The Specious Case of John Lewis

For those who do not know, Representative John Lewis (D-GA) is a walking history book. While most people talk about ideals, Representative Lewis threw his hat into the ring and suffered unimaginable abuse and repeated imprisonment. As a young man growing up in Alabama, he had a front row seat to segregation and terrorism and endured through personal moxie and courage. He joined the ranks of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, heading up the organization in the early 1960s. He stood toe to toe against the forces of hate and rose to the highest levels of American society as a U.S. congressman. There is much to respect about Mr. Lewis.

For those sensing a “but” coming, here it is. As much as I respect Mr. Lewis, I am mystified and saddened by his current behavior. Following in the footsteps of hyperbole and race baiting so treasured by Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, the congressman has thrown out the charge of racism on items he simply disagrees with politically as a cheap shot and in the process, cheapened his life’s work. In doing so, he has diminished the attention on real cases of racism.

A year ago, Representative Lewis and others levied the charge of racism at a Tea Party rally at the steps of the Capitol. He and others claimed the activists shouted the word “nigger” as well as other racial slurs. The problem was that, in all likelihood, no one said anything of the sort but the story was misrepresented or fabricated to marginalize and radicalize a group that represents, whether one likes it or not, the concerns of a significant portion of the country. With so many cameras and iPhones about, the fact that not one camera or microphone picked up such slurs makes the charge all the more unlikely. However, Mr. Lewis and his supporters have won because the charges of racism with regards to the Tea Party have been proliferated and repeated so often, the group and charge are synonymous. It is a shame because there are a great deal of decent Americans who want to affect change but they are labeled racists by people with more microphones and TV time. Mr. Lewis did a similar character assassination with the McCain/Palin ticket, declaring the two and their audiences similar to that of famed segregationist, Alabama Governor George Wallace.

Now, Mr. Lewis has targeted the Voter ID bill. Throughout the world and in most functioning democracies, it is common that some form of a national photo identification is required, among other reasons, for voting. With stories of voting fraud that Mr. Lewis attempted to dismiss as miniscule in a recent speech, there is a need for more secure voting procedures. And, as much as a photo identification is required on a daily basis, any complaints seem to teeter on the edge of contrarianism. Rep. Lewis took it one step further by suggesting that such a law would unfairly target African-Americans. This is where I feel the congressman drifts from reality. Why would he assume that any sizable portion of America’s black population would not have a photo id? Is it me or does that not sound a bit racist?

Representative Lewis is an American hero and I have a great deal of respect for his accomplishments both in the fight for civil rights and his service in the House. However, I would implore him to not use race in the debate against political opponents. Not only does it cheapen the true cases of racism but it also suggests he has nothing to argue, indeed, nothing to say.