Timehost: Thanks to everyone for joining us this evening. Wešre very pleased to be hosting, with Yahoo! Chat, this chat as part of our observance of Black History Month. As you all know, our guest is Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) a leader of the civil rights movement. The Congressman is here... Thank you, Rep. Lewis, for joining us tonight.

Rep. John Lewis: Well, I'm delighted, very happy and very pleased to be with you tonight.

Timehost: Let's take the first question.

Jahya_Choralon asks: Why do you think it is important to celebrate Black History Month?

Rep. John Lewis: It is important to celebrate and commemorate Black History Month, not just for African-Americans or black Americans, because it is a necessity for all Americans to understand the contribution African-Americans have made to this country as citizens and long before we were citizens. From the time we were brought to this land in chains, we have made extraordinary contributions to the well-being of American democratic society. People need to know that Americans of color have risked their lives struggled much to make the world a better place. They have made a difference in the arts, in science, in military struggles, in politics, in religion. In any field, we were there.

alkebulan47 asks: I would like to ask the congressman what his most vivid memory is from any civil rights event.

Rep. John Lewis: The most vivid memory, one that I will never forget as long as I live, is the day that I attempted, along with others, to lead a band of courageous people across the Pettus Bridge to vote in Selma, Alabama, to dramatize the fight of people of color to vote. It became known as Bloody Sunday; a march like a holy crusade. It changed America forever.

Mystical_Maxine asks: Do you think that blacks have an easier time growing up than you did?

Rep. John Lewis: I think it is much easier and much simpler and people grow up today with a greater sense of freedom, of hope, of optimism. When I was growing up in the 40s and 50s, in southeast Alabama, like so much of the South, as a young child I tasted the bitter fruits of racism. There was a tremendous amount of fear. People were afraid to talk of civil rights. There was an unbelievable amount of fear, fear even of going to a meeting for fear of being lynched. There's a greater amount of optimism now. There's a greater sense of hope. When I was growing up, I couldn't check a book out of the public library in the town where I grew up in Alabama. I couldn't get a library card.

savannah_allen asks: What was Dr. Martin Luther King really like?

Rep. John Lewis: I met Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. when I was 18 years old, in 1958. Three years earlier, I had heard him on the radio, but when I met him I felt like I was meeting my hero, a hero who became my friend, my colleague. He was a very warm and loving man. He loved to be around young people, he loved to listen, not just to speak. He loved to challenge people to think. Today we think of him as a great leader, a great thinker, but he was just a simple human being. A very, very warm man. I remember on the march to Selma, Alabama. I had been hurt, had received a concussion, and we were walking along in the rain, and he took off a brown cap from his head and told me, "John, you need to wear this cap, you've been hurt." It was a small thing, but it meant so much to me.

Timehost: Here's a follow-up to the question about how much progress we've made...

Jahya_Choralan asks: Do you think that prejudices are rarer today or just better hidden?

Rep. John Lewis: I think overt acts of prejudice, of racism are becoming more and more rare. It is not as open. I think the civil rights movement had the capacity to bring the stains of racism from out of the cracks, from under the American carpet, into the light so we could deal with it. We still have problems, but we have come such a great distance. It is not acceptable in American society today to show signs of racism, of prejudice against a people because of their color, their sex, their sexual orientation. And I think we will come together as a people and lay down the burden of race, hatred, bigotry, or whatever you want to call it.

Stamm444 asks: Mr. Congressman, Stokely Carmichael essentially told the white integrationists to leave the SNCC. Was that a wise decision, looking back? Black Power meant no integrated leadership.

Rep. John Lewis: That decision and that statement on the part of Stokely Carmichael was not a wise one. I opposed that, but I lost out. And that was one of the reasons I was elected and de-elected as president of the SNCC. Black power was rhetoric and the SNCC believed in programs. The early days of the student movement, we made a commitment to integration, to the idea of the beloved community. I took a position then, and I take it today, that the idea of integration, of the beloved community is an idea that we must struggle to make real. If I'm the last person in America believing in integration, then I will be that person. I don't believe we have any other way to go in America. If we are going to survive as a people we must believe in the beloved community, where we forget about racism.

buckster7061 asks: It seems that the Democratic Party has turned its back on low-income people. What would you suggest we do to build some power for the working class?

Rep. John Lewis: I think the Democratic Party has not as a party turned its back on poor people, but as a party concerned about working people, we must go back to where Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy went 30 years ago. We must go back to building a coalition, of blacks from the urban areas, from rural areas, low-income whites, Hispanics from the southwest, and make available the resources to working people to get what they need: education -- a great equalizer --, health care. 40 million people are without health care right now. In addition, the problem of the poor is so great and massive, there must be massive Intervention by the government. When the Democrats are in the White House, we must have an agenda, we must do something. Stop spending so much of our money on bombs, and start creating good paying jobs for people. If you don't have good health care, it's going to be very hard to create a good life for your family, for health care and education go hand in hand and that's what the party must do.

rag_83asks: How do you feel about African American fanatics like Farrakhan and others? How do you deal with these approaches to racism?

Rep. John Lewis: I don't think there's any room in American society for fanaticism, for black or white extremists. We must come together. There're roles for individuals. I said, just the other day, our forefathers came to this country under different conditions, but we're all in the same boat now. Whether we're young, old, African American or white, we must be committed to the idea of creating one America, one house, one family.

MickSW asks: Good evening, Rep. Lewis. Michelle from College Park, GA. I would like to know what made you get into politics and what are your thoughts on today's guilty verdict in Jasper, TX? (By the way, happy belated B-day to you.)

