noun
Selma
SEHL-muh
noun
1
A term used to describe a violent crackdown by authorities on peaceful civil rights protesters, evoking the 1965 Bloody Sunday attack on marchers in Selma, Alabama.
"Commentators called the police response a modern-day Selma."
"Historians still study the march as a turning point that shocked the nation into action."
How to Use Selma
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishUsed, almost always capitalized, to compare a real event to the infamous violence against civil rights marchers in Selma, Alabama.
When to use it
Mostly used in journalism and historical commentary rather than everyday conversation.
Word Forms
Selmas plural, Selmas plural
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Etymology
From the city of Selma, Alabama, site of the 1965 "Bloody Sunday" attack on civil rights marchers; the city name itself came into fashion in the 19th century alongside similar-sounding names like Thelma and Wilma.