On Monday, during a Special Order Hour hosted by the Congressional Black Caucus, U.S. Representative Terri Sewell, D-Alabama, spoke on the House Floor to honor the legacy of the late Congressman and civil rights giant John Lewis ahead of the fifth anniversary of his passing:
Never give up. Never give in. Keep the faith and keep your eyes on the prize.’
Those were the words of John Lewis as he crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge for the last time before his passing in 2020.
If I close my eyes, I can hear him say it: ‘Never give up. Never give in. Keep the faith.’
His body was frail and stricken with cancer, but his mind was sharp and his charge to us was clear.
No matter what challenges we face, we can never give up.
In these troubling times, I think of those words often. John would have a lot to say about what’s going on these days: the attacks on our democracy, the erasing of our history, the efforts to make it harder for people to vote.
Old battles have indeed become new again. But if there is one thing that John has taught us, it’s that we must press on.
Just imagine where we would be if John Lewis and those Foot Soldiers had given up on Bloody Sunday.
They were beaten, bruised. They were gassed and whipped. They had every reason to throw up their hands and surrender.
But they didn’t. They got back up and they tried again, and they marched on until victory was won.
So, as we navigate this dark chapter of our history, let us be guided by their persistence and inspired by their determination.
Let us pledge that we will introduce Congress after Congress after Congress the John Robert Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act until victory is won.
We can be tired. We can be frustrated. We can be downright mad. But we can never give up.
From the boy from Troy to the girl from Selma, in remembrance of John Lewis, let’s keep the faith and let’s keep our eyes on the prize.
