Democratic Rep. John Lewis, the civil rights icon from Georgia, testified against Attorney General-designate Jeff Sessions on Wednesday, saying: “It doesn’t matter how Sen. Sessions may smile, how friendly he may be, how he may speak to you, but we need someone who gonna stand up, speak up, and speak out for the people that need help, for people that have been discriminated against.”
Lewis has personal experience with Sessions, an Alabama Republican senator: both were photographed together in 2015 in Selma, Ala., for the 50th anniversary of “Bloody Sunday,” when marchers, including Lewis, were beaten by law enforcement officers as they attempted to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge.
(Photos courtesy of Todd Stacy)
“I took these photos in March 2015 on the 50th anniversary of ‘Bloody Sunday’,” Todd Stacy, an aide to Alabama GOP Rep. Martha Roby, posted on Facebook. “Jeff Sessions made a point to be there because he knew how meaningful his presence and participation would be. He was right. It meant a great deal to see him link arms with civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis and other congressional leaders to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge.”
Despite the protests from Democrats like Lewis, Sessions, who has denied accusations that he made racially insensitive comments in the past, is expected to win confirmation before the Senate.
