The Legacy of John Lewis Moving Forward

“His legacy is that if we remember him and do the kinds of things he did, and if we hear his voice in our heads as we go forward through this next period of months–we might avert the end of democracy in America.”

Congressman John Lewis, a civil rights leader who worked alongside Martin Luther King Jr., passed away on July 17th at 80 years old. He was one of the Freedom Riders and was a young voting rights activist who was nearly beat to death at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. During his tenure as a congressman, he was known as the “conscience of the U.S. Congress.”

To shed a light on his work for racial equality and equity, KCSB’s Aubrey Valerio spoke to Paul Spickard, a professor of history at UC Santa Barbara, about the late civil rights leader’s work and legacy moving forward.

Reported by Aubrey Valerio for KCSB News.