When John Lewis Spoke at Groton

In mid-July, as the world mourned the loss of civil rights leader John Lewis, some Grotonians were recalling his speech on the Circle in 1999. 

 

The Congressman's mid-winter visit to campus was especially memorable for history teacher John Lyons, who ​spent extra time with Lewis after the speech because the headmaster was out of town. After Lewis' death, Mr. Lyons emailed faculty, describing "one of the most memorable evenings of my life—two hours alone with one of my heroes, a truly amazing human being. Few have done more to change the trajectory of this country."

  

Apparently, Groton students at the time also absorbed the power of Lewis' visit. A Circle Voice article by Adam Gordon ’00 describes a spell-binding talk and a captivated audience: “The standing-room-only crowd of students, faculty, and guests dared not cough as Mr. Lewis spoke of his early experiences in the civil rights movement.” 

 

According to the article, Lewis discussed his childhood in Troy, Alabama; voter registration efforts in Alabama and Louisiana; meeting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.; his role founding the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee; and the “Bloody Sunday” march in Selma, Alabama, where Lewis was badly beaten.

 

During a Q&A period afterward, the speaker described his mission as the need “to redeem the very soul of America.”

 

Mr. Lyons recalls that Lewis spoke about his recently published book, Walking with the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement, and that he drove to Groton after a morning of work in Washington and an afternoon speaking engagement at Brown University.

 

To Onyekachukwu "Onyeka" Anaedozie '99, Lewis’ speech was a pivotal moment in her education. “Congressman Lewis was a man of quiet strength and presence,” she said. “He wasn't loud, but he was forceful. When he opened his mouth, everyone had no choice but to listen."

 

Onyeka got Lewis' autograph at Groton and shared it on Facebook after his death. On it, the Congressman wrote, simply, "Keep the faith."

 

"When a lion like John Lewis tells you to do something," Onyeka said, "you must."

 

Onyeka’s Facebook post paid tribute to both John Lewis and John Lyons. She wrote: “Shout out to my 6th Form history teacher, Mr. Lyons. I took a class, Court and Civil Rights, where one of the texts we read was about many of the heroes of the civil rights movement. Included in that anthology was the late great John Lewis. Congressman Lewis came to speak at Groton that year, and Mr. Lyons was STOKED. He had been telling us that Lewis was his personal hero. He couldn't wait for us to hear from him and draw from his wisdom. We were not disappointed."

 

Onyeka added, "This is another reminder about the awesome power of a good teacher. This course was the reason I concentrated in Africana Studies at Brown. I wanted to know what else I had missed out on.”

 

Missie Rennie Taylor P'00, ’05, a Groton parent at the time and spouse of then trustee Zach Taylor '64, asked Mr. Lewis to speak at Groton after hearing him address an American Bar Association event in New York. “I thought, this is such an important thing for these students to be exposed to," she said.

 

She was right. As Adam wrote in the CV: “One had the awestruck feeling that this man had lived the history that can stand so obtusely in a textbook.”