time documenting president nixon's trip to china. the first ever by raising the insured on watch american history she we see season three. fire for john reach him, author of his truth is marching on, is joined by choose or fuchsia sarah to just his life and legacy. the cathedral of students provided. suge knight, however, we begin with the life and leadership of congressman john lewis.

who better to recognize ocean faith is leadership inspired changes to leadership of their own. national iphone tests in time of uses desk, every so often god gives us extraordinary individuals who spend their lives working for justice and promoting the way of love. as a lightening darkness, a voice of the voiceless, and tireless champion for equality. i guess tonight, where please there here shooting. -- miss linda served as his chief of staff and counsel during his early years in office.

she is currently the ceo john and willie and miles loose donation of service -- attention to be -- hampton university confirmed for the social justice and equity are the things most important to our nation and to her. this are michael collins served as farmers and looses to of staff chief of staff -- chief of staff. he is a graduate of morehouse college with an mba from emory university and an msw from boston college. he serves on multiple boards and is currently the board chair of the john and lillian miles foundation. finally, mr. john meacham

he is the author of his truth is marching on. in a few moments we will hear a reflection to start our conversation. through tonight's conversation and sharing of stories and experiences, we are inviting our guests to share their honesty, authenticity, and faith at a time when our country communities are dire need of such a gift and we are so grateful. and just a moment i will open -- i will offer in opening prayer. the bulk of our time together, dean will host our guesting conversation.

during that time, we invite those of you washing at home just ginger actions in. we would love to hear your questions and i will come back at the end share some with our panel so they can answer. for those of you who are so inclined, why don't you join me in a word prayer? holy god, we are grateful for your present -- presence among us tonight you draw and the heart of those among us for the movie. bless our speakers, open our hearts and minds so that we wage here something that hopes we would come the people you call us to be. as michael cori prayed that

summer, when we icam riser claim the hypo will never use slavery. just and humane society and world. showing compassion daily and letting him lose god all our children are free. mn and i now invite mr. meacham to second podium. >> thank you. i'm reminded of a story that will break and use tell when someone would call him would use in hollywood say, would you speak at a benefit? reagan said i cannot sing or dance, why would you want me? they said he can introduce someone if he could. this cyan and only a temporary

opening act here. john lewis, for him, enslavement track. his great-grandfather have been warning teensy since you for the desperate for the emancipation proclamation went into effect the first of january 1863. for him, america's standing of enslavement was as real as hands-on. the story truly begins was john robert looses, which was a mother's garden. it was the first and most are finite of the many biblical landmarks that would john lewis

life. i asked him last spring, closure first memory? my mother's garden. there was a quick of water by gate always the to help things will there were three to jerry's, i think they came together to form owners from lewis's life. one was thein zaw's for jesus. i never met anyone who is listed will choose as a leader as john lewis, who has scored original was that what was said in the sermon on the route, and that

radical commandment first found in this, we should love -- a rash show and j&j filers sure. he saw the community as a central, controlling reality. anyone close the gap so precisely and solely between fish faith and its practice. we walked next. i believe you me so. for. i don't say that you put a lot of postal far from our reach. pedestal properly so it is

easier to see is jerry shooting beach. is willing to josh for his century the world itself. we all know how many times he is willing to give everything so that. before he filed arrests, the innumerable hours -- hours yesterday. it is arguably more during cannot see them good. the cameras from there on how i 70 selma alabama. they were not there are sure -- were more lord knows what happened. he always wanted to make teams of, say is one of the early

church said the butter john lewis is the seat of our best manifestation of what america can be. in other was his innate motion against the same. were the only white person he sells in irregularity going up was the mailman. troy he had a motioned that he was thoughtfully a citizen. it and settle him only for all of us. way. their judiciary's the story of the entry so.

it's very much gauge what was unfolding and fight night. the hours boards we waited all summer for his new white friends to come and join him. in this underestimated the capacity of the alabama white power structure to keep that from happening. he read about the death of image chill in 1955. he knew he could have been him it chill. he read about lucy who attempted to you soon gate the university of of seeing, those repelled from that. in december of -- shapes we

appreciate sermon called the letter of paul missions america. on this again year is a long and for -- we were not losing to -- the injunction initiative. in other its letter or spirit. wireless kicking became your choose him. the only time -- the only time

he ever raised a hand back was in the albert hotel settlement, boyish approaches came after martin luther king. lewis's reaction was to use arms -- the jail and. think of these three things. since his views on then cheyenne is cited and help make things grow. he just -- he wanted to come

