John Lewis attends the U.S. Postal Service Unveiling of the 1963 March On Washington Stamp on August 23, 2013 in Washington, United States. Photo: Riccardo S. Savi (Getty Images for U.S. Postal Service)
Civil rights icon and U.S. Congressman John Lewis was hospitalized Saturday after falling ill on a flight to Atlanta, CNN reports.
Lewis’ spokeswoman, Brenda Jones, said that the congressman is under routine observation and is expected to be released today. She did not provide details about his illness or where he is being hospitalized.
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Since 1986, Lewis, 78, has been representing Georgia’s 5th Congressional District, which includes much of the city of Atlanta. One of the last standing elders of the Civil Rights Era and a disciple of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Lewis continues to be the voice of moral conviction in Congress. He recently led eight House Democrats in blocking a Washington, D.C. street in protest of Donald Trump’s policy of separating children from their parents.
Terrell Jermaine Starr is a senior reporter at The Root. He is currently writing a book proposal that analyzes US-Russia relations from a black perspective.
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