'Stewards' of John Lewis legacy march in Nashville for second year after civil rights leader's death

John Lewis's legacy wasn't the only reason several hundred participants went downtown for a march and program on Saturday, two years after the the civil rights leader's death.

The march started at the Tennessee State Library and Archives on Rep. John Lewis Way to the Ryman Auditorium, where a program was held outdoors. The street name for a substantial stretch of 5th Avenue was unveiled last July as part of a celebration of life and march held to honor Lewis one year after his death.

"There is so much more at stake at this time (than) we could ever imagine," activist and community organizer Justin Jones told the crowd, referencing today's political landscape during a program at the library just before the march. "Such a time as this, we need to go on the John Lewis way."

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Last year's march and program for the one-year anniversary of Lewis's death was on a larger scale with former Vice President Al Gore as the keynote speaker and Darius Rucker among the performers.

Lewis attended what's now American Baptist College and Fisk University in Nashville. Lewis led lunch counter sit-ins and was one of the original Freedom Riders who would later serve Georgia as a longtime congressman. Lewis died July 17, 2020.

"I think it's something that should be done every year because he left such a huge legacy," Allen DeBerry, 27, said doing the march on roller blades and holding a sign that read "you are the light" with a tattoo on his back that says "Good Trouble," a nod to one of Lewis's noteworthy sayings.

East Nashville Magnet High School brought cheerleaders, majorettes and band members who led the march with plenty of signs  like "be hopeful, be optimistic," and "see something say something," after Lewis sayings.

"John Lewis was an important person and everything he's done needs to be recognized," said Amiaya Shute, 16, a junior cheerleader at East Nashville Magnet.

To continue raising awareness for the "issues of the day" and to continue Lewis's are reasons Metro Nashville Councilmember At-Large Zulfat Suara hopes to make the Lewis march an annual event. Suara chaired the John Lewis Way Committee.

The march can also be a vehicle to encourage young people to be politically active and register to vote, said Sen. Brenda Gilmore, who is a co-chair for the committee and chaired Saturday's march.

"One year ago we vowed to be stewards of his legacy," American Baptist College President Forrest Harris said during the invocation and described "egregious disparities," still in place.

Shonka Dukureh, a blues singer and actress who was in the "Elvis" film, was scheduled to perform as part of the march and program before the 44-year-old was found dead in her Nashville apartment on Thursday. Dukureh was also remembered with a moment of silence.

The Rev. Kelly Miller Smith Jr., pastor of First Baptist Capitol Hill Church in Nashville, was the keynote speaker. The reverend’s father, the late Kelly Miller Smith Sr., was another leader in the civil rights movement as pastor of at First Baptist Capitol Hill Church, which served as a staging ground for activists working to desegregate downtown lunch counters.

This year's program included a presentation of $1,500 scholarships to be awarded to student from American Baptist College and a student Fisk University. Lewis attended both schools. The scholarships were presented to school leaders.

Reach Andy Humbles at ahumbles@tennessean.com or 615-726-5939 and on Twitter @ AndyHumbles.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: 'Stewards' of John Lewis legacy march in Nashville for second year