back alabama to desegregate the largest university near him, troy state. that was the first time he met dr. payne. his parents did not want him to do it. if you're going to follow me, you have to royal family, if you give the ordinary conventions customs life because they come -- the coming of the is so she spoke message you required origin. he was not john lewis going up, he was robert lewis bob. when a hampshire national he goes knocking, american marriages will ship --

theological seminary. he received ginger for name. his friends began to call him john, john lewis was a steer connected to the young boy who had learned so much for he became a commission, or jane, apostle of lincoln called better angels. john lewis was better angel. as an angel following to help make things grow. -- first time he came to washington was in man one woman

ordered advice for the freedom rides. he is been arrested, he saw it as a baptism by fire. you'd never felt as free as when he was jailed for the first time in nashville in 1960. this whole life with, and reversal. it was about upending the ordinary conventions and understandings of power, politics, and when you, and supremacy. back in the service, they biblically informed theologically driven understanding of what the declaration of indents actually meant. with this self evident truth actually meant and he never flinched. that is a remarkable thing.

he had a wilderness. , he went to new york, he was trying to get his footing, but it was fairly reef. he was brought back into the maelstrom of history both by dr. jean's speech and robert kennedy's presidential campaign in 1960 gate. when he saw the capacity of politics to help close that gap between profession and practice. he saw a way to make grow -- a word about his sainthood. he always resisted this. i have jim lawson on my side so i'm going to take it and run. jim lawson tells you something is ok you are in good shape. the saintliness is not to elevate him above the realm of human experience.

saints are not saviors. saints are not gods. they are god like. they are savior like. they are not perfect, they're just a hell of a lot better than the rest of us. the duty of the christian not to succeed but to fail carefully. john lewis succeeded cheerfully reversing that insight of robert stevens. to tell his story, to be in conversation with john lewis is to be in conversation was deepest truths of the human experience we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face, i think john lewis saw through the glass into that glass, more clearly than anyone

else i have ever known. -- that's like being period festive restaurant in the hospital. i've known three people well of public life. one was george herbert walker bush, the other is the incumbent president of the united states and the other is john lewis. these are three wildly different people. a son of her niche, world war ii hero, a man of immense privilege , and george bush, a roman catholic and working-class guy from scranton. and the great-grandson of enslaved person whose challenge the nations conscience.

they have one thing in common not was a remarkable capacity the. they sold the world and see the world through other people's us, which i would argue is fundamentally the buckle. to love your neighbor as yourself certainly don't want to love my enemy. they are laying in me, that point. the witness and life of john robert lewis that what i'd just said is wrong. he embodied, manifested, and taught that to meet hate with

love and darkness might not in deal, but possible. in that way we can all help me grow. thank you. >> you got to bring that with you john. >> i think you've heard from me plenty. >> thank you. linda and michael, thank you for being with this tonight. we are honored to have all three do you hear. but especially all the work you done on lewis history you to have, the work special. i do want to put a shameless

plug in. if you have not read john's book, you should. i will honestly say it is one of the best books i have read in the past year and has been dairy deep meaningful for me when i'm thing about all the things that i and not doing in my cozy home and then drain well things john did. can elect historian, john meacham. you don't get to hear that title very often, do you? canon is let. john is kind enough to agree to service the first canon legs. we miss having you in the building, it is nice for us to

be in the building. there is no amazing echo in here, but we look forward to a time when all of us can be back together in this space for wonderful occasions like this and for celebrating services and seating john we jim as canon elect. lemme start with the two of you all. tell us about when you were with john, you were years during what parts of his life, al love have all three of you say little bit about the bolo things you learned from him -- which are important to you. >> i met john lewis when i was

12 at a small presbyterian church earmarking to where the minister was the president of the washington dc after the seven liters conference. i an occasion to meet dr. kane, james farmer i met him the next time i was in atlanta 15 years later. i met his wife lillian, and we became rent. she pulled me into the campaign for city council and i work on that campaign. we hosted a couple of copies. because because he was interested in that were

important to me. those are his hallmarks on the council. when he decided to run for congress, i wanted to you there with him then. that was an interesting story yes he ranting is so grand. it's on the top is that all the puppies -- puppies -- buppies. my husband took a position in washington and i called the congressman and said, look, i am moving to washington and i want to come help you change the world. he offered me a a as an administrative assistant with which to all degrees.

