HOW MANY LIVES UNTIL WE DECIDE THERE IS NO ROOM IN AMERICA FOR
HATE?
HATE? >> I SAT DOWN WITH JOHN LEWIS IN
WASHINGTON.
WASHINGTON. >> IT’S MEMORIAL DAY BUT WANT TO
TALK ABOUT THE HATEFUL ACTS IN
COUNTRY LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS.
YOU’VE BEEN STRONG GOING AGAINST
WHAT IT SAYS ABOUT OUR COUNTRY
RIGHT NOW.
RIGHT NOW. >> CHRIS, WE HAVE TO BE STRONG.
THERE’S TOO MUCH VIOLENCE, TOO
MUCH HATE.
MUCH HATE. AND DR. KING SAID ON ONE
OCCASION, HATE IS TOO HEAVY A
BURDEN TO BEAR.
SOMEHOW AND SOME WAY WE GOT TO
LAY DOWN THIS BURDEN.
I DON’T KNOW WHAT HAS HAPPENED
TO AMERICA.
TO AMERICA. IT MAKES ME SAD, MAKE ME
SOMETIME CRY.
SOMETIME CRY. I CAN NEVER FORGET WHAT HAPPENED
IN CHARLOTTESVILLE, THE CHURCH
IN CHARLESTON, AND SPREAD LIKE
WILDFIRE.
WILDFIRE. >> SOMETHING NEW OR OLD HATE?
PEOPLE WORRIED ABOUT ETHIC
CHANGE, CHANGE, IMMIGRATION?
WHAT STIRRED IT UP JUST NOW?
>> COMBINATION OF SEVERAL
THINGS.
THINGS. THOSE OF US IN POLITICAL ARENA
NEED TO SPEAK UP AND NEED TO
SPEAK OUT.
SPEAK OUT. THIS IS NOT THE AMERICA THAT WE
WANT.
WANT. WE WANT A BETTER AMERICA.
WE WANT TO BRING PEOPLE
TOGETHER, BECAUSE WE’RE ONE
PEOPLE.
PEOPLE. WE’RE ONE FAMILY.
WE ALL LIVE IN THE SAME HOUSE.
AMERICAN HOUSE.
AMERICAN HOUSE. THE WORLD HOUSE.
WE’RE BROTHERS AND SISTERS.
WE CAN DO WETTERBETTER, MUCH BET
CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT WE TALKED
THE WAY OF PEACE, LOCHLTVE.
I WAS BEATEN, LEFT BLOODY AND
UNCONSCIOUS BUT NEVER HATED
ANYONE, NEVER WILL.
THOSE IN THE POLITICAL ARENA
NEED TO PREACH THE WAY OF LOVE
OF PEACE, HELP CREATED BELOVED
COMMUNITY AND HELP BRING PEOPLE
TOGETHER AS ONE PEOPLE, ONE
FAMILY.
FAMILY. >> WHEN YOU WERE LEADING SNCC,
STUDENT NONVIOLENT COORDINATING
COMMITTEE, ONE OF THE FIRST
LUNCH COUNTER SIT-INS IN
NASHVILLE, YOU HAD PEOPLE
THROWING STUFF ON YOU, WHAT DID
YOU SEE IN YOUR FACES WHEN THEY
WERE TRYING TO HUMILIATE YOU FOR
TRYING TO GET GRILLED CHEESE
SANDWICH AT DEPARTMENT STORE
COUNTER?
COUNTER? >> I SAW HATE.
I SAW A SENSE THAT YOU DON’T
BELONG HERE.
BELONG HERE. YOU GET BACK, STAY IN YOUR
PLACE.
PLACE. BUT A LOT OF THOSE PEOPLE
CHANGED.
CHANGED. AND NASHVILLE IS A MUCH BETTER
PLACE, THE SOUTH IS A MUCH
BETTER PLACE TODAY BECAUSE
PEOPLE SAW IT, AND WE ALL
CONFRONTED IT.
CONFRONTED IT. BUT TODAY IT IS SPREADING AROUND
AMERICA LIKE WILDFIRE.
AND AROUND THE WORLD.
>> YEAH, WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THE
PRESIDENT?
PRESIDENT? >> I DON’T THINK THIS PRESIDENT
HAS BEEN HELPFUL.
I THINK HE FEELS AT HOME WITH
WHAT IS GOING ON.
WHEN HE REACTED TO WHAT WAS
HAPPENING IN CHARLOTTESVILLE,
GOOD PEOPLE ON BOTH SIDES, I
CRIED.
