Commemorating a revered civil rights hero of our era, John Lewis: In Search of the Beloved Community by Raymond Arsenault captures with remarkable clarity the true essence of a humble, gentle leader widely considered during his time in Congress to be "the moral compass of our nation," in the words of Senator Elizabeth Warren. This first comprehensive biography of the U.S. Representative from Georgia offers, through vivid details of his historic victories and setbacks as a freedom fighter, a thorough and intimate understanding of John Lewis's interior journey, his strong sense of mission, and the personal influences that guided his enduring commitment to the nonviolent movement for change advocated by Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Arsenault (Freedom Riders; The Sound of Freedom), a scholar of Southern history and the civil rights movement, draws on interviews with Lewis, whom he first met in 2000, as well as conversations with his family and contemporaries, newspaper articles, oral histories, and the writings of Lewis and his "nonviolent warrior" counterparts. The author crafts a richly textured, action-driven saga of a cerebral young man born in 1940 in Troy, Ala.; his extraordinary journey from the cotton fields of his state's Black Belt to the frontlines of the civil rights movement; and his exemplary leadership in Washington on voting rights legislation.

At the core of Arsenault's absorbing narrative is Lewis's unceasing search for the "Beloved Community" of his hopes and aspirations. This social and moral ideal was first introduced to an impressionable young Lewis by King and by a professor named James Lawson during his time as a student at the American Baptist Theology Seminary in Nashville, Tenn. It was this pursuit of a human community based on love that drove Lewis to a life of morality-based activism and nonviolent action for the promotion of civil and human rights. He believed that we are each imbued with a divine spark of the Creator, a tremendous source of power that connects us to one another and to the universe, and which we can use in our personal lives to change our individual condition as well as deploy as a "lifeline of spiritual strength to change a nation."

From this powerful sacred belief grew his compassion for neighbors, friends and even his most ardent enemies. Arsenault shares a poignant scene he witnessed firsthand to illustrate the depth of Lewis's capacity for forgiveness: Lewis's startling grace in accepting the late-in-life apology of Elwin Wilson, the former Ku Klux Klan member who attacked and seriously injured Lewis 50 years earlier during the Freedom Rides of 1961. In 2011, when Lewis and Wilson appeared as guests on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Wilson was fearful and nervous. Reaching out to comfort him, Lewis gently held Wilson's right hand and declared to everyone, "He's my brother"--a powerful, living embodiment of his beloved community ideals.

The third installment in the Black Lives series published by Yale University Press, John Lewis invites readers to consider the man through his interactions with those closest to him in spirit. One of these was Dr. Bernard Lafayette, Jr., Lewis's lifelong friend and former roommate at the Nashville seminary; as students, they participated in the 1959 lunch counter sit-ins in downtown Nashville, and the historic Freedom Rides on buses across the South, experiencing arrests, beatings, and bullying at the hands of white supremacists. Another was King himself, who praised Lewis's bravery and liked to call him "the boy from Troy."

Throughout this illuminating biography, readers will find revealing insights into Lewis's relationships with figures such as Robert Kennedy and President Jimmy Carter, highlighting his reputation as a man adept at practical politics and the art of compromise in the areas that mattered most to him: social and economic equality, the political empowerment of the nation's most vulnerable citizens, and broad access to quality health care, to name a few. On the international stage, Lewis saw no bright line between domestic and foreign affairs, and therefore adopted an "internationalist conception" of the civil rights movement, participating in anti-apartheid protests outside the South African embassy in Washington, urging President Ronald Reagan toward a nuclear disarmament treaty with the Soviet Union, and supporting United Nations humanitarian initiatives in Kenya and Somalia.

Lewis's own voice shines throughout Arsenault's energetic narrative, his "quiet shyness" balanced by his soaring oration during his chairmanship of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Having obeyed discriminatory rules throughout his youth, which told him he couldn't use the library, drink at the fountain, or eat in a restaurant, Lewis's exhilaration in finally defying those rules by making "good trouble" renders John Lewis a provocative, encouraging read for those who are curious to learn how, despite the many emotional scars, injuries and arrests he suffered at the hands of white supremacists, Lewis's essential spirit remained unbroken. Three years before his death in 2020, Lewis counseled his fellow defenders of democracy thus: "Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, or month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime." His example, founded on a deep spirituality and belief in the human potential for moral improvement, is one that subsequent generations can gain strength and courage from as they develop their own aspirations for a world that rises to the ideals of Lewis's "Beloved Community." --Shahina Piyarali

Raymond Arsenault (photo: Kathleen H. Arsenault)

Raymond Arsenault is the John Hope Franklin Professor of Southern History Emeritus at the University of South Florida in St. Petersburg, Fla., where he has taught since 1980. A specialist in the political, social, environmental, and civil rights history of the American South, he has authored or edited a dozen titles, including Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice, a New York Times Editor’s Choice, and a Washington Post Book World Best Book of the Year. Arsenault's John Lewis: In Search of the Beloved Community is the first comprehensive biography of the civil rights icon, and will be published by Yale University Press on January 16, 2024.

What inspired you to write a biography of John Lewis?

