'Strategist of nonviolence': US civil rights leader Rev. James Lawson dies at 95

File photo: Rev. James Lawson during events surrounding the 50th anniversary of the death of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in Memphis, April 4, 2018. © Karen Pulfer Focht, Reuters

The Rev. James Lawson Jr., an apostle of nonviolent protest who schooled activists to withstand brutal reactions from white authorities as the Civil Rights Movement gained traction, has died, his family said Monday. He was 95.

His family said Lawson died on Sunday after a short illness in Los Angeles, where he spent decades working as a pastor, labor movement organiser and university professor.