, I thought long and hard about what I wanted to write about. This idea of those in our history who are hidden in plain sight — those who the history books might have left out — kept coming to my mind. The importance of documenting history has become even more crucial as we confront attempts to suppress the history of African Americans and other minorities. If politicians such as Florida Gov.
Rev. Lawson returned to the United States in 1957 and, at the urging of Dr. King, moved south. King would tell him, “You’re badly needed. We don’t have anyone like you.” He taught nonviolent tactics to the Little Rock Nine and, in 1960, began organizing and teaching nonviolent workshops with Nashville-area college students, including a young John Lewis. They would role-play various situations that included students being insulted, spit on and hit without being able to hit back. Lawson created a highly disciplined movement that went on to desegregate downtown Nashville, setting an example for 200 other cities.
Lawson helped organize the Freedom Rides of 1961, traveling from Montgomery, Ala., to Jackson, Miss., where he was arrested for using the whites-only bathroom at the bus stop. In 1968, he invited Dr. King to Memphis to bring attention to the plight of the city’s striking sanitation workers. Dr. King arrived in Memphis and talked about Rev. Lawson in his “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” sermon. King was assassinated the next day.
History does not honor all of its heroes. Even today, names that are well known are in danger of being erased from certain narratives. Rev. Lawson deserves a chapter in our history books.