John Lewis animated for 'Arthur'

Rep. John Lewis died July 17 from pancreatic cancer at the age of 80, inspiring heartfelt tributes from politicians, activists and everyday citizens whose lives were changed by his decades of work on behalf of civil rights. Lewis, whose life is being celebrated in Alabama this week, famously led the "Bloody Sunday" march in Selma, Alabama, in 1965, where he was beaten by state troopers; as recently as last month, he appeared at Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, D.C., to support growing racial justice protests across the country. But the longtime congressman also was savvy when it came to conveying his message of social change through pop culture. He published two autobiographical graphic novels, "March" and "Run"; gamely cosplayed at Comic-Con as a younger version of himself; was a frequent guest on late-night TV — once crowd-surfing on "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" — and participated in a documentary, "John Lewis: Good Trouble," released earlier this month. And as I discovered recently thanks to my 5-year-old daughter, an avid consumer of PBS programming, Lewis also guest-starred in the long-running animated series "Arthur." As incongruous as it was for me to see one of the most revered civil rights leaders in American history depicted as a cartoon bear, the episode taught my daughter that Lewis was "a special man," as she recalled to me this week. In "Arthur Takes a Stand," which first aired in 2018, Arthur, an 8-year-old anthropomorphic aardvark living in the fictional Elwood City, learns that Lewis will be a guest speaker at his school, Lakewood Elementary. His friend, Sue Ellen, a precociously wise red-headed cat, explains why this is so exciting: "He was a really important civil rights leader in the 1960s and challenged the lack of equal rights for Black Americans!" But Arthur is upset to learn that his friend, lunch lady Mrs. MacGrady, has been working additional hours to make breakfast for the students at Lakewood. Arthur pleads with Miss Tingley, the principal, to hire an assistant but she brushes him off. Upset, Arthur dozes off in the library and has a nightmare about Mrs. MacGrady's workload — then awakens to find the civil rights leader sitting next to him. Lewis encourages him to keep fighting for his friend. "Sometimes people don't hear the first time. You have to be persistent. But if this means a lot to you, do not give up. Hold your ground. A person with conviction can change the world." Arthur decides to organize a cafeteria sit-in to force the school to hire an assistant for Mrs. MacGrady, and Lewis joins in the demonstration; in a twist, it turns out Mrs. MacGrady is an old friend of the Georgia congressman, as both attended the 1963 March on Washington. Miss Tingley relents under pressure and agrees to push for more funding. "There's nothing more important than following your conscience," Lewis tells Arthur at the end of the episode. "If you can do that, you're always going to sleep well."