About

John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil-rights leader who served in the United States House of Representatives for Georgia's 5th congressional district from 1987 until his death in 2020 from pancreatic cancer. Lewis served as the chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) from 1963 to 1966 ^[1].

Lewis was one of the "Big Six" leaders of groups who organized the 1963 March on Washington, and he fulfilled many key roles in the civil rights movement and its actions to end legalized racial segregation in the United States^[2]. In 1965, Lewis led the first of three Selma to Montgomery marches across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. In an incident which became known as Bloody Sunday, state troopers and police then attacked the marchers, including Lewis.^[3]

A member of the Democratic Party, Lewis was first elected to Congress in 1986 and served for 17 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. Due to his length of service, he became the dean of the Georgia congressional delegation^[4].

He was a leader of the Democratic Party in the U.S. House of Representatives, serving from 1991 as a Chief Deputy Whip and from 2003 as Senior Chief Deputy Whip^[5]. Lewis received many honorary degrees and awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom.^[6]

Death

On December 29, 2019, Lewis announced that he had been diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer^[7]. On July 17, 2020, Lewis died at the age of 80 after a six-month battle with the disease in Atlanta, Georgia, ^[8]

Reaction

President Donald Trump ordered all flags to be flown at half-staff in response to Lewis' death.^[9] Condolences also came from the international community, with Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven, French President Emmanuel Macron, Irish President Michael D. Higgins, all memorializing Lewis on Twitter. (Shown Below)

A lifetime of struggle for civil rights. A lifetime of getting into “good trouble”, of fighting for a world that is more just. A true hero. Indeed, “because of you, John”. pic.twitter.com/3u7qeqtCI0

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) July 18, 2020

John Lewis leaves an enduring legacy not only in the US, but globally. His was a life filled with meaning that sought and promoted inclusion. The world was a better place for having him in it, and may his legacy live on.

— President of Ireland (@PresidentIRL) July 18, 2020

References