Politics2016 electionCivil Rightsrep john lewis

Rep. John Lewis, Civil Rights Hero, Offers A Powerful Reminder About What's At Stake On Tuesday

This is why we vote.
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Overnight Editor, HuffPost

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Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), then chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, is beaten by police during a march from Selma, Alabama in 1965. Lewis posted a message on Twitter about how important it is to vote on Tuesday.
Bettmann via Getty Images

A civil rights hero who literally shed blood over the right to vote shared an urgent reminder about what’s at stake on Election Day. 

“I’ve marched, protested, been beaten and arrested ― all for the right to vote,” Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) said on Twitter. “Friends of mine gave their lives. Honor their sacrifice. Vote.”

Lewis included an image of himself being dragged away by police during a demonstration:

Lewis spoke at the 1963 March on Washington, helped fight to end segregation as a Freedom Rider and fought for the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act. He was beaten for his efforts, and even suffered a fractured skull during the infamous “Bloody Sunday” protest.

In 2010, Lewis was awarded the Medal of Freedom ― an honor that was fittingly bestowed by the nation’s first black president. 

“Generations from now, when parents teach their children what is meant by courage, the story of John Lewis will come to mind,” President Barack Obama said at the time. “An American who knew that change could not wait for some other person or some other time; whose life is a lesson in the fierce urgency of now.”

CORRECTION: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this article misstated the state the congressman represents. 

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