#Rep. John Lewis delivers final message to Americans in posthumous op-ed

The late Rep. John Lewis delivered one final message to Americans in a posthumous op-ed published Thursday, saying that “ordinary people with extraordinary vision can redeem the soul of America.”

The 80-year-old congressman from Georgia penned the essay, printed in the New York Times, shortly before his death on July 18.

“While my time here has now come to an end, I want you to know that in the last days and hours of my life you inspired me,” Lewis’ essay begins. “You filled me with hope about the next chapter of the great American story when you used your power to make a difference in our society.”

He goes on to write that Emmett Till — the 14-year-old black boy who was lynched in Mississippi in 1955 — “was my George Floyd,” leaving him fearful of “the unholy oppression,” but then inspired by the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“He said each of us has a moral obligation to stand up, speak up and speak out,” Lewis wrote, referring to King. “When you see something that is not right, you must say something. You must do something. Democracy is not a state. It is an act, and each generation must do its part to help build what we called the Beloved Community, a nation and world society at peace with itself.”

Lewis — the last surviving speaker from the 1963 March on Washington, where King delivered his famous “I had a dream” speech — also reiterated one of his own best-known quotes.

“Ordinary people with extraordinary vision can redeem the soul of America by getting in what I call good trouble, necessary trouble,” Lewis wrote.

The longtime lawmaker died earlier this month of stage-4 pancreatic cancer. He had been diagnosed in December of last year.

His funeral will be held Thursday, with former President Barack Obama delivering the eulogy.