Arresting images (Image via John Lewis) Rep. John Lewis (D-Georgia) took to Twitter today to share his mug shot from his 1961 arrest for using a whites-only bathroom in Jackson, Mississippi, during the Freedom Rides.
He was released — after about six weeks behind bars — on this day 59 years ago: 59 years ago today I was released from Parchman Farm Penitentiary after being arrested in Jackson, MS for using a so-called "white" restroom during the Freedom Rides of 1961.
Interesting thing about this sort of flashback: It's a reminder that open, virulent, unapologetic, systemic racism was alive and well within the lifetimes of so many current U.S.