CRIED. IT’S NOT THE AMERICA THAT I
DREAM FOR, THE ONE I WAS TRYING
TO HELP SET RIGHT, IT’S NOT THE
AMERICA WE HAD DURING THE DAYS
OF PRESIDENT KENNEDY AND LYNDON
JOHNSON, IT’S DIFFERENT.
>> DID YOU THINK -- THERE SEEMED
TO BE A PATTERN.
WE HAD BILL CLINTON, PRETTY
DARNED GOOD -- THEN OBAMA.
>> GOOD.
>> GOOD. OBAMA WAS GOOD.
>> OBAMA EVEN BETTER.
SEEMED LIKE GETTING SOMEWHERE.
WHAT HAPPENED TO GET PEOPLE TO
VOTE FOR TRUMP?
KNOWING HIS ATTITUDES ABOUT RACE
AND DIVISION?
AND DIVISION? >> I’M NOT SO SURE BUT SOMEHOW
AND SOME WAY HIS MESSAGE
ARRESTED THAT MOVEMENT TOWARD
GOODNESS AND OPENNESS.
AND PEOPLE STOPPED RESPECTING
THE WORTH AND DIGNITY OF ALL OF
US.
US. >> WHAT ABOUT THE HISTORY OF OUR
COUNTRY, LOOK AT IT IN LONG
STRETCH, GOING BACK TO THE CIVIL
WAR, BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR,
SLAVERY, 250 YEARS OF SLAVERY,
THEN 100 YEARS OF JIM CROW, 50
YEARS OF WHATEVER YOU CALL THIS,
IMPROVEMENTS CERTAINLY.
IMPROVEMENTS CERTAINLY. IS THERE -- I USED TO THINK
ALWAYS BATTLE BETWEEN GOOD AND
BAD ARMY, NEVER CLEAR WHO WAS
GOING TO WHEREIN.
ALWAYS A BATTLE.
IS THAT HOW IT’S GOING TO BE?
FORCE OF GOING BACKWARDS AGAINST
TRYING TO MAKE IT BETTER?
>> I THINK THEY’RE GOING TO MAKE
IT BETTER.
IT BETTER. FORCES OF MAKING IT BETTER WILL
SUCCEED.
SUCCEED. YOU HAVE TO HAVE FAITH, BELIEVE,
YOU HAVE TO HAVE HOPE.
YOU CANNOT GIVE UP.
I WILL NOT GIVE UP.
I WILL NOT BECOME BITTER.
AS AMERICANS WE MUST NEVER, EVER
BECOME BITTER, HOSTILE.
WE MUST NEVER, EVER HATE.
IF NOT WE’LL LOSE IT.
WE CANNOT AFFORD TO LOSE OUR
COUNTRY, OUR DEMOCRACY.
>> LET’S GET TO MOTIVE.
IF YOU LOOK AT THE TIMES OF WHEN
THE WHITES IN THE SOUTH HAD
DEFEATED RECONSTRUCTION
DEFEATED RECONSTRUCTION COMPLETELY, AND GRABBED CONTROL
OF ALL POLITICAL POWER, THE
CONSERVATIVE DEMOCRATS.
CONSERVATIVE DEMOCRATS. LYNCHINGS AND WORST OF THE
HATRED BACK THEN, WAS THAT A
SYSTEMATIC EFFORT TO KEEP THE
BLACK PERSON DOWN THROUGH FEAR?
OR FEAR OF THE BLACK PERSON?
WHAT LED PEOPLE TO COMMIT DEADLY
ACTS?
ACTS? >> I THINK PEOPLE HAD BEEN
TAUGHT THAT A CERTAIN SEGMENT OF
THE POPULATION DIDN’T BELONG IN
THE SAME PLACE.
SO YOU HAD A SIGN SAYING WHITE
AND COLORED.
AND COLORED. WHITE MEN, COLORED MEN, WHITE
WOMEN, COLORED WOMEN.
BUT WE GOT OVER THAT.
AND TODAY IN MANY PARTS OF THE
SOUTH PEOPLE ARE LIVING IN PEACE
AND HARMONY WITH EACH OTHER.
THEY LAY DOWN THE BURDEN OF
RACE.
RACE. AND I THINK TODAY IT’S MINORITY
OF PEOPLE, PEOPLE COME IN AND
TRY TO TEACH PEOPLE AND URGE
PEOPLE TO GO BACK.
BUT WE’VE COME TOO FAR, MADE TOO
MUCH PROGRESS, AND WE’RE NOT
GOING BACK, WE’RE GOING FORWARD.
