[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 26 (Wednesday, February 12, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2361-S2362]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. LANDRIEU (for herself, Mr. Breaux, Mr. Cochran, Mr. 
        Johnson, Mr. Nelson of Florida, Mr. Voinovich, Mr. Reid, Mr. 
        Santorum, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Chafee, Mr. Feingold, Mr. Lieberman, 
        Ms. Stabenow, and Mr. Miller):
  S. 377. A bill to require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins 
in commemoration of the contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., 
to the United States; to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
Affairs.
  Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation to 
pay tribute to one of our Nation's most prominent individuals, Dr. 
Martin Luther King, Jr. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Coin 
Act of 2003 instructs the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins to 
recognize Dr. King's contribution to the people of the United States. 
Revenues from the surcharge on the coin would go to the Library of 
Congress to purchase and maintain historical documents and other 
materials associated with the life and legacy of Martin Luther King, 
Jr. This honor is long overdue.
  His contributions to our Nation are well known and well documented. 
From 1955 when he helped lead the Montgomery Boycott to his death at 
the hands of an assassin in 1968, Dr. King dedicated his life to the 
cause of civil rights. In those 13 years, he was jailed several times, 
got cursed at and stoned by mobs, reviled by racist attacks in the 
South. Civil rights marches for freedoms we take for granted today like 
the right to vote or drink from the same water fountain, were met with 
police dogs and fire hoses.
  Honoring Dr. King also means honoring those local leaders in the 
civil rights struggle who kept Dr. King's vision alive at the 
grassroots. In my particular home State of Louisiana, Rev. Dr. T.J. 
Jemison led a successful bus boycott in our State capital Baton Rouge. 
He became an advisor to Dr. King during the Montgomery Bus boycott. 
Many of these local leaders faced constant danger at home. One 
Louisianan, Dr. C.O. Simpkins of Shreveport had his home bombed simply 
because he dared to stand by Dr. King and demand that the buses in 
Shreveport be integrated.
  But Dr. King urged us to fight hate with love, quell violence with 
peace, and to replace ignorance with understanding. He believed in a 
higher calling for America. In his famous ``I Have a Dream'' speech at 
the Lincoln Memorial in 1963, he called on America to live up to its 
creed, that all men were created equal. America heeded his call by 
passing landmark civil rights legislation in 1958 and 1964. For his 
work, he received the Novel Peace Prize in 1964. At 35 years old, Dr. 
King was the youngest recipient of the Peace Prize.
  Today, our Nation is a better place than it was just 40 years ago. It 
is truly remarkable how much this nation has changed in the lifetimes 
of virtually everyone currently serving in the Senate. Our nation has 
made great strides forward, but race relations in our country are not 
perfect. But we are working to get there.
  A nineteenth century rabbi named Zadok Rabinwitz said that ``A man's

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dreams are an index to his greatness.'' Dr. King had a dream. His dream 
is becoming our nation's reality. By any measure his dreams were great 
and they made a great Nation even greater. I urge my colleagues to 
support the Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Coin Act of 2003.
                                 ______