people know and remember the legacy of Selma . `` We need people to know what happened , '' he said . `` We need students to know that people risked their lives . '' Participants will have walked more than 20 miles by the end of day Tuesday . Once the walking ends , marchers will gather for the evening at Macedonia Church and sleep on cots , NAACP spokesman Derek Turner said . The march , which was primarily organized by the National Action Network with support from the NAACP , AFL-CIO , Service Employees International Union , National Council of La Raza and other groups , is expected to end Friday on the steps of the Capitol in Montgomery with a call to repeal voter ID laws and Alabama 's HB56 , a strict anti-immigration law .
Civil rights activists are reenacting a march from Selma to Montgomery , Alabama . On March 7 , 1965 , police at the Edmund Pettus Bridge beat marchers seeking voter rights . New march aims to highlight what 's being called a modern-day attack on voter rights .