i did not know and i know this is hard to believe until i showed up for work that daa, administrative assistant was the chief of staff. that's how i began my work career with the congressman. >> linda had a big part and me joining the congressman's staff. before that i have the opportunity to meet congressman as a freshman in college. congressman lewis analysis of and all his knowledge and experience and extend an invitation for us to keep in touch with him and always wanted to be available. i did not take that opportunity until my senior year at morehouse and i was about ready

to graduate and had an opportunity to ask the congressman where a letter over edition and sent me off to boss. i ended up that relative about five years later, senator kennedy was hosting a book signing and i about it and ships all my colleagues that all i know congressman lewis, they were like, "really" and i said i have met him in college had spoke to him in five years, but was going to make sure that everyone knew i had a connection . congressman, have the opportunity to get invited the luncheon seen the way. you reintroduce myself.

the congressman saw me in the corner of the room and altered directly over to me and said, where have you been? i said, you remember me? he said, how can i forget you? i was relieved. my friends and everyone could hear me on. that was the beginning in the reconnect and i have the congressman. linda came in and she was the reason -- the conduit as to why i was able to join the president staff. >> what year would that have been? >> 1998. >> say little about some things that were important to you that you learned from john lewis. even you john, your time with him, he must have some things that are important for us to

know about the man switch you learned from him. >> he was the central figure in 20th and 21st century where, like, and i include dr. king in this, who closed this yet this the square. in no in group -- interested in denominational stuff. jim lawson has shown them how to be nonviolent in the most violent of situations. when john lewis lot as a very young man, so he was born in 1940, february 21, he's 25. he barely turned 25 when he's on

the bridge. in a way, that's the capstone of that time in his life. a life of chapters. he starts in his teens in nashville. he was taught this remarkable set of convictions. jim lawson was probably the most important american that not enough people know. he was the son of a methodist minister. he went to jail for conscientious objection during the korean war. he goes to india. he was too late to meet contee but he met a lot of his lieutenants, absorbs the tactics of that movement. he runs into king at oberlin. both happened to be visiting. king realizes the set of experiences that dr. olson has. you're the kind of person that

we need in the south. lawson said ok. he comes to nashville and he teaches diane nash and john lewis. he just becomes really the architect of the struggle against white supremacist, state sanctioned violence. >> he wrote the guiding principles for snake, didn't he? >> yes. wear a coat and tie. say yes sir and yes ma'am. it was all about putting the onus on the oppressor. and illustrating with raw physical courage that there was a right and there was a wrong. the system and the laws were on the wrong side. so what i learned from him, which is in no way novel, is

that in that pulpit, on march 31 1968, dr. kling -- king. that's fine. what john lewis taught me is that the arc of a moral universe does not bend unless there are people like john lewis insisting that it's worth. in that tension is american democracy. >> thank you. >> i would say, living the last 30 years of what you have outlined, we show up every day. for me, i've always thought about looking at the congressman and seeing all those things that

were just so true to him and his beliefs of home, his faith. i would say that his work in congress was an extension of his faith. he lived that every day. his family was so very important. he was not very different from a little boy from georgia. the respect that he gave to every single person, whether it was a police officer. he would thank them for their service. whether it was a teller, a lady in the elevator. [laughter] he lived his life every day with meaning and principle. as a young staffer, not that young, as his staffer, you are focused on the task at hand. that's getting the congressman to where he needs to go and making sure that he's on time. meeting those needs and requirements. none of that was in his head.

it was nothing he focused on. what he focused on was individuals, people. everyday people that walk the halls of congress. the streets, the airport. those were the lessons that we had every day we were with him. i spent 21 years working with him. every day was a lesson. he woke up every day as if with a brand-new meaning. he took nothing for granted. that was a lesson that you have studied and understood in a different context. >> i'm sure you have thousands of the stories. i remember walking through an airport with him. a woman ran up to him and said, my god, i'm going to faint. he said, please don't faint, i'm not a doctor. [laughter] he was funny. [laughter] >> i read your book over the

weekend. i was reminded in reading it that john was, until his last days, the same person he was as a boy. reading the epilogue, i was reminded that you have core values, or you should. you should always, always have those top of mind. they should guide your steps. that's what john did. he had core simple words he would've said, plane values. he stuck with them. nonviolence was important. love was important. knowledge was important. being creative. being thoughtful. those things for -- or who he was from the very beginning until the end. i said that i read him at my

small presbyterian church year. we had a very small congregation, very small church, very small fellowship. i can remember john and others spending time with the young people in that fellowship hall, drink and lemonade. he thought it was important to inspire or engage with young people. as you well know, that is something that was important to him until the very end. michael took him to black lives matter plaza. [laughter] he was determined to do that. he did it. he had an important message for those who would follow in his footsteps and for others who may not know that they need to follow in his footsteps. >> you know, our focus for the spring is serving leadership. as we move into this new administration, we've been through so many difficult days. challenging days.

