[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 3 (Thursday, January 9, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S103-S104]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CIVIL RIGHTS AS A PRIORITY FOR THE 108TH CONGRESS
Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, this month our Nation will celebrate
what would have been Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s 74th birthday. It is
right and fitting that on the third Monday of every January since 1986,
Americans have paused from their work, school, or other activities to
honor Dr. King and his legacy. Dr. King gave hope to millions of
Americans and was a catalyst for the greatest advancement in civil
rights our Nation has experienced since the end of the Civil War.
Because of great Americans such as Dr. King, separate but equal is no
longer the law of the land. Because of the progress we have made in the
last 50 years, segregation in public schools has been unlawful. African
Americans have the right to vote. Americans cannot be fired or denied a
job based on race, religion, ethnicity, national origin, gender, or
age. Our Nation has made great strides to protect freedom and equality
for all Americans as a result of Dr. King's leadership.
But almost 40 years after Dr. King delivered his historic ``I Have a
Dream'' speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, and nearly 35
years after Dr. King was tragically gunned down at a hotel in Memphis,
TN, our Nation still has a long way to go to finish his work.
As we begin the 108th Congress, I want to take this moment to urge
both my colleagues and the President to make civil rights a priority.
Earlier this week, the Senate welcomed a new majority leader, Senator
Bill Frist. But the discussions leading up to that should be the
beginning, not the end, of a national discussion about the unfinished
work of securing civil rights for every American.
Congress and the President can demonstrate their support for freedom
and justice by supporting civil rights initiatives that have been
ignored for far too long. And they should begin this month, as the new
Congress convenes and as the Nation celebrates Dr. King's birthday.
Perhaps no issue on this agenda is more urgent than the issue of
racial profiling. Racial profiling is the insidious practice by which
some law enforcement agents routinely stop African Americans, Latinos,
Asian-Americans, Arab Americans, and others simply because of their
race, ethnicity, or national origin. Reports in States from New Jersey
to Florida, and Maryland to Texas all show that African Americans,
Hispanics, and members of other minority groups are sometimes being
stopped by some police far in excess--far in excess--of their share of
the population and the rate at which they engage in criminal conduct.
Just this week, the Boston Globe ran a series of news articles about
its analysis of traffic stop data in Massachusetts and came to the same
troubling conclusion we have seen in places such as New Jersey and
Maryland. Racial profiling still exists and is a very real problem. It
hasn't gone away or ended. In fact, the Massachusetts experience only
underscores the need for a national law on this issue of racial
profiling. And the time to act is now.
I might add that the urgency for banning racial profiling is
compounded by concerns post-September 11 that racial profiling--not
good police work and following up on legitimate leads--is being used
more frequently against Arabs, Muslims, or Americans who are perceived
to be Arabs or Muslims.
President Bush pledged to end racial profiling nearly 2 years ago
during this first address to a joint session of Congress. Attorney
General John Ashcroft also has acknowledged the damage caused by racial
profiling and, he too, called for an end to the practice. So it is time
for this administration to move this effort forward.
In the last Congress, a bipartisan group of Members of Congress
sponsored the End Racial Profiling Act. Representative John Conyers,
the distinguished ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, and
I, intend to reintroduce our bill early in this Congress. Our bill bans
racial profiling and requires Federal, State, and local enforcement
agencies to take steps to prevent the practice. This bill should be one
of the top agenda items in this Congress, and the administration should
follow through on its promise to address this issue.
September 11 cannot be an excuse for continued delay in dealing with
the problem of racial profiling. This is a problem and a challenge that
our country can and must meet. We need improved intelligence and we
need improved law enforcement, not racial stereotypes, to protect our
Nation from future terrorist attacks.
Indeed, I believe that the End Racial Profiling Act is a pro-law
enforcement bill. It will help to restore the trust and confidence of
the communities our police and law enforcement have pledged to serve
and protect. That confidence is crucial to success in stopping crime,
and, yes, in stopping terrorism. The End Racial Profiling Act is good
for law enforcement and good for America.
As Dr. King often implored his fellow activists, it is not time to
wait. It is not time to ``slow up'' or ``cool off.'' He said, ``[W]e
can't afford to stop now because our Nation has a date with destiny. We
must keep moving.'' Mr. President, it is time to act.
Yes, we have many pressing priorities this Congress. And I certainly
think that first and foremost is combating terrorism and addressing our
Nation's weak economy. But we cannot ignore a fundamental
responsibility of this Congress: to fight for freedom, justice, and
equality for all Americans. In addition to passing the End Racial
Profiling Act, Congress and the President should also address a range
of civil rights-related issues this Congress--from education, to
welfare, to health care, to improving our criminal justice system.
