Community Corner

Congressman John Lewis' Wife Passed Away Monday Morning, 12/31

Lillian Lewis passed away on the morning of December 31, 2012.

The office of Congressman John Lewis has confirmed that his wife Lillian passed away Monday morning, December 31st in Atlanta, GA.

Congressman John Lewis and his wife were married in 1968, Lillian Lewis died at the age of 73.  They have a son together, by the name of John-Miles.

Lillian is said to have played a major role in the civil rights movement at the side of the longtime GA congressman. 

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According to the AJC, "Lillian attended Los Angeles High School with the late Johnny Cochran, received an undergraduate degree in English from California State College (now California State University) at Los Angeles, and a master’s degree in library science at the University of Southern California."

John and Lillian met at a New Year's Eve party which was being held at Xernona Clayton's house.  Now after 44 years of marriage, Mrs. Lillian Lewis passed away on New Year's eve.

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Here is an excerpt from John Lewis' memoir, "Walking with Wind", on how his wife influenced him to run for congress.

“She had always been very involved in politics, much more than I. She had been a delegate (supporting Shirley Chisholm) to the Democratic National Convention in ’72, and she was constantly active in a variety of local circles and organizations. She was outgoing, involved, intelligent and great in front of an audience — she could make a speech. She also knew how to organize, how to chair a meeting, the nitty-gritty stuff. When she finally said, ‘Let’s do it. Let’s go for it,’ that was enough. We were in,”

No word yet has been given as it relates to funeral arrangements or cause of death.  Friends have reported that Lillian had been sick for an extended length of time, but did not know the actual cause of death.

Send your thoughts and prayers to the Congressman in the Comments Section below.

Award-winning author, playwright, and local resident, Pearl Cleage, had this to say about Mrs. Lillian Lewis:

She was an activist herself and also fully supported the work of her husband, Congressman John Lewis. I knew Lillian as a friend and as a person who loved the work of black authors. It was an honor to know her. My husband, Zaron Burnett, and I offer our prayers and sympathies to Congressman Lewis.


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