we thought it was an important time to lift up a different kind of leadership, a kind of leadership that comes out of the life of jesus. the servant leader is the leader who first and foremost is not interested in the trappings of power but is interested in serving the people for whom they are supposed to lead. i can't think of a better example of that in his life than john lewis. what i'm curious to ask you all, if you have insight, as i was reading his book and as i've known about john lewis's life, to be so young, barely 25 years old when he's on the edmund pettus bridge or even younger when he's doing citizens or freedom rides, all the arrests, the beatings, the spitting, the stances he took, the courage he showed, the things that he put up with over and over and over again.

out of that love and sense of loving our way through this. and then to see martin luther king killed and then to see robert kennedy killed. did he ever get jaded? did you ever see him jaded? it's one thing when you are that young to hold onto those kind of ideals. the fact that he did it through 45 imprisonments or arrests. it's amazing. and all the years you were with him, did he ever appear jaded? >> no. not at all. he was the most optimistic person that i've ever met. he was never jaded. he got up and he forged ahead. he talked about losing dr. king and bobby kennedy.

he recommitted himself to doing their work and the other work that was important to him. it was a very sad and dark time for him. he just kept forging ahead. he lived out his life making sure that he touched people and changed the things that he could. no, he was never jaded or felt like there was something that would keep him back. he inspired his colleagues every day in congress. they looked to him. he felt positive and confident. >> he wanted us to always be positive. excuse me. he wanted us to always be positive. always optimistic. always hopeful. stay focused. pace yourself. it'll happen. slow down a little bit. we'll get there. >> the one wilderness time was in the late 60's.

the new york phase. remarkably brief. a little bit longer than 40 days. >> that's when he needs his wife, isn't it? >> that's a little bit later. i was struck by something that michael and linda set about the trappings of power. the first time i met him was on election night in a georgia senate runoff, everything old is new again. 1992. one of the key things about an election night, as you know extreme he well, is a measure of power is not being seen. you are eating cheese cubes in a different room. you want to be seen as though you are an ancient priest communing with the precincts and all that. i walked into the hotel ballroom. he and lillian were standing there talking. it was the absolutely

unassuming, authentic, it was not a showy kind of authenticity which you can sometimes see. i think that's part of the sainthood argument. in the face of reaction, of ongoing, unfolding onto the sour attacks on the work that he gave his life for, his friends gave his lives for, what are we debating right now in the city? voting rights. what's happening in atlanta right now? voting rights. yet, as an observer from afar, one of the things that was so amazing was that he was truly patient in tribulation. linda said, the core values were

simple and that's true. my god. they are so hard to hold onto. i'm terrible at it. [laughter] it's just incredible that he held on. >> he never lost them. he lifted every day. >> did you all see examples -- i'm trying to think of grace that may have unfolded years later. you hear the stories of the policeman who beat him or folks who attacked him or various -- did you see a grace come out of that? did you witness times when people would come up to him and apologize, years later? i would hope that there would be some grace and healing or experiences there of redemption. did you witness any of that? >> definitely. he believed in redemption.

owen wilson -- ellen wilson comes to mind. north carolina. after the election of president obama, he was witnessing all that was taking place and he told his son him he confessed what he had been participating in back in those days and confessed that he was one of the ones who had beaten them. his son took the story to the local news station. the local news station made contact with our office and asked if the congressman would want to meet with him. of course, knowing the congressman, he would want to meet with him. they came early one morning. his son and mr. wilson. this is all recorded on the news. they met together. mr. wilson asked the congressman for his forgiveness. the congressman, without

hesitation, said, i forgive you. they hugged. they embraced for a very long time. and that was true. the congressman believed and felt in his heart that forgiveness -- he had nothing toward him. that was the beginning of their relationship. they spent several times together after that. just talking about the story. >> to be clear, this was a klansman that had beaten him in south carolina in 19 621. >> was this in the bus station? hm. that must've been a powerful moment. >> it was, yes. >> so tell us a little bit more about what he was like to work for. i imagine it was not easy to get