We should ensure that every child has access to a quality public
education. I voted against the education bill in the last Congress,
because I do not believe that it will bring us closer to that goal. I
am particularly concerned about the annual testing mandate included in
this law. Study after study shows that disadvantaged students lag
behind their peers on standardized tests. If we are to truly leave no
child behind, we should give local school districts the resources they
need to provide the basic educational services and programs to which
each child is entitled. If we fail to provide these resources, we run
the risk of setting disadvantaged children up for failure on these
tests--failure which could damage the self-esteem of some of our most
vulnerable students.
Congress should also do more to ensure that federally funded programs
comply with civil rights and other laws. In particular, we must improve
the Federal welfare law to require that each State's program treats all
applicants and clients fairly. While Congress rightly encouraged State-
level innovation with the 1996 welfare law, we should use the pending
reauthorization of that law as an opportunity to ensure that all State
plans conform to uniform Federal fair treatment and due process
protections for all applicants and clients.
Congress should ensure that all Americans get a fair wage for an
honest day's work. Too often, parents work double shifts or more than
one job for low wages in order to make ends meet and to provide the
basic necessities for their families. We must at last increase the
Federal minimum wage. And we must work to close the wage gap between
women and men.
Congress should also take action to ensure fairness and justice in
the administration of the death penalty. We know that the
administration of the
[[Page S104]]
death penalty at the Federal and State levels is flawed. With over 100
innocent people on death row later exonerated in the modern death
penalty era, any reasonable person can see that the current system
risks executing the innocent.
Just this week, the University of Maryland released a study finding
enormous racial and geographic disparities in the Maryland death
penalty system. African-American defendants accused of killing white
victims are significantly more likely to face the death penalty than
cases with nonwhite victims. Prosecutors in Baltimore County are
significantly more likely to file initially for a death sentence than
other Maryland jurisdictions.
I think Governor Glendening did the right thing when he placed a
moratorium on executions last year, and I urge Governor Ehrlich to
continue that moratorium while he and other Maryland officials analyze
this study's disturbing findings. It would be contrary to our Nation's
fundamental principles of justice and fairness to execute anyone in
Maryland until the disparities identified by this study have been
addressed.
Of course, Maryland is not the only State with troubling racial and
geographic disparities in its death penalty system. Similar concerns
have been raised about the Federal system, as well as the
administration of the death penalty in other States. That is why
Congress should pass the National Death Penalty Moratorium Act.
Congress and the President should support a moratorium on executions
while a national, blue ribbon commission reviews the fairness of the
administration of the death penalty.
This is a civil rights issue. We simply cannot say we live in a
country that offers equal justice to all Americans when racial
disparities plague the system by which society imposes the ultimate
punishment.
Congress must also do more to protect hardworking Americans from
discrimination in the workplace. We should pass the Employment Non-
Discrimination Act. I have been pleased to join my colleague, Senator
Kennedy, in sponsoring this important bill that will ensure that
Americans are not discriminated against by employers based on their
sexual orientation. The world has changed. It is time that we take this
step on behalf of equal opportunity and equal rights.
Congress should also take another step to realize Dr. King's dream of
a nation where all Americans have the right to vote and to be
represented in their Congress. We meet today in a jurisdiction where
over half-a-million people are denied the right to fully participate in
their government. The majority of the people in this jurisdiction, the
District of Columbia, are African American. Shutting them out of our
Government is a continuing moral stain on our Nation that must be
addressed. We should take action on legislation sponsored by Senator
Lieberman and myself, under D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton's
leadership, to grant full congressional representation for the District
of Columbia.
Finally, the President should demonstrate his commitment to justice
for all Americans by nominating judges to the Federal bench whose
records demonstrate that they will uphold our Nation's civil rights
laws and give fair and impartial treatment to all who come before them.
The President's renomination this week of Charles Pickering, Sr. to a
position on the Fifth Circuit is a step backward. As a member of the
Judiciary Committee, I reviewed his record closely last year and came
to the conclusion that Mr. Pickering would not be fit for a position on
the Fifth Circuit. I am not convinced that he will give all who come
before him a fair hearing, especially on issues of racial justice.
Soothing words or a change of leadership alone cannot heal the
divisions that remain in our Nation. Congress and the Administration
must take concrete steps to protect Americans' civil rights, not just
give them lip service.
As Dr. King said, ``This is no time to engage in the luxury of
cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the
time to make real the promises of democracy.''
There is much more work to do to fulfill Dr. King's dream that all of
America's children would someday live in a country ``where they will
not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their
character.'' Let's begin that work in this Congress, in this body,
during this month when the nation celebrates Dr. King's birthday. There
is no time to waste.
I yield the floor.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Graham of South Carolina). Without
objection, it is so ordered.
____________________