July 17, 2025 is a day to honor the John Lewis legacy of nonviolent protest in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. “Good Trouble Lives On” protests and rallies are planned across the nation. That day is the fifth anniversary of the death of Congressman John Lewis from Georgia. Lewis became known for his leadership during the Civil Rights era, following Martin Luther King, Jr as they marched for equality and civil rights.
His memoir, Walking with the Wind, starts with this story from his childhood. He was with his siblings and cousins, about 15 children total, playing at his aunt’s simple house in Alabama. A storm blew up, and they ran into the house. The small frame building began to sway in the wind. “Wood plank flooring beneath us began to bend. And then, a corner of the room started lifting up. . . The storm was actually pulling the house toward the sky. With us inside it.”
But his aunt took charge. “Line up and hold hands, she said, and we did as we were told. Then she had us walk as a group toward the corner of the room that was rising. From the kitchen to the front of the house we walked, the wind screaming outside, sheets of rain beating on the tin roof. Then we walked back in the other direction, as another end of the house began to lift.
“And so it went, back and forth, fifteen children walking with the wind, holding that trembling house down with the weight of our small bodies. . . Our society is not unlike the children in that house, rocked again and again by the winds of one storm or another, the walls around us seeming at times as if they might fly apart, but the people in the house did the best they could, clasping hands and moving toward the corner that was the weakest.
“We knew another storm would come, and we would have to do it all over again.
“And we did.
“And we still do, all of us. You and I.”
John Lewis was an extraordinary leader of the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s. He later was elected to Congress, to represent Georgia’s 5th congressional district from 1987 until his death on July 17, 2020. He became well-known after he chaired the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and his role in the Selma to Montgomery marches.
Lewis was a staunch advocate of nonviolence and reconciliation, even in the face of violence and adversity. One of his most famous quotes is, “Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.”
Join your friends and neighbors walking with the winds of adversity to honor the legacy of the civil rights icon, John Lewis, Thursday, July 17. Find an action near you here: https://goodtroubleliveson.org/
The Bridge 