Up to three million sets of eyes are expected to look upon the West Front of the United States Capitol today as Barack Obama is sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. But I can’t help but think of one set of eyes in particular that will look in the other direction: Congressman John Lewis.
As one of the 535 members of Congress who will be seated behind the President-elect today, Congressman Lewis will have a unique view on history.
It’s not the first time.
In August of 1963, John Lewis was the 11th of 12 civil rights leaders who spoke from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to the March on Washington, moments before the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. As the chairman of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), he was also, by far, the youngest—just 23 years old.
And now, he is the last. Every other leader who shared the podium that day is gone. As the ghosts from that seminal 1963 march jostle to stand next to Barack Obama at that podium later today, I’m glad there is at least one member of that exclusive club still with us, able to see something he likely never dreamed possible in his lifetime.
I hope he sits up high. By law, the Capitol is the highest point in our nation’s capital. If anybody deserves to have a view from the mountaintop, it’s John Lewis.