him onto his schedules. >> linda had the early time to do this. i had to follow behind her. [laughter] >> he had his own schedule. let's put it that way. [laughter] the biggest thing that would get in the way were young people. after john passed last year, i got a call from a young man who called to say that he had been an intern when i was there. what a difference it had made in his life and how he could not imagine that he would've had the opportunity that he had to spend time with the congressman. i'm thinking, he had something else i wanted him to do. but that was important to him. he was very generous with time. the most precious thing we have on earth this time. he would give it away. he got where he needed to go when he needed to be there so it was ok. [laughter] >> he must've been doing something right all those years.

>> absolutely. >> john would talk about the congress and being a say. -- saint. he never brought it up. one day we were in the car. he would say, remember, i'm a saint. [laughter] i said, ok. [laughter] ok, saint, right. >> years ago. probably late 90's, early 2000's. late saturday afternoon. one of the ways we got to know each other is he was very generous about doing op-ed's. i was in journalism there. something happened. i can't remember what. i called the home number in atlanta. misses lewis answered. i said, i'm sorry to bother you, is the congress met around? she said, he's at a black church banquet. he won't be back until wednesday. [laughter]

they were both incredibly adept at this. he never said no. if there were an invitation, if there was something to do, he was there to tell the story. one of the things a liturgical mind would appreciate, when you think about the annual pilgrimages to selma and montgomery in birmingham, most of the time when you are engaged in acts of commemoration, you are also engaged in acts of self aggrandizing. just by the nature of it. and yet, he could take you to the place where he and jose williams made the voting rights

act happen. where the teargas was, the concussion was inflicted. and you would not think in any way that it was not the most natural thing in the world. you were there with john lewis. it was this remarkable capacity. i've never figured it out. to tell a story in which he was a central character without self reference. it was magical and mysterious. when you are standing there with him, it wasn't that it was about him. you were just thrilled that you were there with this person who had done this. the other thing that we should mention, because it's a whole different generation, two generations now, the graphic novels. about the march. i know my children first encountered the movement through that.

one of the reasons he did it is because he had a comic book about the bus boycott. the montgomery story i think it was called. >> those were amazingly successful, weren't they? the graphic novels. when i heard about those, i did not imagine that they would be. they were very successful. we worry that the stories get lost and they don't get told. it is so important that they continue to get told. when you talk about the edmund pettus bridge, what did john think about the protest this past summer? the black lives matter protest. all the folks out on the street. it's the first time in many a decade that we've seen the sort of reaction that we've seen in the past year. racism raising its head, making

it clear it is still a serious issue in this country. so many people stepping out about it. what did he think about these most recent movements? >> this is a difficult time. this is a difficult time. the congress men had been diagnosed. he was going through treatment in january. john, to his credit, was really able to have the opportunity to get the congress meant to talk through some of that time. the congressman, as you know, just wasn't able to come out and talk in ways that he would normally be able to. he would be on the floor or we would be writing. you would see it in print. everything was internal for him. it was very frustrating. he did not have the opportunity to be vocal. you could see it. he did not turn the tv off.

every time john was on, he was like, john is on. it was very personal. he could not express himself like he wanted to. i had an opportunity. he wanted to go home to atlanta to visit his son. i drove him to atlanta. this was right after the killing. he was very sad. i walked in the room and he was crying. i said to him, what's the matter? of course, everything on george floyd, the news was reeling. he said, this is just so sad. i said, i know. we've made a list of all the requests. over 100 requests for him to speak. i had them all outline. we have a whole list of them for you to speak. he shook his head and said, i can't. it was very internal for him.

he was dealing with his own demise. thinking about how he could and did not want to go public. he did not want to be seen. it was a very difficult time for him. you can imagine how difficult it was, knowing who he is. we had an opportunity to get them on camera. he did a couple of interviews. the one which linda made reference to, we did not know at the time that it would be his last public appearance. he had an opportunity to see the unveiling of the black lives matter plaza. >> such a powerful photograph of him standing there. >> and in the midst of his illness, this was a month or so before he passed. he said, i want to go see it. i said, we will go see it. not thinking that i would take him. driving by on the way to treatment.

