He was a revolutionary.

Those who knew him before his death Saturday, Aug. 15, also describe Julian Bond as a civil rights icon, a pioneer, a poet and a national treasure.

A true activist, he fought for causes that were not easily winnable. He organized sit-ins as a student at Morehouse College. He passionately opposed the Vietnam War. And as NAACP chairman emeritus and board member, he advocated for marriage equality and LGBT rights.

Mr. Bond was a constant campaigner for the liberation of all people, and his actions ensure he will be remembered forever as a leader in the broader human rights struggle.

In 1966, when Mr. Bond should have been sworn in as a state representative, his white colleagues in the Georgia General Assembly barred him from taking his seat because of his opposition to the Vietnam War. When a reporter asked him to explain his statements on the war, Mr. Bond said, “[It is] hypocritical for us to maintain that we are fighting for liberty in other places, and we are not guaranteeing liberty to citizens inside the continental United States.”

His reach extends far beyond his own generation’s advocacy for civil rights and continues to motivate us to work to amplify the voices of black people. As a founder and communications director for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and as one of the founders of the Southern Poverty Law Center, he helped build the foundation of the Civil Rights Movement on which all justice-oriented organizations, including ColorOfChange, stand today.

Congressman John Lewis said in a recent interview about his late colleague and friend, “Julian must be remembered as one who inspired another generation of young people to stand up, to speak up and speak out.”

We are part of the generation that he inspired to fight racism and oppression.

ARISHA MICHELLE HATCH

New York

The writer is campaign director for ColorofChange.com, an online community committed to strengthening the political voice of black America.