Theresa Young lived the civil rights movement.
She remembers graduating from the Howard School in Chattanooga, and participating in various sit-ins. She remembers when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. marched with hundreds from Selma, Ala., toward the state capital of Montgomery in 1965.
"I remember it all," Young said solemnly. "And too much hasn't changed."
Young was among a sold-out crowd who filled a theater at the Carmike Majestic 12 on Saturday afternoon to watch a special pre-release of "Selma," a film that chronicles events during the three months preceding the march from Selma.
Moses Freeman talks about issues in this file photo.The film depicts the leadership and politics that led up to the march and the violent response of white law enforcement officers when protesters reached the historic Edmund Pettus Bridge. The television and newspaper images of protesters being attacked and beaten by officers and dogs were widely credited with influencing the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.
Young said she found the film extremely accurate, but said, "Some of this racism still exists."
Pastor Kevin Adams of Olivet Baptist Church believes the release of the movie is very timely for Chattanooga as the new year came in on a wave of violence, with four shootings and two deaths on New Year's Day.
Adams said the violence haunting the city proves how the younger generations have lost sight of what the civil rights marchers courageously stood for: nonviolent change, justice and unity.
"Too many people are fighting hard to die in this city," Adams said. "They need to remember these people fought to live."
Adams wants every young person -- regardless of their skin color -- to watch the film and talk about it.
That is one reason Olivet partnered with Paramount Pictures and Values Partnerships for an early, private showing, as ithe film is not set for general release in Chattanooga until later this month.
"Too many people do not understand the history," Adams said. "I hope we all take something from this movie and there is dialogue."
The showing of "Selma" was followed by a panel discussion where several well-known black leaders from across the city answered questions and offered their impressions of the film.
State Rep. JoAnne Favors reminded the crowd about the importance of voting rights, and how brave people were to fight for them.
"It's such an essential right, the right to vote," she said.
City Councilman Moses Freeman echoed Favors, saying people across the city need to see the sacrifices protesters made at events like Selma and exercise their right to vote.
Donna Williams, director of the Department of Economic and Community Development for the city of Chattanooga, was a member of the panel and said everyone should see the film and understand what the leaders and protesters were marching for.
"Folks didn't do what they did for us just to have us sit here," she told the group at the theater.
Sydney Bagley, 20, understood the importance of the film.
She is home in Chattanooga visiting her family for the holidays, but attends school in Pennsylvania.
"We are having a lot of racial issues at school," Bagley said. "My house was vandalized because of my race."
She said seeing the movie was empowering, and she looks forward to watching it again with her classmates once she returns to school.
"The movie could help," she said. "But it depends on people's mindsets."
Contact staff writer Kendi Anderson at kendi.anderson@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6592.