Constitution Center to award Liberty Medal to Rep. John Lewis

PHILADELPHIA (WTXF) - This year, the National Constitution Center's Liberty Medal will be awarded to Congressman John Lewis for his courageous dedication to civil rights and the Constitution.

According to the Constitution Center, its Liberty Medal "honors men and women of courage and conviction who strive to secure the blessings of liberty to people around the globe."

In 1963, Lewis was the youngest speaker at the March on Washington.

In 1965, he and Hosea Williams led the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama on "Bloody Sunday."

Lewis also participated in the Nashville lunch counter sit-ins and the Freedom Rides.

In 1981, he was elected to the Atlanta City Council and in 1986 to Congress, where he still represents Georgia.

Lewis, 76, is the only surviving "Big Six" leader of the Civil Rights Movement. That group of prominent civil rights leaders included Martin Luther King, Jr., James Farmer, A. Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins and Whitney Young.

The 28th Annual Liberty Medal Ceremony will be held on Sept. 19.