John Lewis taught us – and his legacy continues to teach us – about using our voice to mobilize support for those in harm’s way, about responding bravely and with conviction in the face of injustice, and about integrity, remaining steadfastly peaceful and nonviolent while fighting for a cause.
Whether as the (grand)son of sharecroppers on a cotton farm in rural Alabama or as the young boy who knew there was something wrong with “Whites Only” and “Coloreds Only” signs or as the teenager who felt Emmett Till could’ve been him or as the aspiring preacher who waged countless sit-ins in Nashville or as one of the 13 original Freedom Riders who refused to let a fractured skull stop him from continuing to challenge segregated interstate bus transportation or as the Chair of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee who prioritized the empowerment of young Black southerners or as the youngest member of the “Big Six” leaders of the historic March on Washington or as the 17-term Congressional representative for Georgia’s 5th District who continued to put his body on the line for what was right and was arrested a total of 45 times for nonviolent civil disobedience, John Lewis never stopped envisioning – and sacrificing for – a more equitable and just America.
In the heat of this documentary moment in history, Lewis would say, as he often did, “Our children and their children will ask us, ‘What did you do?’” Following that train of thought, each of us must ask ourselves: What have I done, what sacrifices am I willing to make, to combat the re-emergence of white supremacy (which is all too familiar to Black people who have never had the luxury of being able to tune out fascist rhetoric or retreat from the fight)? What will I tell my children and their children? To (potential) allies, he said, “Take a long, hard look down the road you will have to travel once you have made a commitment to work for change.” For he believed that the struggle for change was a lifelong commitment, requiring personal risk, tireless dedication, and collective discipline – across generations.
Tomorrow, we will stand on the shoulders of Civil rights activists who risked everything while fighting for, John Lewis would say, the “Beloved Community,” in which everyone is treated with dignity and respect. We will call out Trump’s whitewashing of uncomfortable Truths – slavery, discrimination, and how far our nation has fallen from its ideals of “liberty and justice for all” – to glorify and propagandize U.S. history, to “Make America Great Again” – for white folk, ‘cause it damn sure never was for anyone else.
After our rally, in DC, we will march to Black Lives Matter Plaza, which Trump erased right after his inauguration, and then continue on to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, in silent reverence for the ancestors – to whom we are all indebted.
Below, please share how you or your community will honor the life and legacy of John Lewis tomorrow or how his life story has emboldened your own willingness to get into “good trouble” for the greater good, for future generations.
Image Gallery:
