Jo Ann Bland

Celebration of Life Live Streaming Link

The Celebration of Life service for Ms. Jo Ann Bland will be available via livestream for those unable to attend in person. Your presence, whether in person or in spirit, is deeply appreciated by the family during this time of remembrance. To access the livestream please click Celebration of Life for Ms. Jo Ann Bland

Jo Ann Blackmon Bland, age 72, of Selma, Alabama, peacefully transitioned on February 19, 2026, in the city where she was born and raised.

Born on July 29, 1953, to the late Alfred Charles Blackmon and Ludie Wright Blackmon, Mrs. Bland experienced the loss of her mother at a very young age. She was lovingly raised by her grandmother, the late Sylvia Johnson, alongside her father, A.C. Blackmon. Their strength, discipline, and faith shaped the foundation of her life.

Mrs. Bland began her civil rights activism in the early 1960s as a child. At just eight years old, she joined her grandmother at meetings of the Dallas County Voters League led by Amelia Boynton and became a member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), a youth-led organization known for organizing sit-ins and challenging segregation throughout the South. By the age of eleven, she had been arrested at least thirteen documented times for her participation in nonviolent demonstrations.

In 1965, she marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge on Bloody Sunday alongside more than 600 peaceful demonstrators. That march, and the violence that followed, helped lead to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Mrs. Bland also integrated Selma’s A.G. Parrish High School as part of the first group of seven students to do so.

She later attended the College of Staten Island in New York and proudly served in the United States Army.

Upon returning to Selma in 1989, Mrs. Bland co-founded the National Voting Rights Museum and Institute. In 2007, she founded Journeys for the Soul, a tour agency dedicated to teaching visitors from around the world the true history of the Civil Rights Movement in Selma. Through her storytelling and preservation efforts, she ensured that what happened in Selma would never be forgotten.

In 2021, alongside Kimberly Smitherman, she began purchasing parcels of land adjacent to the site where civil rights activists gathered on Bloody Sunday. That land would become Foot Soldiers Park — her longtime vision to memorialize the everyday people of the Civil Rights Movement. She believed deeply that what happened in Selma was not simply Black history, but American history.

Mrs. Bland often said that movements for social change are like jigsaw puzzles: everyone is a unique and special piece, and if your piece is missing, the picture is not complete — because you are the most important piece. This philosophy guided her life’s work.

She was humble, direct, and unwavering in her convictions. She would give the shirt off her back to anyone in need, yet she stood firmly for justice and truth. Her life embodied courage, faith, resilience, and love.

Beyond her public legacy, she was a devoted mother, grandmother, mentor, and matriarch. She raised her son with discipline and purpose and poured into generations, ensuring that her family would walk in excellence, integrity, and strong work ethic. Her influence extended far beyond bloodlines; she claimed many as her own and loved them fiercely.

She leaves to cherish her memory:

Her son, Antonio Bowie, Sr. (Birmingham, AL); Her granddaughter, Jasmyn Bowie (Selma, AL);

Her grandsons, Antonio Bowie, Jr., Samuel Bowie (Huntsville, AL), and Jordan Bowie (Birmingham, AL);

Her surviving sisters, Sadie Moss (Selma, AL), Mary Myles (Selma, AL), and Mary Hudson (Fort Wayne, IN);

Her special sister, Frances Bowie (Selma, AL);

Her special daughter, Kimberly Smitherman (Selma, AL); Her special son, Demetrius Callens (Selma, AL);

Her special granddaughters, Ja’kira Simmons (Nashville, TN) and Charmekia Moore (Prattville, AL);

Her special nephew, Tony Blackmon (Selma, AL);

Her special grandchildren, James Henderson and Samuel Flagg (Selma, AL); Her special great-grandchild, Jaxston Boyd (Prattville, AL);

Her goddaughter, Randy (Renee) Garrett (Atlanta, GA);

Her god-granddaughters, Riley, Raven, and Ruby Garnett (Atlanta, GA); Her god great-granddaughter, Ziporah Rene’ Stroud (Atlanta, GA);

Her sister-in-law, Beverly Blackmon (Selma, AL);

Her special friends, Queen Ramsey (Selma, AL) and Tracy Arnold (Columbus, GA);

The dedicated staff and volunteers of Foot Soldiers Park, who became family and carried her vision alongside her;

And a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family members, and lifelong friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Alfred Charles Blackmon and Ludie Wright Blackmon; her grandmother, Sylvia Johnson; her sisters, Jackie Maxey and Lynda Lowery; and her brother, Al Blackmon.

Mrs. Bland’s life was one of extraordinary courage rooted in ordinary faith. Her voice, her vision, and her unwavering commitment to truth transformed Selma into a place of pilgrimage for those seeking justice. Her legacy will continue through her family, her community, and all who carry her story forward.

Marching Ever Forward.

Public viewing has been scheduled for Friday, February 27, 2026 from 8:00AM-8:00PM at Aubrey Larkin's Lewis Brothers Funeral Home of Selma.  A celebration of life will follow on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 from 2:00PM-4:00PM.  Following the celebration of life, there will be a ceremonial crossing of the Edmund Pettus Bridge from 4:00PM-5:00PM in her honor.  Aubrey Larkin's Lewis Brothers Funeral Home serving with excellence through professional service.  In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in honor Jo Ann Bland to:  Foot Soldiers Park or McRae Learning Center