I am writing to you regarding some of the comments you made yesterday when the CBCPAC endorsed Hillary Clinton for president. It is your right to support anyone you choose. I will not disparage you for that. You fought long and hard for that right. You will always be a hero of mine. However, even heroes make mistakes, and I have to tell you that you did just that yesterday.
You, Rep. Lewis, disparaged a significant number (no one will ever know how many) of people who fought for Civil Rights by your remark that you “never met” Sen. Sanders during your struggles as a member of SNCC. That may be true. Sen. Sanders was a member and activist with CORE. I am certain you know who CORE was. But regardless of that, even if Sen. Sanders had been part of SNCC, are you claiming to have known every person involved in SNCC? Sen. Sanders has mentioned that he was one of the 100,000 plus people who marched on Washington in 1963. You certainly are not claiming to have met all the people who were there, learned their names, and remember them now. Are you? Sen. Sanders never claimed to be a major leader of the Civil Rights movement, but he was a part of it, and to imply like you do that his role wasn’t important because you never met him, disparages him and all the others that you never met but were part of it.
You also implied that you met Sec. and Pres. Clinton as part of the struggle. I haven’t ever read anything that indicates that either were part of the struggle, especially in the early years. I might have missed it but I doubt it. And as you know, March of 1965 when Bloody Sunday occurred, was only a few months after the 1964 Election in which Sen. Goldwater ran for President on a campaign that “extremism in defense of liberty” was okay. He was a strong advocate for states’ rights. The same states’ rights that made Jim Crow legal and you were fighting for. Do you know who was actively campaigning for Goldwater? That is correct, Sec. Hillary Clinton. So while Sen. Sanders was fighting to desegregate Chicago schools and the housing on the U of Chicago, Sec. Clinton was fighting for the right for states to discriminate against its residents who were people of color. That is a fact. It was a significant part of Goldwater’s campaign that cannot be denied. Goldwater's brochure from 1964.
I will continue to respect you Rep. Lewis. But please do not damage your hard earned reputation for honesty and as a fighter for those who have fought for and continue to fight for human rights. You are better than that.