Honoring John Lewis and 80 years of “good trouble”

Civil rights icon and Georgia Congressman John Lewis passed away at the age of 80 on July 17. Lewis, who was born outside of Troy, Alabama, on Feb. 21, 1940, was one of the 13 original Freedom Riders in 1961 and served as a keynote speaker at the 1963 March on Washington when he was only 23 years old. On March 7, 1965, Lewis was beaten by state troopers as he led 600 protestors advocating for equal voting rights over the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, on what is now known as “Bloody Sunday.” In 1986, Lewis was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democrat representing Georgia’s 5th Congressional district. He was reelected to the position 16 times and served until his death. In the pictures below, Americans mourn Lewis’s death and celebrate his tireless efforts to protect civil rights and his lifelong service to the state.

Photo by Nathan Posner On July 26, Lewis’s casket crosses the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, where he was beaten by state troopers on March 7, 1965.Photo by Nathan Posner

Photo by Nathan Posner Mourners raise their fists in respect in front of the mural in Atlanta on July 18.Photo by Nathan Posner

Photo by Nathan Posner A crowd remembers Lewis at a July 19 vigil in Atlanta with posters sporting his iconic phrase.Photo by Nathan Posner

Nathan Posner Hundreds of mourners hold up candles at a July 19 vigil in Atlanta.Nathan Posner

Photo by Nathan Posner Hundreds march and carry signs remembering Lewis.Photo by Nathan Posner

Photo by Nathan Posner Two girls watch Lewis’s casket on its way to lie in state in the Alabama state capitol building in Montgomery on July 26.Photo by Nathan Posner

Photo by Nathan Posner A flag flies at half-mast as Lewis’s casket enters the Georgia state capitol in Atlanta on July 29.Photo by Nathan Posner

Photo by Nathan Posner A woman pays her respects to Lewis as he lies in state in the Georgia state capitol on July 29 in Atlanta.Photo by Nathan Posner