John Lewis has provided to youth a rare and unique perspective of the Civil Rights Movement in his unfinished trilogy “March” (2015, Top Shelf Productions, $8.50-$15.30). Books one and two have been released to thunderous praise from politicians, major news outlets and a number of celebrities all of which contend that the Georgia congressman’s inside view of the social struggle more than half a century earlier is important, worthwhile reading for the present generation. It helps them learn about the motivation, struggles, setbacks and ultimate victory of one of the great mass movements of the 20th century.
Lewis provides readers with factual and edifying information about why a poor Black boy from Alabama would thrust himself into, arguably, America’s most historically intractable dilemma. He came from a family of faith, so, naturally, his first inclination was to become a preacher. An uncle offered to take Lewis on a road trip to Buffalo, N.Y, and this youthful voyage away from the Jim Crow South revealed to Lewis why his brethren back home had so passionately advocated that he receive a good education, follow scripture and leave the world a better place than he found it.
Illustrator Nate Brown’s artwork lends itself more to the serious nature of the subject matter with liberal use of dark shading and sharp angles all of which may sway the reader’s focus toward the solemn depiction of protest against entrenched racism. It is reading that is far more socially conscious than merely entertaining. Lewis’ books are written with youth in mind, as if to declare what better example of an American “Superhero” could there be than the brave souls who fought and died trying to make the nation live up to its stated creed of “… liberty and justice for all.” These works would fit nicely within a middle school study unit on the Civil Rights Movement.
Lewis saw the historic headline, “Segregation in Schools Outlawed,” read about a bus boycott in Montgomery, Ala., and one evening heard a young preacher, Martin Luther King, on the radio and subsequently dedicated his life to the civil rights movement. King’s powerful oratorical skills and defining message of faith among African Americans led Lewis early on to pursue justice not just for poor Southern Blacks, but for the nation as a whole. His foundation in scripture would lead him in 1958 to a meeting with King in Montgomery to whom he explained that he wished to desegregate his first college of choice, Troy State, in Montgomery.
Lewis was nervous when he met King. “Are you the boy from Troy?,” King asked. “Do you really want to go to school there? If you really want to go, we’ll help you. But keep in mind, you may get hurt. Your family may get hurt.”
The frank, honest discussion with King may have encouraged Lewis’ complete dedication to the Civil Rights Movement. Soon after he takes readers through one of the most riveting and revealing “behind-the-scenes” tours of the movement with all of the famous names—from the meritorious to the infamous—who captured the nation’s rapt attention during the early 1960s.
The dangerous travels of the Freedom Riders are well chronicled in the second book. So are the precepts of non violence which Lewis says were the backbone of success for the Civil Rights Movement. The second installment is both enlightening and painful reading as Lewis details the insults, beatings, jailings and murders so frequent during the struggle. He recounts the preparation for the March on Washington with rare candor for such a momentous event.
Lewis found himself rather speechless at a meeting in the Oval Office with President John Kennedy, King, A. Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins, Whitney Young and a noticeably anxious Attorney General Robert Kennedy pacing behind his brother. The Kennedy Administration was originally opposed to the march, and was not certain of a peaceful outcome until after King left the stage. “And you had a dream,” Kennedy said to King when they met later that day in the Oval Office.
Lewis also recounts the difficulties he had in delivering his intended speech at the march; the older generation of Black leaders which included Randloph, Wilkins and Bayard Rustin did not want any controversial statements which could derail progress that had been reached at that point at the federal and state governments. An appeal from Randolph convinced Lewis that his originally intended rhetoric would be appropriate at a later time: “John, I’ve waited all my life for this opportunity … please don’t ruin it,” Randolph implored. Lewis agreed to the changes, stating, “I simply could not say no to A. Philip Randolph.”
The great triumph of the March on Washington and the progress gained from the previous years of struggle was quickly brought back to reality as book two ends in Birmingham, Ala, on Sunday, Sept. 15 1963, when four young girls were murdered in church when the Ku Klux Klan blew up their Sixteenth Street Baptist Church.
“March” books one and two are valuable reading for youth worldwide who wish to learn more about this historic and still evolving juncture in American history.