Rep. John Lewis: Good evening, Michelle . Thank you for wishing me a happy birthday. I was deeply inspired as a younger person when I came to Washington as chair of the SNCC. We had a meeting in the Oval Office with John F. Kennedy, and later I had a chance to meet President Johnson, and I also got to get to know very well several members of Congress. I was in Bobby Kennedy's room, had talked to him about 15 minutes before he went down to make his victory statement, in June 1968, and was assassinated. When I was young in Alabama, I had no idea who my congressman was. I felt that I had an obligation and a mission to do what I could to continue the work of these two young men that I knew, that I admired, that I loved. I saw politics as a means, as a method to continue their work and I saw it as an extension of my work in the civil rights movement. On the question of Jasper, it was the right verdict. It is so painful to know that we live in a society where people could be so cruel, so mean, so vicious to commit such a crime against another human being. What is it in the human spirit, in the human heart? What is it in the psyche of America that drives someone to commit such an act? I hope that what happened in Jasper will send a message across all America that violent acts against a human being because of his or her color, religion, or otherwise must not stand. And as for Congress, we need to pass a hate crimes bill to find local and federal authority greater leeway to prosecute people who commit crimes of hate against individuals, against a group.

Timehost: Here's a sort of follow-up about how you made the transition from being a civil rights leader to being a congressman...

BrothaMan7 asks: How did you make the transition from a very radical controversial individual (in the public eye at least) to a position where you could be elected into public office?

Rep. John Lewis: Well, I never saw myself as being radical or militant. I have been very persistent, very aggressive, I have always subscribed to a philosophy of non-violence, that we make real the Constitution, our creeds, our ideas. I saw being a congressman as being something very natural, as someone telling other people to get registered, to run for office, and then when I had people telling me to run for office, I couldn't run from it. I don't think I've changed any. I still talk about the need for a beloved community, I still talk about change. I spoke to some of my colleagues in Congress that we're too quiet, we need to make a little noise. During the meeting in the Democratic Caucus during impeachment, it was my suggestion that we walk off the floor of the House. There comes a time when you have to do something special to dramatize the issue.

Jahya_Choralan asks: Do you feel that other races (like Native Americans) should also be represented the way African Americans are by having Black History Month?

Rep. John Lewis: I think it's important that all Americans recognize the contribution of all America, whether it's Native American month or week, or Hispanic week. I think it's important in a diverse society to recognize the contributions of all Americans in order for everybody to be fully educated and sensitive to the contributions made. It is important that we know the history of all our peoples. It's not just good for native Americans to know their history; it's good for African Americans, white Americans. One thing we've been doing in Congress is engaging in a dialogue on race.Itšs been going on for more than a year now. Last year, we took a bipartisan group to Selma. This year we're going to take a march with 20 congressmen along important points for the civil rights movement. We're going to Selma, we're going to where Rosa Parks staged the bus protest, and elsewhere. And then therešre other groups I'm involved in in Atlanta where young blacks and Jews come together to learn about the struggle here and abroad. I think that's important.

tommy_ingalsbe asks: Do you think we will have a black president within the next 50 years?

Rep. John Lewis: I think the day will come. And much sooner than 50 years. That will be a man or woman who would deal with issues or needs that transcend race. But a person will emerge who will be the personification of the idea -- even the vision itself -- and that person will be able to get the majority of voters to share that vision with him or her. I think that day will come sooner than most people think.

Timehost: Here's a follow-up on your call for hate crimes legislation...

DKNYuptown asks: Do you think that a crime can be catergorized as a hate crime, when most crimes are committed out of hate?

Rep. John Lewis: When a crime is committed against someone, because of their race, their color, their religion, their sex, their sexual orientation, I think that's what we're trying to define as being a hate crime. And there're many crimes that are being committed in America, not just against blacks or Hispanics or women, but against people. There's the burning of churches: That could be racial, but it could be because of their religion. The killing of Matthew Sheppard was because of his sexual orientation. We should send that legislation to the floor of the House and send it to the president to be signed. There's not any room in society for people who commit these acts of violence. America must not be a haven for people who commit crimes of hate. Hate is a heavy burden; it's too heavy to bear and we need to teach Americans to lay it down. We need to teach all our people the way of non-violence. It's a better way, a more excellent way.

Princess_with_the_Dark_Eyes asks: Do you think police intentionally single out black people for brutality?

Rep. John Lewis: There may not be a conscious effort or decision on the part of police to single out blacks or minorities, but I think in some instances when police are confronted and they see a black citizen or minority, they're more likely to shoot and ask questions later, beat and then ask questions later. Somehow the police must see that black men and women -- and it's mostly young black men -- are citizens, law-abiding citizens, and not put them in the same box as criminals. I think we need to do a great deal in America to sensitize and educate police authorities on the whole question of race. In some communities, police have been trained in the non-violence, how to work in communities and not be so quick to use force.

Gummy234 asks: What do you see the role of America is in the 21st century regarding ethnicity around the world?

Rep. John Lewis: America as a nation and as a great nation, and we as a great people, could emerge as a model for the rest of the world. We could find a way to say to the rest of the world that we're prepared to lay down the burden of race, that we're prepared to create the beloved community and say to our own citizens and the citizens of the world, as Dr. King said, "We must learn to live together as brothers and sisters or we will perish as fools." The world must believe that we are ready to create the beloved community.

Timehost: Thank you very much for joining us tonight, Rep. Lewis.

Rep. John Lewis: Thank you very much. I enjoyed it.

TIME.com Special Report: Black History Month

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