John Lewis was a United States Representative from Georgia. He was a Civil Rights movement activist who made a strong fight for the rights of African Americans. John began protesting at the age of twenty. He fought against social injustices that were faced by African Americans by leading protests along side Martin Luther King Jr. One of John’s accomplishments was leading the “Bloody Sunday” protest which was broadcasted to over 80 cities across the nation: bringing forth awareness. Another achievement of John is that he wrote and published the series March which outlined his experiences with the Civil Rights movement and injustice.
In the first book of March, John writes about the various aspects of the Civil Rights movement. He talks about the effects of slavery in the United States during the 1600s which leads to the topic of Jim Crow laws. John explains numerous other aspects of the Civil Rights movement such as the march on Selma. This protest is described to be a peaceful protest until the marchers were attacked by tear gas by state troopers. As the book progresses, John continues by covering topics such as literacy tests and lynching’s. He ends the first book of three by covering the lunch encounters in Nashville Tennessee.
Overall, John Lewis played a major role in the Civil Rights movement. He advocated for African Americans and educated the public about the campaign of the Freedom Riders through his second book of the March series. In this second book John also covers how black and white social justice activists worked together and crossed various state lines. John also speaks of the church bombing in Alabama to show that young children are not even spared in this social injustice. All in all, John’s actions have led African Americans to advance in society today.
References
https://www.enotes.com/topics/march-trilogy
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/bloody-sunday-civil-rights-protesters-beaten-selma
Hi,
I think that one of the most important things during times of civil unrest is to educate the people on what is actually going on. Lewis seemed to fill this role. His “Bloody Sunday” protest and his work on March uncovered a ton about the protests, why they were happening, and the injustices that were being performed daily in the US. Without proper education and background on a topic, people will never be able to understand why a protest might be occurring, which is obviously one of the first steps in supporting in it. Because of this, Lewis’s work was essential.
Hello, I find it interesting how I have never heard of John Lewis until this class, despite his many achievements. I wonder how many others like him have slipped into the cracks, having their stories untold in common core education. I had initially thought that since this was a graphic novel, it might be kid friendly, but given the detail of the lynchings that you mentioned, I see why I was wrong.
John Lewis is an important figure in the Civil rights movement. However, I had not heard of his name before, I had seen his pictures everywhere but not enough to know his name, that shows how he is still not widely recognized. Now after reading the “March Book One” book, I am realizing the efforts of John Lewis and many other young African-Americans towards freedom and a better for themselves.
Coincidentally, we are also discussing the legacy of African American press and figures like Ida Wells and John Lewis in my History of Communications class. I have learned a lot from this short biography, and I think it is so important to educate oneself on such topics. It is so easy to turn a blind eye to the perspectives of those who actually experienced these things and instead listen to sanitized retellings. Lewis’s work was important and essential to the Civil Rights movement.
While I have heard the name before, before the content of this class I was not familiar with the profound impact that John Lewis had on the Civil Rights movement. It appears that others also share this sentiment, and it is sad to see how so many important figures like Lewis were overlooked by history, especially since John Lewis has continued his activism throughout most of all of our lives and is not just a long-gone retelling of a man. I think it is very important that the church bombing in Alabama was brought up for this context presentation, because it proves that what John Lewis was fighting against has very much stayed around and is present in our lives.
I do remember watching the news about Lewis being honored the presidential medal of freedom, but I did not put too much of my time learning about him until I read his book March. Now that I have learned a lot about his dedication to principle of non-violence and his determination for justice and equality, he really is a hero and a civil right pioneer.
Hi, it’s a very nice post. I heard about Lewis and his marvelous achievements before. I admire him a lot, both for his personality charm and unyielding spirit. I remember there is well-known saying goes ‘The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.’ But this arc does not bend automatically. The so-called heroes in history are the people who bend the arc of the moral universe to justice.
Hi, this is a really great post. It gives me a comprehensive introduction about who is John Lewis and what he did. In the past, I always can hear there are some fighters and leaders who made a significant achievement in the Civil Rights movement, but have no idea with who they exactly are. And now, this post showed me one hero of African Americans and educated the public about it through books. It is because of these people that the society can gradually move towards fairness and justice.
I knew John Lewis was famous for being a civil rights activist, but I did not know that he started out being a civil rights activist during a young age. Everyone knows about Malcom X, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., but not a lot of people know about John Lewis. It is important that we look at smaller civil rights activists so we can get all view points. A question I have is do you think that there are any current Laws that might be similar to Jim Crow Laws?
I heard of John Lewis before when I first learned about the civil rights movement and the march in Salem. I think his work is very impactful in fighting for injustice especially how many young people were inspired by him to stand and march in today’s society. I think more people need to hear stories about individuals who have contributed to such powerful movements more often especially how these experiences took place not long ago.
I have heard John Lewis’s name before but never really knew the details of all he did. I think how much he did and how much of an impact he had is truly incredible. I didn’t know a lot about the march on selma before, and I’m glad that I’ve learned about this through these posts and the module!
I first heard John Lewis’s name last summer at the height of the protests for racial justice. I saw many articles honoring his work in the Civil Rights movement, and I think it’s very important that we acknowledge early pioneers like Lewis who inspired the movements that we still continue today. I’d be interested to read his book March and look at events like the march on Selma from his perspective!
It is very delightful to see that John Lewis, who knew and worked with MLK, was a representative for a good period of time during our lives. He lived a long life and passed away only last year. He must be very inspiring to young activists he worked with.
I never heard of John Lewis until I took this course, but I enjoyed reading his first book. He did so much, and it makes me sad that I’ve never heard of him until now. He played such a huge role in the Civil Rights movement, and his legacy will live on through the works that he did and the things he achieved.
Hi, I like how you brought up the backgrounds in that generations, and what motivations and the reason of hoe John Lewis would decide to go on a career in the civil right.movement. The only time I read about Jim Crow’s law is when reading about Dr. Martin Luther King, I would like to dive in the connection of that and what’s the linkage between John Lewis
Thanks so much for sharing about the civil right movement. It’s important to learn more about the history because we need to remember the past for the future.
By John Lewis becoming a protestant at the age of twenty, then it shows on his passion to end racism and fight for African Americans since childhood. He is an icon who should be remembered in history just like Martin Luther and other activists. Through the civil rights movement, the society is slowly been shaped to a society of social justice and fairness.
John Lewis had a massive impact of civil rights. He became a protestant, when he was 20 years old. During his live, he became a leader of protestant process called ” Bloody Sunday” which was across the nation and over 80 cities participate in. Together with M. L. King fight for African Americans humans right. He wrote a many books, and his first one was about various aspect of Human Civil Rights and describing slavery during 1600s in United States.
Thanks you so much for sharing this story and article, I have never heard of John Lewis before.
John Lewis was incredibly influential in the fight for civil rights. Growing up in a hostile environment due to his age, he became a protestant at 20 years old as some sort of protection. He led the charge for freedom for minorities like him and will go down in history.