i thought, this means something to him. this is the opportunity for him to feel and be a part of the connection to everything that had been going on. identify with all these young people. as linda indicated, young people -- this was his life. they are the future. he always believed in young people and took the time to sit and meet with them. young people. the diversity and the commitment. just watching them. that's the one he did not do. he did not turn off the tv. he watched the footage over and over again. he said, i want to go to the black lives matter plaza. we were able to arrange for him to go early on a sunday morning. nobody was there. that was the moment that he reconnected with the movement. he could not be out there with them. but being on the streets there was a symbol of unification for

what they were doing, what they had done and their future. he connected with it. >> one of the things that i've always thought was interesting, i remember the congressman saying this, you use your body to make a statement if you need to. he certainly did that. in many of the ways that you recounted in your book. that was another such occasion. he did not say anything at black lives matter plaza. he stood there. boy, what a powerful message to the folks that were there and those who couldn't be there. it was like a bridge between the activists of his generation and the activists of the next generation. that symbolism of a bridge is just so powerful. he used it in so many ways. that was an occasion where i called michael. i said, michael, why are you

taking john down there to black lives matter plaza? you know he can't do that. he said, you know i can't stop him. he was committed to doing that. he made so many creative and smart decisions about how best to move the movement. that was one such occasion. >> you are right. it was incarnational. it was about him physically being in the space, as you said. that picture. i was looking at the picture of his book. he is looking so frail. he is mast and standing in the below the plaza. it's very powerful. we have lots of questions from the people watching. we are getting ready to take some of those. before we do that, tell us about what the foundation is up to. >> michael and i are working hard to build the foundation.

i'm really excited. in fact, today was a very exciting day. i feel very positive about where we are headed. john left us a blueprint for this. our job is to keep doing what he would have us do. telling the stories, teaching, providing support. being inspired just as he was by jim lawson and martin luther king. and then to inspire others which is what he's always done, particularly vis-a-vis young people. we are a new organization. we are developing much faster than i would've expected. i'm terribly excited. what i know is that john is very proud of the work that were doing. >> i agree. >> will the pilgrimages continue? >> i'm sure they will, in some form or facia. >> they are so important.

i'm going to invite michelle the comeback up. she and margaret have been keeping an eye on the folks on the internet writing in. we will see if we can take some of those questions. >> i can also let you know that there are more than 500 people who are watching on youtube. we are so grateful that you could share all of this with so many folks. they are from all over the country. maryland and alabama and tennessee. a couple folks from vermont. just people who are all over. linda, one of the questions to you is if you would be willing to share some stories about his time at martha's vineyard. >> i'm sorry. i did not hear you. >> if you could share some stories about his time at martha's vineyard. you all spend some time up there. >> he has visited several times.

most recently, he was there for an event. was that the last time? ct billion, who passed on the very same day that john did. i was on the phone with his daughter and she was saying, i don't think we will make it through the weekend. i got a call from michael. they together talked about their experiences in the movement. we had an overflow crowd as we have had on those other occasions. i actually promoted his book. we did a couple of summer events there back in 1998 and 1990. that's where i met michael. >> tell us that story. >> i'm sorry?

>> tell us that story. did you meet at one of those events? >> yes. >> he got books out of my car for me. they were too heavy. >> i had the wonderful assignment. linda called and said, i have an assignment for you. your assignment is to dry the congressman back to boston to catch his flight from martha's vineyard. in order to do that, you have to get here to martha's vineyard. you have to do a few things well you are here. that's what i did. that was the book signing. it was actually the 35th anniversary of the march on washington. president clinton, anita hill, mark luther king the third. >> my daughter rebecca chastain. >> the 35th anniversary. that was when president clinton came and read from his book at the church.

i can ferment to the church. my assignment was to turn the pages. [laughter] as the books got signed. it was an incredible honor. i enjoyed it. >> he's exaggerating. >> no. >> six really helpful. that event is when president clinton acknowledged, did his mia koba around monica lewinsky. >> was it that event? >> it was his first public appearance after the monica lewinsky scandal. he called congressman lewis and told him that he did not think he would be able to make it. the congressman said, mr. president, you are my friend before and after. i expect you to be there. he was there. >> what a shocking history this is. a couple of people have asked questions about the young folks that congressman lewis was so

interested in. i'm going to ask both the questions and then i will frame it a little bit. maisie is asking, what can we do to cultivate leadership in our children's, teens, and young adults? where's the other one? buck is wondering. he works with college students, young people. he would like to hear more of how we can help our unemployed neighbors rather than having a spring break trip. the way that i want to frame this is, what did you hear john lewis say to young people when he was in conversation with them, as he was so often? what was his message? what would he invite those young people to hear or say or do that our listeners might pass on to the young people that they are working with?

