Movie 'Selma' sparks interest in historic Alabama city.

Byline: Phillip Rawls

If You Go ...

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE SELMA TO MONTGOMERY TRAIL: http://www.nps.gov/semo/index.htm

NATIONAL VOTING RIGHTS MUSEUM: http://nvrmi.com/

ALABAMA TOURISM: http://alabama.travel/

BRIDGE CROSSING JUBILEE: http://www.bcjubilee.org/

ACCOMMODATIONS: The historic St. James Hotel, built in 1837 and located in the middle of Selma's civil rights attractions, (334) 872-3234.

SELMA, Ala. -- The 50th anniversary of the civil rights marches in Selma and the movie that tells the story are expected to bring thousands of visitors to this historic Alabama city this year.

Visitors can still walk across the bridge where voting rights marchers were beaten in 1965 and see the churches where they organized protests.

"There are certain place names in American history where significant, history-making events took place, like Gettysburg, Valley Forge and Vicksburg, and I think because of this film, Selma becomes one of the place names that stands as a significant milestone in American history,'' Alabama tourism director Lee Sentell said.

Oprah Winfrey, other actors from "Selma'' and hundreds more marched to the city's Edmund Pettus Bridge this past weekend on the eve of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

But a bigger event is expected to attract more than 40,000 people -- including present and former government officials -- in Selma March 5-9 for the annual Bridge Crossing Jubilee, including a walk across the bridge March 8.

The event marks the 50th anniversary of the "Bloody Sunday,'' when law enforcement used billy clubs and tear gas to rout marchers intent on walking 50 miles to Montgomery on March 7, 1965, to seek the right for blacks to register to vote.

A new march, led by Martin Luther King Jr., began March 21, 1965, and arrived in Montgomery on March 25, with the crowd swelling to 25,000 by the time they reached the Capitol.

Those events and others helped lead to passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which opened Southern polling places to millions of blacks and ended all-white rule in the South.

The movie "Selma'' won Oscar nominations for best picture and best song.

Today, the bridge and adjoining downtown business district look much as they did in 1965, except many storefronts are empty and government buildings are occupied largely by African-American officials.

Attractions related to the protests are all within walking distance of the bridge.

They include the First Baptist Church, where many protests were organized, and Brown...