To Bear Witness is a pictorial essay of one of the most celebrated marches of the Civil Rights era. Organized by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., supporters attempted to march from Selma to the Alabama State Capitol on March 7th, 1965. That rally was broken up by police who were televised beating men, women, and children, and dispersing the crowds with water cannons and attack dogs. On March 17, United States District Judge Frank M. Johnson, ordered state and county officials "to permit and protect" the marchers on the fifty mile walk from Selma, Alabama, to the courthouse in Montgomery. The National Guard was called out to preserve the peace and on March 25th the protesters began the march. It was estimated that forty thousand men, women, and children completed the journey.