[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 152 (Wednesday, November 16, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13039-S13041]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  DIRECTING THE JOINT COMMITTEE ON THE LIBRARY TO PROCURE A STATUE OF 
                ROSA PARKS FOR PLACEMENT IN THE CAPITOL

  Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the 
Committee on Rules and Administration be discharged from further 
consideration and the Senate now proceed to S. Con. Res. 62.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The clerk 
will report the concurrent resolution by title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 62) directing the 
     Joint Committee on the Library to procure a statue of Rosa 
     Parks for placement in the Capitol.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
concurrent resolution.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, the Senator from Connecticut and I wish 
to address a matter that just passed the Senate a few hours ago.
  Mr. President, it is the honor and duty of this Senate to recognize 
the greatness of extraordinary Americans. I am very proud that we have 
done so today for Rosa Parks. With the passage of S. Con. Res. 62, the 
Senate has directed the Joint Committee on the Library to commission a 
statue of Ms. Parks and place it here in the Nation's Capitol, so that 
Americans who visit this place 100 years from now can see it, and 
reflect on how one woman's courage altered a nation.
  Rosa Parks did not set out to become a hero on the evening of 
December 1, 1955. She was, like millions of other Americans, merely on 
her way home after a long day's work. She was a seamstress in 
Montgomery, AL. But her simple, profound act of civil disobedience was 
the spark that ignited the modern civil rights movement.
  I say to my friend from Connecticut that I was a teenager at the 
time, living in Augusta, GA. The first 8 years of my life I lived in 
Alabama. In those days, I think the stereotypical reaction to white 
southerners was that they all must surely have been against what began 
that evening with Rosa Parks's appropriate act of defiance. My parents 
are both deceased, but I remember how inspired they were as white 
southerners by the act of Rosa Parks. As I make my remarks tonight and 
listen subsequently to the remarks of my good friend from Connecticut, 
I remember my parents, who were white southerners born into southern 
culture who realized that this was not right, and who admired greatly 
not only Rosa Parks's act of defiance, but the later civil-rights bills 
that were to come.
  For far too many African Americans at that time, America did not live 
up

[[Page S13040]]

to its promise of liberty and justice for all. But thanks to Rosa 
Parks, America was forced to look itself in the mirror, admit its 
failing, and recommit itself to its founding ideals.

