[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 56 (Wednesday, May 10, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4381-S4382]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       HONORING THE NAACP ON THE OCCASION OF ITS 97TH ANNIVERSARY

  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary 
Committee be discharged from further consideration of H. Con. Res. 335, 
and the Senate proceed to its consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. The clerk 
will report.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 335) honoring and 
     praising the National Association for the Advancement of 
     Colored People on the occasion of its 97th anniversary.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
concurrent resolution.
  Mrs. CLINTON. Mr. President, I urge my colleagues to support H. Con. 
Res. 335, a concurrent resolution honoring and praising the National 
Association for the Advancement of Colored People for 97 years of 
championing the cause of equality in the United States.
  At the dawn of the 20th century--almost 56 years after the end of the 
Civil War--African Americans were still denied the full rights of 
citizenship. African Americans were forced to endure the daily 
humiliation of economic exploitation and social segregation with almost 
no recourse. Racial tensions boiled over into riots and lynchings. It 
was at this critical juncture in our nation's history that a group of 
concerned citizens, answering freedom's call, gathered together to form 
the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in New 
York City.
  Since its founding, the NAACP has fought for the social, political, 
and economic equality of all Americans and has sought to eliminate 
racial discrimination. And the NAACP has never wavered from its 
commitment to nonviolence in achieving these goals.
  In 1918, the NAACP successfully pressured President Wilson to 
publicly condemn lynching and continued to raise awareness about the 
horrific crime. In 1930, the NAACP began its long history of protesting 
judicial nominees who oppose the advancement of civil rights, with the 
successful defeat of John Parker to the Supreme Court. The NAACP fought 
for, and ultimately achieved, desegregation of the military and other 
federal government institutions. The NAACP was victorious in Buchanan 
vs. Warley, where the Supreme Court held that states cannot restrict 
and segregate residential districts. And of course, in the seminal case 
of Brown v. Board of Education, the NAACP successfully argued that the 
``separate, but equal'' doctrine is unconstitutional, thereby making 
segregation in public schools illegal.
  In the 1960s, the NAACP was a leader in the fight to eradicate Jim 
Crow laws and abolish segregation. And the NAACP was integral to the 
passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957, 1960, and 1964, the Voting 
Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Rights Act.
  In short, the NAACP has been a catalyst for social change in this 
country, winning landmark court decisions and advocating for civil 
rights laws that have walked our nation closer to the promise of 
equality envisioned in our Constitution.
  Notwithstanding its powerful voice and extraordinary accomplishments, 
we must never forget that the NAACP works through the tireless efforts 
of its individual members, united around a common vision of justice and 
equality. During desperate times, legendary NAACP members such as 
Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, and Medger Evars made historic stands in 
service of the movement of civil rights.
  However, equally as important are the ``everyday'' contributions of 
organizers and activists. One example is Mary Burnett Talbert. 
Originally a teacher in Little Rock, AR, Talbert eventually moved with 
her husband to Buffalo, NY, where she received an advanced degree. An 
active member of her community, Talbert was one of the founders of the 
NAACP and later its director, vice president, and president. As 
director the NAACP's Anti-Lynching Campaign, Talbert traveled the 
Nation giving speeches to black and white audiences. She once wrote 
that ``By her peculiar position the colored woman has gained clear 
powers of observation and judgment--exactly the sort of powers which 
are today peculiarly necessary to the building of an ideal country.'' 
With every public education campaign, every fight over a judicial 
nomination, and every lobbying effort to pass progressive legislation, 
the NAACP takes us one step closer to the ``ideal country'' that Mary 
Talbert envisioned.
  While the NAACP's mission is to fight for the rights of African 
Americans, it has always been a multiracial and multicultural 
organization. Many of its founding members were white, including Oswald 
Garrison Villiard, Mary White Ovington, and Henry Moscowitz.
  As we celebrate the accomplishments of the NAACP, we must also honor 
the values upon which it was founded, for there is much work left to be 
done, and the same tireless dedication and clarity of purpose will be 
required to continue onward.
  Despite the last century of achievements, substantial racial 
disparities persist in educational achievement, access to health care, 
and economic prosperity. Hurricane Katrina highlighted the tragic and 
enduring link between race and poverty in our country, as well as 
emphasized our nation's failure to care for those among us least able 
to provide for themselves. We must continue vigilantly to guard against 
the resurgence of discriminatory practices that would deprive African 
Americans of the most fundamental right of democracy--the right to 
vote. We must continue to work to guarantee that every citizen is able 
to vote and that every vote is counted. And this summer, we must 
reauthorize the Voting Rights Act.
  The NAACP has always stood ready to face these and other challenges. 
Ninety-seven years after a group of concerned citizens assembled in New 
York around the common goal of creating a more just society, the 
NAACP's half million members continue to lead Freedom's march.
  For the battles it has fought, and for the battles it has yet to 
fight, our nation is forever in debt to the NAACP.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the concurrent 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to 
reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating 
thereto be printed in the Record, without further intervening action or 
debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 335) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.

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