Congressman John Lewis, the next Superman?

                  This past week, Representative John R. Lewis spoke about his upcoming book. While many members of Congress have published autobiographies, such as Representative Charles Rangel and the late Senator Ted Kennedy, and books on policy issues, such as Senator John McCain and Representative Barbara Boxer, Mr. Lewis is releasing a comic book series. However, Mr. Lewis will not possess any superhuman powers in the book. Instead the comic book, entitled ‘March’, focuses on his experiences during the Civil Rights Movement, as well as his career in Congress. One of the main reasons John Lewis is publishing a comic book rather than a narrative is because of his target audience. Mr. Lewis is aiming for his audience to be the younger population of the United States, as well as around the world, so that they can be influenced, similar to how he was as a young man. Mr. Lewis stated in an interview with Comics Alliance that he first read a comic book during his college years in Nashville, when he was beginning to become involved in the Civil Rights Movement: “I read it, and I saw it as a piece of moving history at the time. It just made it very plain; it made it very clear, the power of the philosophy and the discipline of non-violence.” That comic book, written by Lewis’ mentor Jim Lawson about Rosa Parks’ iconic refusal to move to the back of the bus, coupled with the speeches of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave Lewis the belief that he could change the world for the better. The comic book allowed Lewis to understand the Civil Rights Movement and began his ascension to a leadership position in the Movement. With this, Mr. Lewis is hoping that he can give the younger population the belief that they can change the world as well. Lewis stated in the interview he hopes, “that somehow or someway, young people, and even the not so young, will just be touched by something.”

                  It is important to note that the comic book will also include aspects from John Lewis’ career on the hill. In the ever-increasingly complicated nature of the inner-workings of Congress, ‘March’ will also attempt to explain some of the daily activities of Congress. Mr. Lewis chose the format of a comic book because he believed that it would be an efficient way to explain Congress to today’s youth. In his interview with Comics Alliance, Lewis described his belief about the power of comics; “Comics, in a sense, the style, the images, it’s almost like music. They say music is a universal language, but when the eyes behold something, a figure, somebody moving; it’s real, and it cannot be denied. When you see or hear a word or a phrase here and there, it can be interpreted one way or the other, but when you see the actual drawing, it says more than anything else.” While the book may be a great learning implement for today’s youth, it might also be a great campaign tool for Lewis. As he alluded to in his interview with Comics Alliance, “It was the children in Birmingham, it was the children in Albany, Georgia, it was the children in Selma. They did it. They played a role. So if the young people get it, if the young people understand what happened, how it happened and why it happened, they can influence the adults.” Mr. Lewis realizes the power that the youth has today. Perhaps Congressman Lewis is hoping that the young readers of his book will influence their parents to continue to support him and will support him when they come of age.

Source List:

Dirks, Sandyha; “Graphic Novel Depicts John Lewis' 'March' Toward Justice”, http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2013/08/31/216884526/graphic-novel-depicts-john-lewis-march-toward-justice

Hughes, Joseph; “Congressman John Lewis and Andrew Aydin Talk Inspiring the ‘Children of the Movement’ with ‘March’ [Interview]”, http://comicsalliance.com/congressman-john-lewis-interview-march-andrew-aydin-top-shelf/

McWhirter, Cameron; “Rep. John Lewis, Now Comic Book Star”, http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2013/08/02/rep-john-lewis-now-comic-book-star/

Rep. John Lewis makes Comic-Con debut to promote graphic novel ‘March’, http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/reliable-source/wp/2013/07/23/rep-john-lewis-makes-comic-con-debut-to-promote-graphic-novel-march/