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John Lewis Deserved Better: How Lewis’ funeral was white washed

Jordan McGowan
9 min readAug 2, 2020

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John Lewis @ The March on Washington 1963

Let me preface this essay with a statement: I am for the liberation of ALL people, and in seeking for the liberation of all people recognize that the African and those who have been robbed from the continent have been the most historically oppressed. There may not be a singular movement that has endured as much pain, struggle, and resistance as the Black people of the United States. In the quest for liberation there have been many approaches adopted by Black people in hopes of freedom; spiritual, philosophical and resistance beliefs have never been a monolith amongst Black folks. With that being said, I understand this essay may evoke anger, but I simply ask you to keep an open mind.

I felt compelled to respond to the funeral of Mr. John Lewis, as I felt the entire gathering was a farce and white-washed historical account of what Lewis stood for, as well as the struggle for Black liberation in the United States.

“We march today for jobs and freedom, but we have nothing to be proud of … we come here today with a great sense of misgiving.”

-John Lewis, March on Washington 1963

If you have not read Lewis’ historical March on Washington speech, take the time to do so. John Lewis stood for Black liberation, he spoke with Black Power politics. To allow Bill Clinton…

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Jordan McGowan
Jordan McGowan

Written by Jordan McGowan

Afrikan Griot — Music Lover — Former Athlete Turned Coach — Unapologetic — Political Scientist — Afrikan

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