All of us at Free Speech For People are deeply saddened by the news of Bill Moyers’s passing. Bill was an extraordinary human being. His legendary work as a journalist for more than four decades, as a close advisor and press secretary for President Lyndon Johnson, and as a courageous champion for our democracy all made an indelible mark on our nation and on the world. Bill was unafraid of confronting corruption in government, of exposing the dangers of concentrated wealth on a democratic society, and of speaking truth to power. He was passionate and compassionate, and he celebrated everyday people for standing up for justice, for human dignity, and for the promise of political equality for all.

Bill was also a special friend to Free Speech For People.  With his support, as the President of the Schumann Center for Media and Democracy, Free Speech For People was able to launch on the day of the US Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United v. FEC in January 2010. Bill recognized the threat the Court’s ruling posed to our democracy, and he was the first to join us in support of a constitutional amendment to overturn that ruling and the fabricated doctrines underlying that decision of corporations being treated as people with constitutional rights and of money equaling speech. He remained a steadfast supporter through the years of all of our work in the defense of our republic. We are forever grateful for his friendship and his leadership. We shared together the vision, along with millions of people across the country, of a multiracial democracy that works for all, not just the wealthy few. We will march on for this vision, knowing that he would want us to keep fighting.

We send our deepest sympathies to Bill’s family during this difficult time. May his spirit live on with all of us around the world whose lives he touched.