Political Profiles: John Lewis.

Sapet, Kerrily. Political Profiles: John Lewis.
Morgan Reynolds 2009 128p 28.95
Political Profiles (Morgan R)#8
978-1-59935-130-8 ms/hs VG-BN
Although not a name in the mainstream political arena, John Lewis is a formidable choice for a series which includes Barack Obama and John McCain. Lewis’s life, struggles, devotion to a cause and accomplishments in Congress are highlighted. John Lewis’s name is not well-known. However, his role in history is undeniable. He will be remembered as a man who fought for a cause, and he will be remembered as a Congressman who lived to see the fruits of his battles for basic human rights. The seven chapters of this book show him as the child of a poor background who did not accept his place in the South. Instead, after viewing, firsthand, the integration of the North, he never relented in his fight to achieve equality for all African Americans. Doors opened for him because he deemed it so. Lewis was a Freedom Rider, he helped to form the Student Nonviolent Coordinating committee, he appeared with Martin Luther King at various protests and he was a leading civil rights organizer. After the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964, he took on the state of Alabama, a seemingly insurmountable objective. His fearlessness in the face of adversity led him to many more successes in life. Today, as a Congressman, he has advocated for changes in education, health, and the environment, to name a few. The full-page portrait of John Lewis is the title page to each new chapter, and his is the face of determination and pride. Additional photographs portray a period of American history that is not a proud period, and Kerrily Sapet’s biographical information is thorough and well-researched. She ends with a timeline, a bibliography, a list of sources to consult and an index. Squaresky, Martha