Learning of the Environmental Legacy of John Lewis

“When we take our air, waters and land for granted; 

when we show a simple lack of respect for nature and our environment, 

we unmake God’s good creation John Lewis

I've written about John Lewis the remarkable civil rights activist and advocate who was an ordained Baptist minister but served as a  US congressman for decades. I never thought of him as an environmentalist but he made the connection between human rights and the rights of all creatures, along with care for the planet in and on which those creatures live. I appreciated an informative article in Forbes magazine by Malcolm Shepherd called John Lewis And His Environmental Legacy. Lewis' scope of concern was admirable, and always informed by his Christian faith. Here is an excerpt from Shepherd's piece:

Lewis tirelessly fought, bled and sacrificed for civil rights, the downtrodden, and those without a voice. He also understood the importance of the environment and climate change. Herein, I reflect on that part of his legacy.Yes, I know. John Lewis may not be the first name that comes to mind when you think about the environment or climate change.

 However, his body of work shows that he understood the significance of environmental issues and climate change. On his Congressional website, he said, “Humanity is the most important endangered species under threat from climate change and yet we flood our ecology with poisons and pollution.” The League of Conservation Voters documents his environmental voting record and gave him a lifetime score of 92%. Lewis has also been a long-time supporter of stronger funding for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and has advocated strengthening the Clean Water and Clean Air Acts.

When President Trump announced that the United States was withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement, Congressman Lewis issued a scathing press release. He said, “I do not agree with the dark vision of America’s future the president described that pits accepting responsibility for our environmental impact against the economic stability and vitality of our country.” Lewis, in his always eloquent manner, also detailed the impact of such actions on American workers and our global allies. He went on to say, “The rest of the world has seen the economic and environmental benefit of clean energy, and they will leave us behind.”