French President Emmanuel Macron paid a visit to the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial in Washington, DC, Wednesday, accompanied by a guide intimately familiar with the history of civil rights in the US, Rep. John Lewis.
The Democratic congressman from Georgia, a civil rights icon himself, and the visiting dignitary were seen viewing the inscriptions of King quotes at the memorial in a video posted to the French Embassy’s Facebook page.
The two leaders visited at the same time as an unsuspecting group of students from Vermont. Macron praised Lewis’ work in the Civil Rights Movement to the students, urging them to carry on his legacy.
“You can be proud of this guy,” the French President told them. “It’s not just about history books; it’s about real persons.”
“You owe him a lot,” Macron added.
Macron’s visit to the memorial followed his remarks to a joint session of Congress in which he addressed the US and France’s shared “history of civil rights.”
