Speaker

The speaker of the Selma Speech is Barack Obama, who served as the 44th President of the United States from 2009 to 2017. He was the first African American to serve in this office. He was also a senator in the US Congress from 2005 to 2008.

Obama begins his speech by stating that John Lewis, one of the organizers and leaders of the Selma to Montgomery marches, is on of his heroes. This is important because the Selma march paved the way in the fight for equal treatment of African Americans in US society. As such, the Selma march holds a key role in creating a society in which Obama, an African American, could become President.  

Barack Obama was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party, a historical US party characterized by progressive p...