>> i've had this wonderful opportunity every year. it's the commitments -- commencement season. always make sure that i was on the schedule travel with him everything will commencement. it was always exciting. i think the best way that i can think about that question would be, the congers men would also say in his commencement addresses to find something so meaningful and so necessary that you take yourself out of your own circumstances and concern yourself with the circumstances of others >> it was a prescription for a servant leadership. you said it. i'm sorry. it is what servant leadership is about. you are promoting the community

or other people as opposed to yourself. something that means more to you then you mean to you. that goes back to those core values. go by them. stick with them. never lose sight of them. let them be your guide always. >> get involved. find something so meaningful and go for it. that was his favorite slogan. go for it. go for it. >> amen. >> fabulous. there are some really -- trying to figure out what order to pull these into. you all have -- none of us are going to be john lewis. presumably. we aren't going to get there. there's a question here about how you all were encouraged by

him. in other words, john lewis was an extra ordinary human who encouraged other people to be extraordinary. you all spent time with him in close proximity. what did he do for you that you tried to do for others? are there habits, practices, ways that you encourage others? based on what you learned from him. >> for me, it would be teaching and encouraging others. i enjoy, i feel it's my responsibility to share with young people. i learned from them and off a lot more today than before. especially around technology as an example. the responsibility to teach and encourage others is something that i learned from him. >> i would say respect.

respect for other people. your fellow man. just respect for other people and respecting their worth, their dignity. he would say all the time, really making sure that you extend yourself a helping hand. all the principles that we've talked about. just really being there and being a servant and a connection to somebody else that you don't know and really respecting them. >> i'm not a good enough person to teach or inspire people. i will say this. i think i would've had a very different and darker view of the present and future of our democracy over the last five years if not for john. if not for his example. i believed all through 2015 to

2020 that we would in fact overcome. as i think back to why i thought that, part of it is, historically and theologically, so i'm fun to hang out with. american history is a series of provisional victories. those victories are innately provisional because our experience shows us, you go across the pettus bridge but george wallace wins in five states in the 1968 presidential election. you beat off mccarthy, he beat off wallace and you get what happened to the country from 2016 to 2020. there are recurrent, dark forces in american life. they have to be met by recurrent

forces of light. in our midst, there was an exemplar of someone who was willing to die for that idea. if we are talking about st. paul or something, it would be theoretical. that's what you are supposed to do in a setting like this. he was your friend. he was your mentor. i loved him. he was with us eight months ago, within the last year. here was this person who carried in him the resilience and the tragedy and the triumph of america itself. that's the story that has to be

told again and again. i'm convinced that one of the reasons for the graphic novel, one of the reasons for the picture, he always knew how to frame what was going on. he had engaged and encountered american history that way. through the radio, through the try message, the montgomery advertiser. julian bonds job was to handle the press. that wasn't for self-aggrandizement. it was to educate. to tell that story. the story, i think ultimately of john robert lewis, is that america for all of its tragedies can in fact prevail. as hard as it is. >> i'm going to jump in real quick.

i have a question i'm dying to answer given what i'm hearing here. forgive me. if congressman lewis was standing here today right now and i was to say to him, what are the most important things for us to be doing right now as a nation to really take on and pushback and battle against systemic racism in this country, what should we be doing? what do you think you should say? what would be his prescription? would he have one for this time in which we are living? is it any different from what he did his entire life? >> i will jump in. i think there's a legislative agenda. what i heard him say again and again, deep into june of last year was, as terrible as things are, come walk in my shoes. if you don't think america can get better, come walk in my

shoes. disenfranchised, great grandson of a slave, dies a hero of the republic. that's not to make it all about him. it does show that there is an innate moral impulse. this is your job. this is your business. an innate moral impulse to live in closer record with ideas of love and charity and grace. he did it. so i think what he would say is, the sanctity of the vote, keep an eye on your lawmakers, policing reform. there would be any number of things. guns, top of mind again today. there's a principal that runs through it. the principle is, we have an

ideal. the question is how far we are going to settle from that ideal. can we go closer to it? i'd argue that the man who led us across the bridge got closer to that ideals and anybody else. >> i agree. >> i know what comes to my mind is every time he would say, hate is too heavy a burden to bear. for me, that was always the way forward. whenever he talked about love and peace, every day, every day. with his colleagues on the floor , he did not hesitate to talk about love and peace. someone would ask about, what do i tell my children? love is the way. those are the things he talked about over and over again.