I became fascinated by John Lewis's life and career as a civil rights activist during the eight years (1998-2006) that I worked on my book Freedom Riders: 1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice, published in 2006 by Oxford University Press. This fascination grew as I got to know him personally during and after my first interview with him in 2000. I was surprised to learn that he had never been the subject of a biography, and that he had received little scholarly attention from historians. I devoted considerable attention to him as I researched and wrote Freedom Riders, but I became convinced that his critical role in the evolution of the nonviolent direct-action phase of the struggle for civil rights during the 1960s, combined with his later career as congressman, merited a full-scale biographical treatment. To my mind, he is one of the most important historical figures in modern American history, and I became increasingly aware of this as I probed deeper into his life and times.

Is there anything about Lewis that took you by surprise during your research?

What surprised me the most was the depth and consistency of his commitment to nonviolence as a way of life. In a long life that involved many complex issues and personal challenges--including numerous arrests and beatings--he never wavered in his dedication to the core principles of love, peace, compassion, and forgiveness. The search for the "Beloved Community" guided his personal and public life for more than six decades. No matter how difficult the circumstances, he--like his mentors Martin Luther King Jr. and James Lawson--always kept his "eyes on the prize." To me, his moral and physical courage reflected an extraordinary inner strength and clarity of vision rarely seen in the real world. When I started my research, I already suspected that his character was admirable, but I now realize I had no idea of the actual depth of his passion for justice, equality, and the values and promise of a "Beloved Community."

You share a moving anecdote from The Oprah Winfrey Show where Lewis, in a breathtaking moment of grace, embraces his former Ku Klux Klan tormentor, Elwin Wilson. What role did you play in facilitating this on-air reconciliation?

Per Oprah Winfrey's determination to leaven even the most troubling of subjects with a certain amount of upbeat material, the producers of The Oprah Winfrey Show sought a dramatic story involving reconciliation. I suggested to them that the most obvious choice was Elwin Wilson's transformation and request for forgiveness, and John Lewis's compassion for and friendship with one of the men who beat him in Rock Hill, S.C., in May 1961. But, of course, I had no idea of what might happen if Mr. Wilson actually appeared on the show. The drama that unfolded--with John Lewis reaching out to grab his struggling friend's hand and proclaiming in words loud enough for everyone to hear, "He's my brother"--took me and everyone else by surprise. I will remember this spontaneous act of compassion for as long as I live. On that afternoon the true greatness of John Lewis was revealed for all to see.

What is the long-term impact of Lewis's lessons in forgiveness and moral fortitude on today's Congress?

Judging Lewis's long-term impact on Congress is virtually impossible at this point since it has only been a little over three years since his death. I think we can say that there is little evidence that his legacy has had much influence on Republican representatives and senators. On the Democratic side, however, the situation looks much more hopeful. Lewis remains a revered figure among many Democratic representatives and senators, especially among the 55 members of the Congressional Black Caucus, a number of whom regard him as an indispensable mentor. While no one in the Congress has earned a reputation for moral courage equivalent to Lewis's, there are a number of progressive Democrats who try to live up to his high standards of decency and integrity. Indeed, Lewis's legacy becomes obvious whenever Congress turns to the ongoing struggle over voting rights.

If he were with us today, what advice do you think Lewis would share with President Biden about the domestic and foreign challenges facing the U.S.?

If Lewis were alive today, he would urge President Biden: to be very restrained in his reliance on American military power; to emphasize the cause of human rights above all others; to avoid chauvinistic declarations of American cultural and political superiority; to keep the entire world in his vision, valuing the interests and perspectives of all nations, rich and poor; to promote tolerance of others and respectful dialogue among political opponents; to dedicate himself to environmental health and justice; to defend and protect the Constitutional rights of all Americans; to do everything he can to protect voting rights and advance the nation's democratic traditions and aspirations; to promote immigrants' rights, stressing the importance of treating refugees with respect and compassion; and to promote the ideals of the "Beloved Community" at home and abroad.

You mention that Lewis is one of the two most extraordinary persons you have met. Who is the second person?

The other is the great Black historian John Hope Franklin (1915-2009), the author of From Slavery to Freedom (1947) and numerous other important books dealing with race and African American history.

Are you working on a new book project?

At age 75, after authoring or editing a dozen books, I am not sure I have another book in me. But if I do write another book, it will probably be a study of one of my ancestors, Captain Jonathan Walker (1799-1878), a Cape Cod sailor and abolitionist who was immortalized in the 1840s by the poet John Greenleaf Whittier as "The Man with the Branded Hand." After attempting to liberate seven enslaved men by taking them from Pensacola, Fla., to the Bahamas in 1844, he was arrested by federal authorities a few miles north of the Florida Keys, imprisoned, and convicted of the crime of "slave stealing." As part of his punishment, one of his hands was branded with the letters "SS" for "slave stealer."

At present, I am undecided about how to tell Walker's story; the possibilities range from a straight historical narrative to a historical novel to a book written for children or young adults. But whatever form the proposed book takes, I hope I can muster enough energy and enthusiasm to relate Walker's remarkable saga in an intellectually meaningful and entertaining way. --Shahina Piyarali