John Lewis, my new favorite comedian, and what Henry David Thoreau got wrong
"I am as desirous of being a good neighbor as I am of being a bad subject."
– Henry David Thoreau
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I don't know if it's possible to be a Founding Father 190 years after the fact, but the more I've been thinking of John Lewis' legacy since he died, the more I realize he lived the life of a revolution and then statesmen–just like (or maybe even more than) many of those who lived and fought in the 1770s.
Many others have written and shared far more extensively and eloquently about Lewis than I ever will, so make sure to read their tributes, memories, and reflections.
I'll stop simply to say that John Lewis is a hero. He had a particular vision for a Beloved Community, acted with unconditional love and solidarity, and used a deeply rooted foundation of non-violence to instigate what he called "good trouble." He's a model for us all, showing us how to have courage and conviction in the face of unthinkable resistance, hatred, and violence. Most of us will never have to endure what he did—but it is up to us to carry on his fight for freedom, equality, and the Beloved Community.
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I'm reminded now more than ever that the goal was never supposed to be perfecting government. For those following in the ways of Jesus, the goal is to move toward loving and serving all people. To include and sacrifice for others, especially those on the outside and in the margins. It was never supposed to be about securing power and safety through an institution.
That's not to say we should ignore or abandon our government. No, in fact when they limit or impede our ability to love and be loved, include and be included, protect and be protected, it should be restrained (or freed) and then corrected.
While institutions and organizations are not our reason for existing, they reflect how we have interpreted our purpose in living. If our government or institutions deny human rights; extract resources from the land while also polluting and destroying its fragile balance; enable prejudice, racism, and hatred; and/or promote the enriching of a few to the detriment of the many, then it's the responsibility of those who understand the sacredness of every person and all of creation to demand change and restore a posture of service and love.
Every human organization and institution should ultimately be a means of love, service, and restoration, not because they are naturally found that way, but because we make them that way. It's not just that we are capable of loving people. We are crafted for that very purpose. It's the basis of our very existence as beings created in the image of God.
In a recent conversation from 2013, John Lewis shared how love was the motivating factor behind the Civil Rights movement he helped lead in the 1960s.
The movement created what I like to call a nonviolent revolution. It was love at its best. It’s one of the highest form of love. That you beat me, you arrest me, you take me to jail, you almost kill me, but in spite of that, I’m going to still love you. I know Dr. King used to joke sometime and say things like, “Just love the hell outta everybody. Just love ’em.”
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[Love is] a way of being, yes. It’s a way of action. It’s not necessarily passive. It has the capacity. It has the ability to bring peace out of conflict. It has the capacity to stir up things in order to make things right. When we were sitting in, it was love in action. When we went on the freedom ride, it was love in action. The march from Selma to Montgomery was love in action. We do it not simply because it’s the right thing to do, but it’s love in action. That we love our country, we love a democratic society, and so we have to move our feet.
[Listen to the full On Being conversation with John Lewis]
If our institutions are marked by ruthless and divisive politicking and inciting our worst instincts, they have to be corrected. Tear down the scaffold that props up the fear-mongering powers and replace it with a kneeling humility that seeks to protect, at all cost, the inherent value in each and every person alive.
Henry David Thoreau said, "That government is best which governs least," and many conservatives and libertarians have taken it up as their motto. I think that saying needs correcting.
That government is best which governs to the benefit of the whole.
That government is best which governs so that all are accepted, loved, and included. That government is best when it governs with humility. That government is best when it admits its weakness and says, "we can do better." To say the best government is less government ignores what state or quality that government which does exist operates in. Quantity isn't the issue - the impact and the intent is.
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What's New
Mississippi is changing its state flag, removing the Confederate symbol that's been present for generations. This episode from Radiolab, The Flag and the Fury, is a captivating, compelling, complex and so well-produced look at how this seemingly unlikely change came about.
Down to Earth with Zac Efron. I'm a sucker for a good travel show. Graham even says it's his new favorite.
A new album from Gillian Welch and David Rawlings is a folky goodness.
Ray Lamontagne's new album is a retro beauty.
Malcolm Gladwell's Revisionist History podcast is in full swing for Season 5.
Links to Check Out
Breonna Taylor was murdered over four months ago. Still. no. arrests.
In another big podcast acquisition, The New York Times bought the production company behind the hit podcast Serial.
A massive climate study has ruled out "less severe" global warming scenarios 😳
James Acaster is my new favorite British comedian. He has four standup episodes on Netflix.
Remote work is a platform. Good reflections for anyone learning how to work at home right now.
This Super Bowl champion is sitting out this season so he can continue working on the frontlines of the pandemic.
Elena Delle Donne is one of the best players in the WNBA. Her open letter about living with Lyme disease and the harrowing decisions she's had to make during the pandemic are a testament to her strength and an empathetic call to care for those who have similar health vulnerabilities and far fewer resources to rely on.
This is maddening. "Anatomy of an Election Meltdown in Georgia" Here is a key excerpt:
Republicans took control of the secretary of state’s office in 2007, after decades of Democratic domination. They soon set about making it harder to vote.
The newly elected secretary, Karen Handel, implemented an “exact match” system that could disqualify voters for minute differences between their registration forms and other government documents. That rule was overturned by the Justice Department, which found it “seriously flawed” and falling “disproportionately on minority voters.” [Adam's editorial note: that means racist] But Republicans reinstated such requirements after the Supreme Court stripped the Justice Department of its mandate to approve changes in voting rules.
Ms. Handel’s successor, Brian Kemp, aggressively used the new powers, and in addition purged more than 1.4 million Georgians from the voter rolls, both bitter flash points with civil rights groups. In 2014, he balked at accepting thousands of registration forms collected by the New Georgia Project, which promotes minority voting, instead starting a three-year investigation of allegations that the organization had forged voter registrations; no wrongdoing by the group was found.
What are you reading? Listening to? Thinking about? Doing? Would love to hear from you - just hit reply.