they were words powerful enough that you had an opportunity to look at him and see the example on what they meant and how to get there. >> he could say them and mean them because he had done them. >> exactly. >> anything you would add? >> i don't think i could add anything to that. that's exactly right. >> a couple of questions that are related to where we are today. jane is curious about how the congressman would have felt about the current activism of powerful black women like stacey abrams and alisha garza which leads me to wonder, who are the people, in addition to john when he showed up onto logician, who were the people that the congressman was excited about listening to? who did he perk up around? who did he say, that person?

i understand that there were probably many of them because he was so generous. are there particular people who he would point us to? >> i don't know if there would be particular people. i know that he would be excited about people who were courageous, who were creative, who were determined. >> he looked beneath the surface. to linda's point, pointing out individuals would not be the right thing to do. there were so many people that he believed in. their leadership and what they stood for. >> would you all say that he was pleased with some of the young new leadership that was coming up in this country and that he felt good about it? >> many people would try to ask him, who is the new john lewis?

he would say, there's not just one. there were so many young people that are talented, active. he just wanted to see people getting into trouble. making sure that they were being respectful and mindful. understanding history. that was key. for young people, the ones he would tell, he would tell people when they travel, you have to know your history. you have to go back. he would talk about eyes on the prize. learn the lessons of the civil rights movement. understand how we did it. we didn't show up one day. you have to understand your history in order to go forward. >> another thing he would say is to be authentic as he was. i will go back to this core values, know what they are, stick to them. when you are authentic, you are

able to make people comfortable. even if they don't agree with him, they are going to respect you because i know where you are coming from. that's the position you've always taken. it makes sense. it aligns with your core values. even if i don't like what you have to say, i'm going to respect you and i'm going to trust you. that gets you a long way as a leader. >> that's a good wrap on the questions that we have coming in. i don't know if you want to invite final thoughts or if you have another plan for how we wrap up this really extraordinary conversation. >> i'm so grateful for all of you for joining us for this conversation. we scratch the surface of so many other things we could talk about. i think we've had some good work today. how about a last word from each

of you, something you want to share or send us off with? [laughter] >> quickly, i have two biographical tricks. i should not give them away. one is to ask someone what their first memory is, which we talked about, his mother's garden. the other is, what do you dream about? this was late. this was june. he said, i dream about the marches. i jumped in and said, do you dream about the violence? jim clark, bull connor? he said no. i could tell he was thinking about it. i'm an unpaid therapist as well. that's part of what happens. he said, i dream about the moving feet. i hear the feet. i hear the songs. i see the light. it's always sunny. and then i wake up and think,

that's just a dream. but we have to all work so that is not just a dream. >> anything you all would like to send us out with? >> i think that's a great finish. [laughter] >> that's john lewis, of course. as ever, closing it out. >> i would just like to say that one of the thing that is most gratifying for me as a christian and a clergyman is to see a politician who served for so many years, who was so deeply committed to his faith, and that faith was so authentic. to hear you both talk about it and to make it so clear in the book that the bravest thing that he did was to hold on to this

idea of love for his entire life. that love was the way. that piece was the way. to cling to that through the ups and the downs, the good and the bad, that takes immense bravery it seems to me. that's why i was so curious to new if he had ever gotten jaded. it's an amazing thing. that's one of the great lessons that i'm taking from his life. he was not only willing to walk that way of love but to cling to it from the day he stepped out into the public world to the day he died. i give god thanks for that life. i give god thanks for all of you for joining us this evening. thank you for being with us. thank you for your questions. god bless all of you.

now may we go from this pace -- place and time to find rest and recreation that we might rise to serve our lord again tomorrow. god bless and keep you. thank you. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2021] ♪ ♪ >> american history tv is on social media. follow us at c-span history.

the c-span cities tour travels the country exploring the american story. since 2011, we've been to mortar 200 committees across the nation. like many americans, our staff is staying close to home due to the coronavirus. next, a look at one of our cities tour visits. >> nevada is one of the few states where our first anglo-american industry here was mining. not agriculture. there has been mining in nevada as early as 1850, 1851. it really took off with the founding of virginia city in 1859 and 1860. reno was founded in 1868 as part of the transcontinental railroad, a hub for thee railroad. reno really grew up as being the last stop before the desert and the last stop before the mountains, the main rail hub silver was sent through on its