[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 27 (Tuesday, February 10, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H1107-H1111]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RECOGNIZING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR'S VISIT
TO INDIA
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
agree to the resolution (H. Res. 134) recognizing the 50th Anniversary
of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s visit to India, and the positive
influence that the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi had on Dr. King's work
during the Civil Rights Movement.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 134
Whereas Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. changed America forever
in a few short years through his teaching of nonviolence and
passive resistance to combat segregation, discrimination, and
racial injustice;
Whereas, in 1950, during the pursuit of a Bachelor of
Divinity degree at Crozer Theological Seminary in Upland,
Pennsylvania, Dr. King first became aware of the success of
nonviolent political action employed by India's Mahatma
Gandhi in political campaigns against racial inequality in
South Africa, and later against British colonial rule in
India;
Whereas Dr. King began an extensive study of Gandhi's life
and ideas, and became inspired to use Gandhi's theory of
nonviolent civil disobedience to achieve social change in
America;
Whereas, in 1955 and 1956, Dr. King led the Montgomery Bus
Boycott to protest the arrest of Rosa Parks and the
segregation of the bus system of Montgomery, Alabama, during
which time Dr. King was arrested and his home bombed;
Whereas the Montgomery Bus Boycott was the first large-
scale, nonviolent civil rights demonstration of contemporary
times in the United States;
Whereas, following the success of nonviolent protest in the
Montgomery Bus Boycott, Dr. King desired to travel to India
to deepen his knowledge of Gandhi's teachings on nonviolent
principles;
Whereas Dr. King, his wife Coretta Scott King, and Lawrence
Reddick, then chairman of the history department at Alabama
State College, arrived in Bombay, India, on February 10, 1959
and stayed until March 10, 1959;
Whereas Dr. King was warmly welcomed by members of Indian
society throughout his visit, and met with Prime Minister
Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, land reform leader Vinoba Bhave, and
other influential Indian leaders to discuss issues of
poverty, economic policy, and race relations;
Whereas, while in India, Dr. King spoke about race and
equality at crowded universities and at public meetings;
Whereas followers of Ghandi's philosophy, known as
satyagrahis, welcomed Dr. King and praised him for his
nonviolent efforts during the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which
they saw as a landmark success of principles of nonviolence
outside of India;
Whereas the satyagrahis and Dr. King discussed Ghandi's
philosophy, known as Satyagraha, which promotes nonviolence
and civil disobedience as the most useful methods for
obtaining political and social goals;
Whereas the satyagrahis reaffirmed and deepened Dr. King's
commitment to nonviolence, and revealed to him the power that
nonviolent resistance holds in political and social battles;
Whereas the trip to India impacted Dr. King in a profound
way, and inspired him to use nonviolence as an instrument of
social change to end segregation and racial discrimination in
America throughout the rest of his work during the Civil
Rights Movement;
Whereas Dr. King rose to be the preeminent civil rights
advocate of his time, leading the Civil Rights Movement in
the United States during the 1950s and 1960s and earning
world-wide recognition as an eloquent and articulate
spokesperson for equality;
Whereas Dr. King became a champion of nonviolence, and in
1964, at the age of 35, he became the youngest man to be
awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his efforts;
Whereas through his leadership in nonviolent protest, Dr.
King was instrumental in the passage of the Civil Rights Act
of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965;
Whereas, between 1957 and 1968, Dr. King traveled more than
6,000,000 miles, spoke more than 2,500 times, and wrote five
books and numerous articles supporting efforts around the
country to end injustice and bring about social change and
desegregation through civil disobedience; and
Whereas the work of Dr. King created a basis of
understanding and respect, and helped communities and the
United States as a whole to act peacefully, cooperatively,
and courageously to restore tolerance, justice, and equality
between people: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives encourages all
Americans to--
(1) pause and remember the 50th Anniversary of Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr.'s visit to India;
(2) commemorate Dr. King's legacy of nonviolence, a
principle that--
(A) Dr. King encountered during his study of India's
Mahatma Gandhi;
[[Page H1108]]
(B) further inspired him during his first trip to India;
and
(C) he successfully used in the struggle for civil rights
and voting rights;
(3) commemorate the impact that Dr. King's trip to India
and his study of the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi had in
shaping the Civil Rights Movement and creating the political
climate necessary to pass legislation to expand civil rights
and voting rights for all Americans; and
(4) rededicate themselves to Dr. King's belief that
``nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and
moral question of our time'' and to his goal of a free and
just United States.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Johnson) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Smith) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Georgia.
General Leave
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Georgia?
There was no objection.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, 50 years ago today, on February 10, 1959, Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr., arrived in Bombay, India, to study the principles of
nonviolence developed and used so skillfully by Mahatma Gandhi, which
Dr. King himself employed to become this Nation's greatest civil rights
leader.
I commend my colleague, the gentleman from Georgia, Congressman John
Lewis, for introducing this bipartisan resolution that calls upon all
Americans to rededicate ourselves to Dr. King's belief that nonviolence
is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time.
I would also like to acknowledge the many members of the Judiciary
Committee that join in this resolution and, in particular, the
gentleman from Texas, our ranking member, Mr. Lamar Smith.
During his month-long travel to India from February 10 to March 10,
1959, Dr. King gained a deeper appreciation for the power of nonviolent
civil disobedience, a practice that Dr. King first discovered reading
Henry David Thoreau's essay, ``On Civil Disobedience,'' while a student
at Morehouse College.
