History is a reminder, a reminder of our past, a reminder of our mistakes, and a reminder of our accomplishments. Fifty years ago on March 7th a great march occurred, a march across the Selma Bridge. This day would be later known as Bloody Sunday due to the unarmed participants being attacked by the police forces on the other side of the now famous bridge. On this date, on the fiftieth anniversary of Bloody Sunday, President Obama gave a speech to iterate that racism can be ended in America without the violence, and that looking into the past, is the key to the future of equality. Obama throughout his address incorporated everybody, had repetition, and historical referencing. President Obama’s oration had a certain pronoun, that while it…show more content… Not only does President Obama mention Selma and Bloody Sunday, but also briefly mentions Lexington and Concord. Obama lists off numerous historical figures like John Lewis, Diane Nash, Andrew Young, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. whom all had a impact on equality and Civil Rights in the United States. While he does not go into details about any of the places or people mention he does speak about what they affected. What does this have to do with the message? Well Obama mentions that Concord and Lexington are sites of war, they changed history but not peacefully. Bloody Sunday started out as a peaceful protest, many unarmed protesters were attacked by police simply for trying to walk across the Selma bridge. That is where the referencing comes in, Selma is a part of Civil Rights history. Several marches happened on Selma, not just Bloody Sunday but that faithful day fifty years ago ignited a flame that set forth many more opportunities. Obama makes these allusions to give a better idea and understanding to how important Selma is to the Civil Rights movement and equality and also to state that violence is not needed to get goals done as