“When you see something that is not right, you must say something. You must do something. Democracy is not a state. It is an act, and each generation must do its part to help build what we called the Beloved Community, a nation and world society at peace with itself.”
Those are among the last words of John Lewis. They are excerpted from an op-ed he asked to be published on the day of his funeral.
I first learned of John Lewis on Bloody Sunday.
I was a high school freshman and watched the footage of his beating in our den on Wallis Avenue.
A few nights later, I was in the same place to watch Lyndon Johnson declare to a joint session of Congress, “We shall overcome.”
I now work the polls at the elementary school I attended. I was outside Cross Country School the late afternoon of Election Day when I learned of the robo call urging people to stay home and not come out to vote.
I had sponsored the law that made it a crime to use deception to influence a person’s decision whether to vote. This was voter suppression.
I have asked that legislation be drafted for next year’s session to provide additional protections of the right to vote.
What we do in Annapolis can set an example for the rest of the country.
What the Congress does will set the standard for the nation.
“Do you want to honor John?” Barack Obama counseled in his eulogy today. “Revitalize the [voting rights] law he was willing to die for.”