AND WE NEED LEADERS TO HELP
POINT THE WAY TO THE FUTURE.
>> AGAIN WE HAVE THE PRESIDENT,
AND THE PRESIDENT HAS USED ALL
KINDS OF CODE LANGUAGE,
SOMETIMES NOT CODE LANGUAGE.
HOW DO YOU GET THAT TO STOP?
HOW DOES ANYBODY CORRECT THIS
PRESIDENT?
PRESIDENT? BESIDES DEFEATING HIM AND
GETTING HIM OUT OF OFFICE.
>> WE HAVE TO GO OUT AND VOTE AS
YOU STATED LIKE WE’VE NEVER
VOTED BEFORE.
VOTED BEFORE. BUT IN THE MEANTIME GOOD PEOPLE
MUST STAND UP, SPEAK UP, SPEAK
OUT.
OUT. MY PHILOSOPHY IS VERY SIMPLE,
WHEN YOU SEE SOMETHING THAT’S
NOT RIGHT, NOT FAIR, NOT JUST,
DO SOMETHING.
DO SOMETHING. YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO BE QUIET.
>> HAVE YOU IN YOUR YEARS IN
CONGRESS, GOING BACK TO THE
’80s, HAVE YOU EVER COME ACROSS
THE HATE GROUP THREATS?
DID THEY COME AFTER YOU?
THESE GROUPS.
THESE GROUPS. >> SINCE I’VE BEEN IN CONGRESS
WE’VE RECEIVED CALLS, SOME
MESSAGES.
MESSAGES. BUT FOR THE MOST PART THE PEOPLE
HAVE BEEN VERY GOOD TO ME.
THEY’VE BEEN VERY GOOD TO ME.
WHEN I TRAVEL ALL ACROSS
AMERICA, ALL ACROSS THE SOUTH,
PEOPLE COME AND SAY THANK YOU
FOR HELPING, THANK YOU FOR WHAT
YOU DID FOR YOUR COUNTRY.
EVEN ON CAPITOL HILL, PEOPLE
COME AND SEE ME, DOESN’T MATTER
WHETHER BLACK OR HISPANIC,
WHITE, NATIVE AMERICAN, THEY
ALWAYS SAY THANK YOU.
AND SOMETIMES PEOPLE BREAK DOWN
AND CRY.
AND CRY. AND I SAY PLEASE DON’T CRY.
PEOPLE SAY I’M GOING TO PASS
OUT.
OUT. ONCE A LADY CAME, I SAID PLEASE
DON’T PASS OUT, I’M NOT A
DOCTOR.
DOCTOR. >> YOU’RE SUCH A MAN OF HISTORY.
SAY THIS TO YOUR FACE BUT I
DON’T KNOW ANYBODY ELSE WHO HAS
BEEN THROUGH THE SIT-INS AND
FREEDOM RIDERS AND BEING THERE
ON EDWIN PETTIS BRIDGE AND
GETTING BEATEN ALMOST TO DEATH
AND TO BE WITH BOBBY KENNEDY IN
INDIANAPOLIS THAT NIGHT HAVING
TO TALK ABOUT HIM BEING SHOT TO
CROWD OF AFRICAN-AMERICANS.
YOU’VE BEEN THERE.
>> I’VE SEEN UNBELIEVABLE
CHANGES.
CHANGES. >> YOU’RE OPTIMISTIC?
>> OPTIMISTIC, HOPEFUL.
WE’LL GET THROUGH THIS, THIS
WILL BE BEHIND US.
WE’LL REGAIN OUR COUNTRY AND OUR
PLACE IN THE WORLD.
>> WHAT WOULD YOU SAY NOW TO A
PERSON WATCHING RIGHT NOW WHO IS
THINKING -- ANGRY ABOUT ETHIC
CHANGE, IMMIGRATION, BLACK
OPPORTUNITY, A WHITE PERSON JUST
PROFOUNDLY LONELY AND MISERABLE
IN THEIR LIVES FOR SOME REASON,
THINKING OF JOINING ONE OF THESE
HATE GROUPS BECAUSE IT’S SOME
SORT OF FRATERNITY THEY’LL BE
PART OF?
PART OF? THAT’S APPARENTLY WHAT HAPPENS.
>> MY BROTHER, MY SISTER, HATE
IS NOT THE WAY.
THE WAY OF LOVE IS A MUCH BETTER
WAY.
WAY. LOVE EVERYBODY.
LOVE EVERYBODY. NEVER, EVER HATE.
LOVE YOURSELF, LOVE YOUR FELLOW
HUMAN BEING.