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Remembering John Lewis: Good and Necessary Trouble
John Lewis, a longtime Georgia Congressman and Black Civil Rights leader, died on Friday after a six-month-long battle with cancer.
Lewis, the son of sharecroppers, was born in rural Alabama during an era of Jim Crow laws. He grew up to become a Freedom Rider, a speaker at the 1963 March on Washington and a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1986 and served 17 terms in Congress.
On September 21st, 2015, Lewis gave a lecture at the Indiana University Auditorium titled “The Power of Words.” He talked about how much society has progressed since the Civil Rights Movement, but he also talked about the work left to be done.
Community Access Television taped John Lewis’ appearance at the IU Auditorium. In today’s feature report, we revisit that discussion.
***
Lewis grew up in a time of segregation – a system where he was told not to get in the way. He remembered hearing about the story of Rosa Parks and hearing the words and leadership of Martin Luther King Jr.
He said it inspired him to get into trouble – necessary trouble.
“I got in trouble – good trouble, necessary trouble,” said Lewis.
Two artists sat in seats behind Lewis at the IU Auditorium. He said these two young men helped him publish three books at the time. Their names were Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell.
The book series was a part of a trilogy of graphic novels, titled “March,” about the civil rights movement told from the perspective of John Lewis.
Lewis said he hoped these graphic novels would inspire a new generation.
“Back in the late 60s, we didn’t know about the internet,” he said, “but we used the philosophy and discipline and of non-violence to change America.”
Lewis then spoke about the Freedom Riders in the 1960s. Freedom Riders were groups of young civil rights activists who took bus trips through the American South to protest segregated bus terminals. He recalls when he was beaten by Klansmen along with another Freedom Rider.
“For people that say ‘nothing has changed in America,’” he said, “I feel like saying ‘come and walk in my shoes, and I’ll show you change.’”
He reflected on voter suppression in the 1940s – where people were forced to pass a literacy test to register to vote. He said times have changed and that we are a better society today. However, he said there is still work to be done.
“We live in a different America,” said Lewis, “but we’re not there yet.”
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By WFHBJohn Lewis, a longtime Georgia Congressman and Black Civil Rights leader, died on Friday after a six-month-long battle with cancer.
Lewis, the son of sharecroppers, was born in rural Alabama during an era of Jim Crow laws. He grew up to become a Freedom Rider, a speaker at the 1963 March on Washington and a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1986 and served 17 terms in Congress.
On September 21st, 2015, Lewis gave a lecture at the Indiana University Auditorium titled “The Power of Words.” He talked about how much society has progressed since the Civil Rights Movement, but he also talked about the work left to be done.
Community Access Television taped John Lewis’ appearance at the IU Auditorium. In today’s feature report, we revisit that discussion.
***
Lewis grew up in a time of segregation – a system where he was told not to get in the way. He remembered hearing about the story of Rosa Parks and hearing the words and leadership of Martin Luther King Jr.
He said it inspired him to get into trouble – necessary trouble.
“I got in trouble – good trouble, necessary trouble,” said Lewis.
Two artists sat in seats behind Lewis at the IU Auditorium. He said these two young men helped him publish three books at the time. Their names were Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell.
The book series was a part of a trilogy of graphic novels, titled “March,” about the civil rights movement told from the perspective of John Lewis.
Lewis said he hoped these graphic novels would inspire a new generation.
“Back in the late 60s, we didn’t know about the internet,” he said, “but we used the philosophy and discipline and of non-violence to change America.”
Lewis then spoke about the Freedom Riders in the 1960s. Freedom Riders were groups of young civil rights activists who took bus trips through the American South to protest segregated bus terminals. He recalls when he was beaten by Klansmen along with another Freedom Rider.
“For people that say ‘nothing has changed in America,’” he said, “I feel like saying ‘come and walk in my shoes, and I’ll show you change.’”
He reflected on voter suppression in the 1940s – where people were forced to pass a literacy test to register to vote. He said times have changed and that we are a better society today. However, he said there is still work to be done.
“We live in a different America,” said Lewis, “but we’re not there yet.”