John Lewis death: Former presidents and political opponents pay tribute to civil rights giant and congressman

'He loved this country so much that he risked his life and his blood so that it might live up to its promise,' writes Barack Obama

In life he was known as one of the Big Six of the civil rights movement and later nicknamed the “Conscience of Congress”. In death, praise has poured in from former presidents and political opponents alike.

Tributes are being paid to the American civil rights leader John Lewis, who has passed away aged 80.

Former US leaders Barack Obama and Bill Clinton are among the heavyweights who have honoured the activist turned congressman.

"He loved this country so much that he risked his life and his blood so that it might live up to its promise,” Mr Obama said in a statement online.

“And through the decades, he not only gave all of himself to the cause of freedom and justice, but inspired generations that followed to try to live up to his example."

Mr Clinton and wife, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, released a joint statement saying: "We have lost a giant.”

It added: "John Lewis gave all he had to redeem America's unmet promise of equality and justice for all, and to create a place for us to build a more perfect union together."

Congressman Lewis was a towering figure even among the giants of the Sixties civil rights movement.

He was one of the so-called Big Six activists, led by the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr, and was a pivotal and oft-inspirational figure in some of the biggest moments in the drive for a more equal America.

During the famous 1963 March on Washington, he spoke to massed crowds just before King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. Two years later, Lewis led 600 protesters in the Bloody Sunday march in Selma, Alabama. His brutal assault by police that day – which left him with a fractured skull – drew condemnation from across the planet and was widely seen as a moment that won public support for the movement.

In 1987, the son of an Alabama sharecropper was elected as congressman for Georgia, a position he continued to hold until his death, from cancer, on Friday. His ongoing struggle for racial justice and equality earned him the nickname, the Conscience of Congress. Only last month, he voiced his support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi labelled him "a titan…whose goodness, faith and bravery transformed our nation."

But it was not just fellow Democrats who honoured the congressman.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell – who himself has served since 1984 – described Lewis as “a pioneering civil rights leader who put his life on the line to fight racism, promote equal rights, and bring our nation into greater alignment with its founding principles”.

Although being active on Twitter, president Donald Trump – who had several run-ins with Lewis – has not yet commented.