Long before he was a congressman representing Georgia, John Lewis was arrested ... for going to the bathroom.
Well, the wrong bathroom.
In 2016, Lewis tweeted his vintage mug shot with the caption, "I was arrested in the Jackson, MS bus station for using a 'whites-only' restroom," and the hashtag #GoodTrouble.
55 years ago today, I was arrested in the Jackson, MS bus station for using a "whites-only" restroom. #goodtrouble https://t.co/v8zeqfVl75— John Lewis (@John Lewis) 1464096738
Nearly six decades later, Lewis is still getting into "good trouble." And he wants the rest of us to do the same.
In a fiery speech on June 20, the congressman blasted President Donald Trump's extreme and unpopular family separation policy.
"I saw those signs that said, 'white men,' 'colored men,'" Lewis recalled of his childhood growing up in the rural south. "But I was inspired by Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr., and I got in the way. I got in trouble. Good trouble, necessary trouble."
Just because it was the law didn't make it right.
Hugging a child, Rep. John Lewis vows action to stop practice of family separation. "Just tell me whatever you wan… https://t.co/t9smLaYa2M— ABC News (@ABC News) 1529507824
"This has gone on too long, and it must stop, and it must stop now — not tomorrow, but now!" Lewis said, segueing from the civil rights era of the 1960s to our current humanitarian crisis.
"Just tell me whatever you want me to do," Lewis continued, with a nod to Rep. Luis Gutiérrez of Illinois standing nearby. "I will go to the borders. I'd get arrested again."
"You know, if necessary, I'm prepared to go to jail,"Lewis said, embracing a child with his right arm. "Thank you, brother."
A march protests family separations on June 13. Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images.
What's right is not always lawful, and the law is not always right. Many of humanity's darkest moments — slavery, the Holocaust, Japanese-American interment camps, and more — were protected by the rule of law.
It's up to us to change what's acceptable.
Shortly after the Democrats' press conference, Trump signed an executive order reversing the family separation policy his administration first enforced.
But the story is far from over.
Trump's order did nothing to clarify how the thousands of separated migrant children will be reunited with their parents, and many advocates argue the reversal still leaves families in the deplorable conditions we decided were too harsh for children.
The good news is that there are many ways to keep fighting for these children and their families — and maybe even get into some good trouble along the way.
You can support legal aid groups specialized in immigration law doing on-the-ground work protecting migrants this very moment. Buy apparel that benefits youth-led immigrant advocacy work. Keep sharing stories with loved ones as this story develops in the weeks and months ahead. Volunteer and get involved however you can.
As Lewis concluded his speech outside the Capitol: "Now is the time to do what is right, what is fair, and what is just."
Let's get into good trouble together.
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."