  Rosa Parks was headed home that winter night on the Montgomery City 
bus system, which was segregated. Front-row seats were reserved for 
white passengers. Blacks were restricted to the back of the bus, and 
sometimes the middle. But if a white passenger demanded a black person 
give up his or her seat, they were required to do so.
  But on that first day in December 50 years ago, the white bus driver 
demanded that four African Americans give up their seats so a single 
white man could sit. Three of them complied. Rosa Parks did not.
  ``If you don't stand up, I'm going to call the police and have you 
arrested,'' said the bus driver. But Rosa Parks had had enough. She 
replied to the driver, ``You may do that.''
  With this simple refusal, Rosa Parks set into motion a crusade that 
would eventually awaken the conscience of our country.
  Perhaps the time was right for a nation like America to erase the 
stain of segregation. But it was not preordained that the struggle 
would start on that day, in that town, lit by one woman's courage and 
conviction. We will always thank Rosa Parks that it did.
  Rosa Parks' life proved that one American with courage can unshackle 
millions. Her passing on October 24, just a few weeks ago, left us with 
sadness, but also with deep gratitude for the gift she left all of us. 
By honoring her in the Capitol, we show our gratitude.
  I wish to thank my many colleagues who cosponsored this bill on both 
sides of the aisle, and particularly my good friend from Connecticut, 
Senator Dodd, with whom I have collaborated on a number of issues over 
the years.
  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once wrote that ``human progress never 
rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless 
efforts of men.''
  This bill helps ensure that Rosa Parks' efforts will never be 
forgotten.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. DODD. Mr. President, let me begin by commending my colleague from 
Kentucky. I am pleased to be the lead sponsor with him on this 
resolution and he rightly points out that there are a number of 
colleagues on both sides of the aisle who have been very supportive of 
this effort. In fact, I think we might leave this open this evening so 
that others who wish to be cosponsors may do so before this evening is 
complete.
  I want to particularly thank, in this Chamber this evening, Senator 
Kerry of Massachusetts who was very interested in this issue and 
announced his strong support early on of recognizing Rosa Parks. I also 
want to thank Representative Jesse Jackson of the House and others on 
the House side who are also interested in this issue. The House 
sponsors have taken a different approach to authorizing a statue of 
Rosa Parks, but that bill has not yet been brought before the House for 
debate. The action we take today is one way that we can guarantee that 
Congress can authorize, and immediately have funds to pay for, the 
commissioning of this statue. I strongly support the efforts of my 
colleague, Senator McConnell, to expedite this legislation.
  I was honored to attend the funeral services here in Washington, DC 
for Mrs. Parks. The words spoken that day by numerous people were far 
more eloquent than anything I could add at this particular juncture. 
But I was struck by the fact that this woman, who refused to give up 
her seat, who caused a nation to stand up and take note, was physically 
a rather diminutive, quiet individual who had a long interest in civil 
rights. Her nonviolent act of defiance was not just a coincidental act. 
She had been involved in the civil rights movements and had worked with 
the NAACP and other organizations for sometime.
  But as the Senator from Kentucky points out, on that particular day, 
she was just not going to tolerate any longer a behavior that was so 
repugnant to the founding principles of this democracy--that was a 
denial of everything we stood for as a nation. With full recognition of 
the consequences, her course of action precipitated a year-long boycott 
in Birmingham of the public bus system. And that was a great sacrifice 
for the people of the city at that time. To sustain that effort for 
over a year is really quite a remarkable and significant effort.
  It all began on that day some 50 years ago when this wonderful 
American lady, on her own, decided to take an action that would awaken 
the interest and collective conscience of a country to recognize, and 
acknowledge, the great scar of segregation that still existed in some 
parts of our Nation. And we realize that we have perhaps not yet 
reached that perfect union that our Founders intended and that each 
generation of Americans must be newly challenged to achieve it. Rosa 
Parks was that challenge for her generation and by her solitary, 
nonviolent act, she changed the course of human history.
  This is a long journey. It has been a painful one for many but 
because of people like Rosa Parks, we are getting closer to our 
Founders' goal of a perfect union. And that is why it is not only 
important to preserve and honor her legacy for future generations, but 
to hold her up as an example of what can be achieved when we challenge 
ourselves to do better. She is an example to those oppressed in nations 
around the world that one person, in standing up for what is just and 
right, can make a difference.
  Nelson Mandela once called her ``the David who challenged Goliath.'' 
People of nations across this globe owe a debt of gratitude to this 
remarkable woman for her courage that day, for her determination, and 
for the inspiration she has provided. Now, when visitors come to the 
Capitol, they, too, can be inspired by this heroic American whose 
courageous act sparked the flame of liberty and equality for African 
Americans and minority groups in this country and around the world.
  Oprah Winfrey spoke at the funeral services about what it meant to 
her as a young black woman to hear about Rosa Parks and what she had 
done. By honoring Rosa Parks with a statue, placed in the most public 
places of honor in the Capitol, we will have a living symbol of that 
hope that Rosa Parks brought to millions of young black children 50 
years ago. And so generations of children can pass by her statue and be 
inspired by her story and courage and identify with her greatness.
  We honored Rosa Parks by allowing her remains to lie in honor in the 
Capitol Rotunda. I was priveleged to have been a part of that most 
appropriate effort. It was an unprecedented event and the first time 
that a woman had been so recognized. There have been others who have 
been so honored because of their service as President, or as a general 
or distinguished military officer, or some connection to the Congress, 
but only once before had we honored a private citizen. To recognize 
this extraordinary lady was a noble act and a proud achievement of the 
leadership of this Congress. Both Democrats and Republicans took time 
to honor this symbol of freedom by paying their last respects to her in 
the most public of places, the Capitol Rotunda. And the American people 
were invited in to share in her struggles and triumphs and pay their 
respect to this great American, too.
  The statue of Rosa Parks will be placed in a very hallowed location 
in the Capitol. The site has not yet been established, but it may be 
that location will be in the National Statuary Hall. This resolution 
authorizes, and indeed requires, that the Joint Committee on the 
Library consider that option. But it must be in a prominent place where 
the public can be inspired by her, where Congress and staff can be 
reminded of her act of courage and her challenge to our leaders to do 
better. And each of us will be reminded of the opportunities in our 
lives to make a difference. Maybe not with the same dramatic results as 
Rosa Parks achieved with her act, but every single citizen of this 
country will know that he or she has an opportunity to make a 
difference, in a moment of challenge, to rise and to be courageous, to 
stand up for what is right.
  It is a wonderful lesson for the younger generation to be reminded 
that one person can make a difference. I often cite individuals who 
have made a difference, such as the mother who lost a child as a result 
of a drunk driver and went on to found an organization in her basement 
called Mothers

