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MLK Lieutenant Refuses To March With George W Bush At Selma Event [VIDEO]

Chuck Ross Investigative Reporter
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A civil rights leader refused to march across the historic bridge in Selma during the 50th anniversary celebration Saturday because former President George W. Bush was also marching.

Diane Nash, described as a lieutenant to Martin Luther King Jr., said she did not wish to march across the bridge in Alabama because she said Bush represented violence — something she claimed was at odds with the Selma legacy.

Nash became a close associate of King’s and is credited as one of the architects of the Selma voting rights marches. She is also considered one of the only women to have been included in King’s inner circle, according to one local news report.

“I refused to march because George Bush marched,” Nash told News One Now’s Roland Martin on Saturday. Bush and wife Laura were in attendance at the event where President Obama also offered a stirring speech.

Nash said she made the decision not to march across the Edmund Pettus bridge “when it was apparent that [Bush] was going to be part of it.”

“I think the Selma movement was about non-violence and peace and democracy,” Nash told Martin. “And George Bush stands for just the opposite, for violence and war and stolen elections.”

Saying that Bush’s administration “also had people tortured,” she felt that “this was not an appropriate event for him.”

“I did not wish to be part of something that included him,” she continued. “I think George Bush’s presence is really an insult to me and people who do believe in non-violence.”

Bush was the only former president to attend Saturday’s event. Bill and Hillary Clinton were hosting their annual Clinton Global Initiative summit in Miami, Fla. Jimmy Carter had a prior engagement. The elder Bush is not in good health.

[h/t Gateway Pundit]

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