Nashville Celebrates the Legacy of Congressman John Lewis and Rev. James Lawson

Less than 24 hours after neo-Nazis attempted to disrupt a Metro Council meeting and then intimidated members of West End Synagogue, Council members, Clergy, and more than 200 Nashvillians of all backgrounds gathered on Diane Nash Plaza to remember Congressman John Lewis and Rev. James Lawson. 

The commemoration was spearheaded by Councilperson at Large Zulfat Suara who opened the evening’s program by stating clearly and unequivocally that hatred and bigotry have no place in Nashville. She presided over that portion of the Council meeting the night before, when the neo-Nazis began to disrupt the Council’s proceedings, directing that the Council Chamber be cleared. During the program there was an announcement that State Representative Aftyn Behn has initiated a campaign called Nashville Against Nazis. The event presented a positive response from the Nashville community to the disturbing local events of the past few weeks.  

Since Lewis’ death in 2020, his life and legacy as a person who advocated for “good trouble” has been celebrated. In 1961, John Lewis was a student at American Baptist College when he came under the mentorship of Rev. James Lawson. Lawson was, at the time, a student at Vanderbilt Divinity School and a proponent of nonviolence, having been influenced by Mahatma Ghandi. Lewis, Diane Nash and others, Black and white, guided by the teaching of Rev. Lawson boarded buses in Nashville and travelled to Alabama and Mississippi in support of voting rights. 

While a student at Vanderbilt, Lawson was expelled for his advocacy of nonviolence and equality for Black Americans. He was later welcomed back to Vanderbilt, given an academic position in the Divinity School and lived in Nashville. Although he eventually moved back to Los Angeles, he maintained close ties with many in the Nashville community, recently appearing on a panel with Diane Nash as part of the dedication of Diane Nash Plaza in Public Square. 

John Lewis was an inspirational leader for justice and equality. I had the opportunity to be in his presence at a MLK Day event in Nashville a number of years ago. As a Congressman, in his later years, he remained true to his vision and activism of his student days and a friend to the Jewish community. Rev. Lawson was less widely known outside the civil rights movement. He was the mentor who remained true to his nonviolent approach to the struggle for equality, providing guidance and counsel to those who advocated for change and racial justice. His continued zeal to be engaged was evident at the Diane Nash Plaza dedication a few months ago.