[[Page S13041]]

Against Drunk Driving, or Lech Walesa, or now Rosa Parks.
  Rosa Parks caused this Nation to take note of what it needed to do to 
end the scourge of segregation. She is not just a national hero, she is 
the embodiment of our social and human conscience. It is an appropriate 
and fitting thing that we do here today. I am proud to be a part of it 
and I hope that generations to come for many, many years will walk past 
the statue of Rosa Parks in our Nation's Capitol and make a quiet 
determination to find a moment when they may be as courageous and as 
noble as this wonderful woman.
  Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, it is important that today the Senate is 
honoring a true national hero, Mrs. Rosa Parks. As you know, I 
introduced legislation to honor Rosa Parks with a statue in National 
Statuary Hall. I thank the chair of the Rules Committee, Senator 
McConnell, and the ranking member, Senator Dodd, for amending their 
legislation to designate Statuary Hall as a venue for a tribute to this 
great American. I think it is important we ensure that the memory of 
Rosa Parks is honored by placing a statue of her in the U.S. Capitol so 
future generations can understand her monumental efforts for civil 
rights and know the importance of living by her example still today.
  I thank Senators McConnell and Dodd for working with me and amending 
their resolution to ensure that Statuary Hall is considered as a 
possible location for the statue of Mrs. Parks. I also thank the 
numerous Senators who supported my legislation, S. 1959. I am 
supporting Mr. McConnell's and Mr. Dodd's measure today because I 
believe it is paramount that we honor Rosa Parks in our Capitol, but I 
want to be very clear that her statue should be in Statuary Hall.
  On November 3, 2005, I introduced legislation to place a statue of 
Rosa Parks in Statuary Hall in the Capitol. This is a location of great 
significance, particularly on this occasion and particularly with this 
individual. While there are memorials for prominent African Americans 
in the Capitol Collection, none of those are located in the hall that 
gives a state-by-state account of our country's history. In the 
struggle for civil rights, some were called to stand up to Bull 
Connor's fire hoses and police dogs--some to stand up to Klan 
terrorism--and some to stand up to state sponsored acts of violence. 
But some were called simply to sit down--at lunch counters in 
Greensboro and Nashville and Atlanta--or on a bus in Montgomery. This 
simple action of peaceful opposition to existing rules had a 
significant impact on the lives of all Americans. Her act of courage on 
December 1, 1955, inspired a movement that eventually brought about 
laws to end segregation, ensure voting rights, end discrimination in 
housing, and create a greater equality throughout this Nation.
  It should be noted that I have been working closely with my 
colleagues in the House of Representatives, particularly with 
Representative Jesse Jackson Jr. from Illinois, whose bill has over 175 
cosponsors to honor Rosa Parks in Statuary Hall. It is identical in 
content to my original bill, S. 1959, to ensure that Mrs. Parks' statue 
is placed in Statuary Hall. When the House passes Representative 
Jackson's bill, it is my intention to bring that legislation up for a 
vote in the Senate to ensure that her memory is enshrined in the most 
hallowed halls of our Government.
  This week, Representative Jackson and I began a national week of 
action to pass our legislation honoring Rosa Parks with a statue in 
National Statuary Hall. Our goal is to have Congress pass both bills by 
December 1, 2005--the 50th anniversary of Rosa Parks' courageous 
decision not to move to the back of the bus.
  Rosa Parks was one of our greatest American heroes, a woman whose 
quiet courage changed a country. She deserves the highest honors this 
country can give. I can think of no better way to honor the 50th 
anniversary of Rosa Parks' brave act against injustice than by passing 
legislation that ensures that schoolchildren, Members of Congress and 
presidents visiting the Capitol can see how highly our Nation thinks of 
her, and that we need to follow her example of refusing to go quietly 
to the back of the bus.
  Mr. ISAKSON. I ask unanimous consent that the amendment at the desk 
be agreed to, the resolution, as amended, be agreed to, and the motion 
to reconsider be laid on the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 2585) was agreed to, as follows:

               (Purpose: To make a technical correction)

       On page 1, line 7, at the end add the following: ``The 
     Joint Committee on the Library shall consider all locations 
     in the Capital, including Statuary Hall, the Rotunda, and the 
     Capitol Visitor Center.''

  The concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 62), as amended, was agreed 
to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The concurrent resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:
  (The resolution will be printed in a future edition of the Record.)

                          ____________________