U.S. Rep. John Lewis, a noted civil rights icon and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, on Oct. 10 said he does not have any immediate plans to address a protest group that prevented him from speaking to them at a rally in Woodruff Park.
Lewis didn’t get a chance to speak to the Occupy Atlanta group gathered at Woodruff Park on Oct. 7 because the group could not reach a consensus on allowing him to speak, according to the website atlantaprogressivenews.com . You can see the original video of this incident here. Lewis had to leave for another meeting before the group could reach an agreement, according to comments made on a YouTube video of the incident.
Lewis told reporters on Oct. 10 he had no immediate plans to speak to the group.
“I’ve got to get back to Washington,” he said.
On Oct. 9, the group posted an apology on its website said the group has invited Lewis to speak. Occupy Atlanta is an off-shoot of the growing left-wing movement Occupy Wall Street, a protest fueled by anger at the role private companies and banks played in the financial crisis.
And on that point, Lewis said he understands how the protestors feel. Lewis, who marched for civil rights and endured multiple arrests and beatings for the cause, said the protesters want to feel that their interests are being represented.
“I think it represents the sense of frustration on a part of a large segment of the American people,” Lewis said of the movement. “People want to see the American corporate community, they want to see the American government, state and local governments … look out for the feeling of the American people and not just those in power.”
Lewis was at the Galloway School in Buckhead as part of the school’s speaker series. He spoke about his work with the civil rights movement and his belief that war is “obsolete.”
“We spend millions and billions of dollars to kill, to destroy,” he told students. “We (could) use those resources to build, to educate and to heal, to create a greater sense of community.”
Lewis praised the school and said it was the first independent desegregated private school in the Atlanta metro area.
“You notice today I’m wearing the Medal of Freedom that President Barack Obama presented to me,” he said. “This is only my second time putting it on here in Atlanta.”
