Civil Rights Icon Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) gave his first interview this week after the death of George Floyd. Floyd’s death has triggered protests across the country.
In an interview with “CBS This Morning,” Lewis said, “The way this young man died, watching the video, it made me so sad. It was so painful. It made me cry. I kept saying to myself, how many more, how many more young black men will be murdered? That the madness must stop.”
He continued, “And it was very moving, very moving to see hundreds and thousands of people from all over America, and around the world, take to the streets to speak up, to speak out, to get in what I call good trouble, but to get into it. Because of the action of young and old, black, white, Latino, Asian American and Native American, because people cried and prayed, people would never, ever forget what happened and how it happened.”
Lewis added, “It is my hope that we are on our way to greater change. To respect the dignity and worth of every human being, and it doesn’t matter the color, or their background, or whether they’re male or female, gay or straight.”
"The way this young man died, watching the video, it made me so sad. It was so painful. It made me cry. I kept saying to myself, how many more? How many more young Black men will be murdered? The madness must stop."
— The Leadership Conference (@civilrightsorg) June 4, 2020
–@repjohnlewis#BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/gqJrgFkIDb
Lewis spent his younger years as a civil rights icon, organizing the March on Washington. He has been in Congress for decades, but it was recently revealed that he is battling a late stage cancer.
He has endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden in the presidential race, saying “He will be a great president. He will lead our country to a better place. He would inspire another generation to stand up, to speak up and to speak out, to be brave and to be bold.”