Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter posted a tribute to Georgia Representative and civil rights legend John Lewis on Twitter Saturday after news of Lewis’ passing broke that morning.
Lewis, one of the leaders of the so-called “Big Six” groups who organized the 1963 March on Washington as chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), was a central figure of the civil rights movement of the 1960s.
Lewis would become a powerful member of the Democratic establishment, first winning office in the mid-1980s and winning reelection 16 times in a row as the representative of Georgia’s fifth congressional district in the House of Representative.
A staunch defender of human rights, it makes sense that the Celtics’ most-vocal player in that regard would honor the fallen fighter for the rights of others.
R.I.P The Civil Rights Icon
Rep. John Lewis. 💔Your legacy will live on forever. 🙏
The world is better because of you ♥️ pic.twitter.com/GkRpKpkYmD— Enes Kanter (@EnesKanter) July 18, 2020
Kanter’s post featured a quote from Congressman John Lewis, which read:
“Freedom is not a state; it is an act. It is not some enchanted garden perched high on a distant plateau where we can finally sit down and rest. Freedom is the continuous action we all must take, and each generation must do its part to create an even more fair, more just society.”
Followed by Kanter’s own words, which read “R.I.P The Civil Rights Icon Rep. John Lewis. Your legacy will live on forever. The world is better because of you.”
Indeed.
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