Holness, Patterson pay tribute to civil-rights icon

The Government of Jamaica and former Prime Minister P.J. Patterson have sent letters of condolence to the United States Congressional Black Caucus on the passing of the long-standing representative for Georgia’s 5th District, John Lewis.

Lewis died on July 17.

The letter from Prime Minister Andrew Holness noted, “Congressman Lewis will be forever etched in our memories and in the annals of the history of the United States of America, and indeed the world, for the prominent role he played and the indelible mark he made in the civil-rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, which arose out of the need and desire for equality and freedom for African Americans.”

The note, which was sent to the Jamaican Embassy in Washington for onward transmission to the US Congress, observed, “Congressman Lewis continued his fight for justice throughout his entire life, including as a representative of the people in the United States Congress, where he was called by his colleagues as the ‘Conscience of Congress’, given his relentless pursuit for the promotion and protection of human rights and civil liberties for all.”

In his tribute, Patterson said, “[Lewis] was a valiant warrior, who in the context of the ongoing struggle, has left a personal legacy on which current efforts of the ‘Black Lives Matter’ [movement] can build. He is a genuine American hero and moral leader who commands global respect. Congressman Lewis, often described as ‘one of the most courageous persons the civil-rights movement ever produced’, in his pursuit of civil rights, was known for his humility, a commitment to peaceful advocacy, as well as his dedication to the highest ethical standards and moral principles –characteristics that won him the admiration of many.”