John Robert Lewis
Born February 21, 1940- July 17, 2020
Lewis was born in rural Alabama where his family worked as sharecroppers. Inspired by Martin Luther King Jr., he attended Fisk University where he organized sit-in demonstrations, participated in the Freedom Rides, and became chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee.
By 1963, he was dubbed one of the Big Six leaders of the Civil Rights Movement. Lewis went on to participate in voter education and registration programs which encouraged minorities to vote and become more politically active. He served on the Atlanta City Council before becoming a U.S. Representative.
Interesting Facts about John Lewis:
- Lewis was a keynote speaker at the historic March on Washington in 1963
- He was arrested, attacked and injured over 40 times
- He has been awarded over 50 honorary degrees from prestigious universities including Harvard University, Brown University and Princeton University
- He co-authored a graphic novel memoir, March, which was a New York Times Bestseller
- He interviewed for numerous media agencies including The Colbert Report, Dallas Morning News, and recently CBS This Morning
Image and biographical information from:
5th Congressional District of Georgia. (2016, June 28). Biography: John Lewis. Retrieved July 31, 2020, from https://johnlewis.house.gov/john-lewis/biography
Works by John Lewis
John Lewis will forever be remembered as an American icon, and civil rights leader. His final essay, Together, You Can Redeem the Soul of Our Nation, written a few days before his death is published through the New York Times.
An excerpt from his memoir Walking with the Wind is available through Tarleton Libraries.
For teachers and future educators, Freedom Riders: John Lewis and Jim Zwerg on the Front Lines of the Civil Rights Movement, is available in the Curriculum Collection, call #E185.96 .B355 2006.
All three graphic novels of March, are available for check out on Overdrive.
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