John Lewis Crosses Edmund Pettus Bridge as a Final Farewell

John's casket was draped in an American flag.

Walking a short distance behind were family members, some wearing black "Good trouble" T-shirts in honor of Lewis's call for constructive protest.

On the far side, well-wishers saluted the coffin, singing the civil rights anthem "We Shall Overcome."

The casket was then transferred by military honor guard into a hearse, to lead a procession through the city of Montgomery before arriving at the State Capitol around 2pm (1800 GMT) for public viewing two hours later, according to local media.

The tributes will move Monday to the US Capitol, where the leading figure of the US civil rights movement will lie in state through Tuesday evening, a rarely granted honor.

There, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Sunday on CBS, John Lewis will be "sharing that resting place with Abraham Lincoln," the man who ended slavery in the US.

On Sunday, a diverse crowd of well-wishers — some who had come from hundreds of miles away — began assembling near the bridge hours early. Many wore protective masks.

The civil rights leader had last appeared there in March, to mark the 55th anniversary of "Bloody Sunday."

Though ill from the pancreatic cancer that killed him, he had insisted on being present.

Hoisted on the shoulders of two supporters, he told the crowd, "We cannot give up now, we cannot give in."

"We must keep the faith. Keep the eyes on the prize. We must go out and vote like we never, ever voted before."

John grew up in the Alabama city of Troy. His parents were sharecroppers, and he once worked in a cotton field.

While attending segregated schools, Lewis was inspired by the peaceful protests of rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr.

On Thursday, solemn commemorations for John Lewis will end in Atlanta, Georgia, where he will be remembered in a private service in the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where Martin Luther King once preached.

Lewis's burial will follow. 

(Writer: Wes Bruer) 

Source: http://u.afp.com/37vz