With support from the University of Richmond

History News Network

History News Network puts current events into historical perspective. Subscribe to our newsletter for new perspectives on the ways history continues to resonate in the present. Explore our archive of thousands of original op-eds and curated stories from around the web. Join us to learn more about the past, now.

John Lewis Is Skipping a Civil Rights Museum Opening

Decades before he represented Georgia in the House of Representatives, Democrat John Lewis was a linchpin of the civil rights movement, a young firebrand from Alabama who in 1965 worked with Martin Luther King, Jr. to lead the historic march out of Selma. Not for the first time, Lewis is now in a feud with President Donald Trump.

The latest spat began Thursday, when John Lewis announced that he would not be joining the President on stage during Trump’s forthcoming visit to the new Mississippi Civil Rights Museum. “President Trump’s attendance and his hurtful policies are an insult to the people portrayed in this civil rights museum,” Lewis said in a statement.

The announcement seemed to rankle the White House. Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said on Thursday that “we think it’s unfortunate.”

Here’s what to know about the situation between civil rights leader John Lewis and President Donald Trump. ...

Read entire article at Time Magazine