Selma

Historically speaking, Selma is a deeply flawed movie. It misrepresents the extraordinary role played by President Lyndon Baines Johnson ("LBJ") in developing and passing the 1965 Voting Rights Act and falsely claims that LBJ was complicit in the FBI's attempts to sow marital discord between Dr. King and his wife. The purpose of the director/ screenwriter was apparently to provide a clear villain for the plot and because as she said, "I wasn't interested in making a white-savior movie." These errors undercut some of the great strengths of the film in its largely accurate description of the Selma protests and its nuanced portrayal of Dr. King. For teachers who want to use the film, this Learning Guide will assist in correcting for its flaws and in maximizing its benefits. In addition, the Guidecontains materials to enhance classes in the Civil Rights Movement and U.S. history of the 1950s and 1960s. These materials will be helpful to students whether or not they watch the movie. They include the following:

LBJ grew from a typical Southern politician who consistently opposed civil rights laws to the man who did more for racial equality than any other 20th century white leader. LBJ's odyssey is an example of the power of nonviolent direct action to use the conscience and self-interest of the members of an oppressor group's power elite to induce them to change their position and to enthusiastically work for reform.
The relationship between MLK and LBJ was extraordinary because it involved cooperation between the most powerful official of a country and a social activist who worked together to secure major social and political reform.
A more important story than the tale of Dr. King's extramarital sexual activities is the abuse of power by the FBI, which went far beyond the agency's proper role when it wiretapped Dr. King and his associates, presented selective and misleading information to government officials, leaked derogatory information about Dr. King to the press and others, and engaged in unauthorized covert activities to "neutralize" Dr. King as an African American leader.
While LBJ may have condoned some of the leaks of derogatory information about Dr. King, he was not responsible for any of the FBI's covert activities targeting MLK. However, LBJ committed a grave error when he allowed the FBI to collect information on the political activities of Dr. King and other civil rights activists and used that information for his own political advantage.
None of the many journalists, politicians, and clergy who were offered the details of Dr. King's extramarital sex life took the FBI's bait and used the information against Dr. King or the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. The result would probably be very different today.
Dr. King's extramarital sexual relations were unwise, hypocritical, and regrettable. They put at risk the entire Civil Rights Movement and the Kennedy/Johnson legislative program which was designed to correct civil rights abuses. Fortunately, scandal did not overtake Dr. King. His contribution to American society was so great that these lapses pale in comparison.