Civil Rights Activist John Lewis Endorses Joe Biden for President

Published: 4/8/2020, 2:50:57 PM EDT

Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) voiced his support for Joe Biden as a presidential candidate.

"He will be a great president," Lewis said of Biden in a conference call with reporters on Monday, according to CNN. "He will lead our country to a better place. He would inspire another generation to stand up, to speak up, and to speak out, to be brave, and to be bold."

Lewis also suggested Biden choose an African American woman as his running mate. Biden announced on several occasions that he wanted to pick a woman as his potential vice president, but not necessarily one of color.

"It would be good to have a woman of color. It would be good to have a woman," Lewis said. "It would be good to have a woman look like the rest of America—smart, gifted, a fighter, a warrior. And we have plenty of able women, some of black, white, Latino, Asian American, Native American. I think the time has long past of making the White House look like the whole of America."

Democratic presidential hopeful former US vice president Joe Biden makes a point as he and Senator Bernie Sanders take part in the 11th Democratic Party 2020 presidential debate in a CNN Washington Bureau studio in Washington, on March 15, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images) — Democratic presidential hopeful former US vice president Joe Biden makes a point as he and Senator Bernie Sanders take part in the 11th Democratic Party 2020 presidential debate in a CNN Washington Bureau studio in Washington, on March 15, 2020. Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

Biden's endorsement by Lewis came a good month before the Democratic primary is set to be held in Georgia on May 19, Lewis' home state. The primary was initially planned on March 24, but postponed due to the outbreak of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus. Currently, the state Democrats are considering organizing an all-mail election.

Lewis, who is 80 years of age, was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreas cancer last year but is nonetheless determined to go on the campaign trail to endorse his friend.

Lewis was a leading civil rights activist in the 1960s.

"I saw people that were beaten, arrested and jailed. On March 2, 1965, more than 600 of us were beaten, left bloody, some of us left unconscious." Lewis said, according to The Hill.

Lewis was referring to "Bloody Sunday," March 3, 1965, when he and some 600 other black voting-rights activists upon trying to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama were bashed by Georgia police officers. Lewis, then 25, fractured his skull as a result.