[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 86 (Monday, June 21, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7113-S7114]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      40TH ANNIVERSARY OF PASSAGE OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964

                                 ______
                                 

                   40TH ANNIVERSARY OF JUNE 21, 1964

  Mr. KYL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 385 and S. Res. 386, 
which were submitted earlier today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, the clerk will report the 
resolutions by title, en bloc.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 385) recognizing and honoring the 
     40th anniversary of congressional passage of the Civil Rights 
     Act of 1964.
       A resolution (S. Res. 386) recognizing the 40th anniversary 
     of June 21, 1964, the day civil rights organizers Andrew 
     Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner gave their lives 
     in the struggle to guarantee the right to vote for every 
     citizen of the United States, and encouraging all Americans 
     to observe the anniversary of the deaths of the 3 men by 
     committing themselves to ensuring equal rights, equal 
     opportunities, and equal justice for all people.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolutions.
  Mr. KYL. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
resolutions be agreed to, the preambles be agreed to, the motions to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, all en bloc, and that any statements 
relating to the resolutions be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolutions (S. Res. 385 and S. Res. 386) were agreed to.

[[Page S7114]]

  The preambles were agreed to.
  The resolutions, with their preambles, read as follows:

                              S. Res. 385

       Whereas 2004 marks the 40th anniversary of congressional 
     passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a et 
     seq.);
       Whereas the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the result of 
     decades of struggle and sacrifice of many Americans who 
     fought for equality and justice;
       Whereas generations of Americans of every background 
     supported Federal legislation to eliminate discrimination 
     against African-Americans;
       Whereas a civil rights movement developed to achieve the 
     goal of equal rights for all Americans;
       Whereas President John F. Kennedy, on June 11, 1963, 
     proposed in a nationally televised address that Congress pass 
     civil rights legislation to address the problem of invidious 
     discrimination;
       Whereas a broad coalition of civil rights, labor, and 
     religious organizations created national support for civil 
     rights legislation, culminating in a 1963 march on 
     Washington;
       Whereas during consideration of the legislation involved, 
     Congress added a historic prohibition against discrimination 
     based on sex;
       Whereas Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and 
     President Lyndon Johnson signed the Act into law on July 2, 
     1964;
       Whereas the Civil Rights Act of 1964, among other things, 
     prohibited the use of Federal funds in a discriminatory 
     fashion, barred unequal application of voter registration 
     requirements, encouraged the desegregation of public schools 
     and authorized the Attorney General to file suits to force 
     the desegregation, banned discrimination in hotels, motels, 
     restaurants, theaters, and all other places of public 
     accommodation engaged in interstate commerce, and established 
     the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission;
       Whereas title VII of the Act not only prohibited 
     discrimination by employers on the basis of race, color, 
     religion, and national origin, but sex as well, thereby 
     recognizing the national problem of sex discrimination in the 
     workplace;
       Whereas Congress has amended the Civil Rights Act of 1964 
     from time to time, with major changes that strengthened the 
     Act;
       Whereas the amendments made to the Act by the Equal 
     Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 made changes that, among 
     other things, gave the Equal Employment Opportunity 
     Commission litigation authority, thereby giving the 
     Commission the right to sue nongovernment respondents, made 
     State and local governments subject to title VII of the Civil 
     Rights Act of 1964, made educational institutions subject to 
     title VII of the Act, and made the Federal Government subject 
     to title VII, thereby prohibiting Federal executive agencies 
     from discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, 
     sex, and national origin;
       Whereas the amendments made to the Act and other civil 
     rights legislation amended or added by the Civil Rights Act 
     of 1991 clarified congressional intent regarding the Civil 
     Rights Act of 1964 (in light of several contrary Supreme 
     Court decisions rendered in the late 1980s) and allowed for 
     the recovery of fees and costs in lawsuits in which the 
     plaintiffs prevailed, for jury trials, and for the recovery 
     of compensatory and punitive damages in intentional 
     employment discrimination cases, and also expanded title VII 
     protections to include congressional and high level political 
     appointees; and
       Whereas the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is the most 
     comprehensive civil rights legislation in the Nation's 
     history: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``__________ Act of 
     ____''.That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes and honors the 40th anniversary of 
     congressional passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964;
       (2) applauds all persons whose support and efforts led to 
     passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; and
       (3) encourages all Americans to recognize and celebrate the 
     important historical milestone of the congressional passage 
     of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

                              S. Res. 386

       Whereas Andrew Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner 
     were civil rights organizers who participated in the Freedom 
     Summer Project organized by the Council of Federated 
     Organizations to register African Americans in the Deep South 
     to vote;
       Whereas on June 21, 1964, after leaving the scene of a 
     firebombed church in Longdale, Mississippi, Andrew Goodman, 
     James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner were murdered by members 
     of the Klu Klux Klan who opposed their efforts to establish 
     equal rights for African Americans;
       Whereas June 21, 2004, is the 40th anniversary of the day 
     Andrew Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner 
     sacrificed their lives in the fight against racial and social 
     injustice while working to guarantee the right to vote for 
     every citizen of the United States;
       Whereas the deaths of the 3 men brought attention to the 
     struggle to guarantee equal rights for African Americans, 
     which led to the passage of monumental civil rights 
     legislation, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Public 
     Law 88-352, 78 Stat. 241) and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 
     (Public Law 89-110, 79 Stat. 437);
       Whereas the courage and sacrifice of Andrew Goodman, James 
     Chaney, and Michael Schwerner should encourage all citizens, 
     and especially young people, of the United States to dedicate 
     themselves to the ideals of freedom, justice, and equality; 
     and
       Whereas citizens throughout the United States will 
     commemorate the 40th anniversary of the deaths of Andrew 
     Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner to honor the 
     contributions they made to the United States: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes the 40th anniversary of June 21, 1964, the 
     day civil rights organizers Andrew Goodman, James Chaney, and 
     Michael Schwerner gave their lives; and
       (2) encourages all people of the United States to observe 
     the anniversary of the deaths of the 3 men by committing 
     themselves to the fundamental principles of freedom, 
     equality, and democracy.

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