A civil rights activist and outspoken opponent of Donald Trump will be the commencement speaker at a prestigious Hudson Valley college this spring.

Yesterday Bard College announced that Congressman John Lewis will be addressing the graduating class of 2017 on Saturday, May 27. Lewis has been in the news recently over his boycott of the inauguration and claims that Donald Trump is not a "legitimate" president.

Lewis was a civil rights activist during the 1960s. He marched in Selma, Alabama, was beaten on many occasions for his views and even imprisoned for his opposition to segregation in the South.

Bard College will also be giving Lewis an honorary degree during the ceremony, which will see 435 undergraduates earn their diplomas as well as 141 graduates.

Vassar College Commencement 2010
Andy Kropa/Getty Images
loading...

Last year Harvard Law Professor and author Randall Kennedy gave the address at Bard. There have been no announcements as to who will be speaking at the graduations for Marist or Vassar. In the past, Vassar College has secured some big celebrities to speak at their commencement ceremonies such as Tom Hanks, Stephen King and another harsh critic of Donald Trump, Merryl Streep.

More From WPDH-WPDA