In Honor of Good Trouble
By: Maggie Laubscher
A few days ago on July 17, two civil rights icons died: Georgia Representative John Lewis (age 80) and Reverend Cordy Tindell Vivian (age 95). Lewis and Vivian were thought leaders and visionaries. They were also each beaten, bloodied and jailed for doing what was right.
The two men had many parallels in their lives. They were leaders in the civil rights movement. They led sit-ins. They received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. They were friends. In all of the parallels they shared and years they lived, one thread that ran through both their lives: justice. It’s worth all our time to remember these leaders, read about them, and continue their work.
Representative John Lewis
Representative John Lewis was an American politician from Troy, Alabama. In the 1960s civil rights movement, he was mentored by Martin Luther King Jr. Throughout his life, Lewis was known for his kindness, tirelessness and aim of getting into “good trouble,” a phrase he coined himself.
Lewis’s achievements are too numerous to list, but here are a few. He was one of the original 13 freedom riders who set out to integrate America's buses. He helped organize the famous 1963 March on Washington, spearheaded sit-ins at segregated lunch counters, and was once arrested for using a "whites-only" restroom. In 1965, he joined the civil rights march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, for which police beat him nearly to death.
Lewis never stopped getting in good trouble. He served in Congress since the late 1980s, representing Georgia in the House of Representatives. In 2016, he led other democratic lawmakers in wearing rainbow ribbons to honor the victims of an Orlando mass shooting. Said Lewis, “There comes a time when you have to say something, when you have to make a little noise, when you have to move your feet. This is the time. Now is the time to get in the way.” Indeed.
Reverend Cordy Tindell Vivian
Reverend Cordy Tindell Vivian was also known for good trouble. Born in Boonville, Missouri, Vivian was a minister, author, and advisor to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He was an early leader of lunch counter sit-ins, as far back as 1947. He was also part of the freedom rides along with Lewis.
In 1965, he led a group of people to register to vote in Selma, Alabama, for which he was beaten and jailed by police - one of many beatings and visits to jail he would suffer in fighting against racism and injustice. He said at the time, "You can turn your back on me, but you cannot turn your back upon the idea of justice.”
Throughout his life, Vivian founded multiple organizations to fight racism, such as the Vision college scholarship program that later became Upward Bound. In the late 70s, he co-founded the Center for Democratic Renewal to promote a diverse society free of racism and bigotry. In 2008, he helped raise more than $500,000 for the historically black Morris Brown College, after the city of Atlanta turned off its water. He continued to fight for justice throughout his life, saying, "Do what you can do and do it well. But always ask your question: Is it serving people?" Thank you for your service, Reverend.
Good Trouble, A Playlist
We brought in KC artist Abby Yemm to create a companion playlist for this article. Play it all day and into tomorrow, we’ll be doing the same. Click here or on the image for the playlist.