Oprah, Rep. John Lewis commemorate March on Washington

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President Obama delivers his address on the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. (Brendan Smialowski / AFP/Getty Images)

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President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama walk into the Lincoln Memorial after speaking during the March on Washington commemoration. (Brendan Smialowski / AFP/Getty Images)

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President Obama greets Yolanda King, daughter of Martin Luther King III, who looks on alongside his wife, Andrea King. (Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

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President Obama shakes hands with former President Clinton during the commemoration of the March on Washington. (Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

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Rene Henry of Washington joins thousands of others during the commemoration of the March on Washington. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

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President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, along with former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter, arrive during the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)

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Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) speaks during the commemoration of the March on Washington. (Carolyn Kaster / Associated Press)

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Oprah Winfrey speaks during the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)

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Spectators watch President Obama speak during the commemoration of the March on Washington. (Jim Lo Scalzo / EPA)

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Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) waves to the crowd during the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)

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Thr Rev. Al Sharpton speaks at the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington where Martin Luther King Jr. spoke at the Lincoln Memorial. (Charles Dharapak / Associated Press)

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On Aug. 28, thousands of peopled attended the “Let Freedom Ring Commemoration and Call to Action” to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom at the Lincoln Memorial. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)

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Actor Forest Whitaker speaks during the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

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Rev. Joseph Lowery, former president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, speaks at the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington at the Lincoln Memorial. (Charles Dharapak / Associated Press)

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Traditional Maori dancers from Destiny Church in New Zealand perform during the “Let Freedom Ring Commemoration and Call to Action” to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)

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People cover themselves with rain ponchos in front of the Lincoln Memorial on the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington. (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

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Actor Jamie Foxx speaks during the “Let Freedom Ring Commemoration and Call to Action” to commemorate the March on Washington. (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

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Marchers walk from Capitol Hill to the Lincoln Memorial during the “Let Freedom Ring Commemoration and Call to Action” honoring the 50th anniversary of the historic March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963, the landmark civil rights event where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I have a dream” speech. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

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John Mbugua and his son Giovanni Mbugua, 6, of San Jose, left, and Lavon Johnson and his son Mason Johnson, 2, of Fort Meade Md., greet one another while marching with thousands of others during a march honoring the 50th anniversary of the historic 1963 march on Washington. (Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images)

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People put up with light rain near at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington to commemorate the 50th anniversary on the march on Washington, best remembered for King’s stirring vision of a United States free of inequality and prejudice, telecast live to a nation undergoing a phenomenal decade of soul-searching, crisis and change. (Jewel Samad / AFP/Getty Images)

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People take pictures during the “Let Freedom Ring” ceremony to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the march on Washington. (Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

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Emcees Soledad O’Brien, left, and Hill Harper open the “Let Freedom Ring” ceremony to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the march on Washington. (Shawn Thew / EPA)

By Alexei Koseff

Aug. 28, 2013 12:03 PM PT

<i>This post has been updated. See below for details.</i>

WASHINGTON -- Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), the veteran civil rights activist, urged the country to remember and build on the progress of the last five decades during a speech at the 50th anniversary celebration of the March on Washington.

“Sometimes I hear people saying, ‘Nothing has changed,’ ” Lewis said. “Come and walk in my shoes.”

Lewis, who was the youngest speaker at the original 1963 event, grew up in the cotton fields of Alabama and has served in Congress for more than 25 years. He recalled participating in the Freedom Rides “in the same year Barack Obama was born” to end segregation in public transportation.

“Fifty years later, we can ride anywhere we want to ride, we can stay wherever we want to stay,” he said.

VOICES: The March on Washington

Nevertheless, “too many of us still believe our differences define us,” Lewis said. He urged Americans to fight to end the “scars and stains of racism,” such as stop-and-frisk policing, mass incarceration, chronic hunger and attacks on voting rights.

“We must never, ever give up,” Lewis said. “We must keep the faith and keep our eyes on the prize.”

[Updated, 1:14 p.m. Aug. 28: “We are one people, we are only family,” he added. “And when we finally accept these truths, then we will be able to fulfill Dr. King’s dream to build a beloved community, a nation and a world at peace with itself.”]

Lewis was preceded by television host and actress Oprah Winfrey, who called on the members of the crowd to celebrate the spirit of the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. by committing themselves to a life of service.

“As we, the people, continue to honor the dream of a man and a movement,” she said, “we can be inspired, and we too can be courageous by continuing to walk in the footsteps in the path that he forged.”

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