Just as Gandhi had used it successfully in resistance to oppressive
British colonial rule in India, Dr. King adopted it as a cornerstone of
the American Civil Rights Movement, holding firmly and faithfully to it
even when the peaceful demonstrations were met by dogs and fire hoses,
and worse.
Nonviolence had already proven successful in the Montgomery bus
boycott, and so it would be used later successfully in sit-ins used to
protest segregated lunch counters, and in the freedom rides used to
challenge segregated public transportation facilities.
In Memphis, Tennessee, on April 3, 1968, the eve of his
assassination, Dr. King told us that ``it is no longer a choice between
violence and nonviolence in this world; it is nonviolence or
nonexistence.'' This remains his challenge to us as we confront the
evils of our own time, from the police brutality and hate crimes here
at home, to the threats to freedom emanating from around the world.
Can we always meet this challenge? Given our human frailties, that
would be exceedingly difficult. But keeping that challenge in our
hearts will help us always to look for the peaceful solution whenever
possible, and to maintain our faith that we will sometimes be able to
find it even in the most uncompromising situations.
As Dr. King observed in February of 1967 against the backdrop of the
Vietnam War: ``Wars are poor chisels for carving out peaceful
tomorrows.'' That statement speaks to us as loudly today as it did to
those who heard it more than 40 years ago.
Standing on the shoulders of Gandhi, Dr. King called on us to promote
equality and justice through steadfast nonviolence, and it is on the
shoulders of Dr. King that we now stand to do our best to live up to
his dream for us. I ask my colleagues to support this resolution.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I support House Resolution 134, which commemorates the
50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King's trip to India, in which he
paid his respects to the methods of nonviolent protest pioneered by
Mahatma Gandhi.
Dr. King studied Gandhi's philosophy of nonviolent change at
seminary, and in 1959 he had the honor of visiting the land in which
the seeds of peaceful protest had been successfully sown by Gandhi.
Gandhi was the first to employ nonviolent protest on a mass political
scale. This opposition resulted in national change. Dr. King, inspired
by Gandhi's organized peaceful action, launched a similar effort to
fight for racial equality under the law in the United States. That
inspiration eventually materialized in the Nobel Peace Prize that was
awarded to Dr. King in 1964, and a year earlier in a 250,000 person
peaceful march Dr. King led through the streets of Washington, D.C. Dr.
King was the leader of an historic nonviolent revolution in the U.S.
Over the course of his life, he fought for equal justice and led the
Nation towards racial harmony.
While advancing this great movement, Dr. King's home was bombed and
he was subjected to relentless personal and physical abuse. Despite
this violence, Dr. King responded in peace and with strong conviction
and sound reasoning. As a pastor, Dr. King's religious beliefs were
essential to the success of his nonviolent efforts.
{time} 1715
Just as Mahatma Gandhi was a deeply religious man, so too was Dr.
King. It is doubtful that such a long and enduring movement could have
survived in either man's country without the power of religious
inspiration behind it.
While Gandhi and Dr. King convinced millions of both the morality and
the effectiveness of nonviolent change, their message, unfortunately,
was not accepted by all. On the evening of April 4, 1968, while
standing on the balcony of his hotel room in Memphis, Tennessee, Dr.
King was assassinated. But a single vicious act could not extinguish
Dr. King's legacy which endures to this day. And Dr. King's legacy is
due in large part to the inspiration of Mahatma Gandhi, whose success
helped endow Dr. King with the courage to lift voices, not weapons, in
the struggle for equality here in the United States.
America is a better, freer nation today in large part due to the
philosophical fellowship of Gandhi and Dr. King.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting this
resolution. And let me also point out that I know that the two
gentlemen from Georgia to my left, one who has spoken and one is
getting ready to speak, as well as the Speaker himself, the gentleman
from Illinois, have all been leaders in the Civil Rights Movement. And
we certainly appreciate their leadership, their contributions and their
success.
And I will reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I will yield as much time as he
may consume to the sponsor of this resolution, the Honorable John Lewis
of Georgia.
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from
Georgia for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, 50 years ago today, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his
wife, Coretta Scott King, took a historic trip to India to travel and
study the path of Mahatma Gandhi. Dr. King was deeply influenced by the
teachings of Gandhi and what he attempted to do in South Africa and
what he did to liberate and free the people of India from the colonial
rule of the British.
It was on Gandhi's preaching of the philosophy and the discipline of
nonviolence that Dr. King patterned the nonviolent struggle in America
to tear down the walls of segregation and racial discrimination. The
great teacher gave us the philosophy of nonviolence, and Gandhi gave us
the message and showed us the way. So it is fitting for the United
States Congress to pause and recognize the 50th anniversary of Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.'s trip to India and the impact that trip had on
our Nation's struggle for civil rights and voting rights.
[[Page H1109]]
In a few days, Mr. Speaker, a group of Members of Congress will
travel to India to walk the path that Dr. King walked. I am hopeful
that we will have the opportunity to be inspired by this one man to
carry the message of peace, hope and love to the rest of the world.
Gandhi once said ``nonviolence is the first article of my faith. It is
also the last article of my creed.'' He said that our choice was
between nonviolence and nonexistence.
Dr. King said that we must learn to live together as brothers and
sisters or perish as fools. The message of Gandhi and Dr. King still
speaks to us today.
I call on all Members of the House to support this resolution.
Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman
from Arizona (Mr. Franks), a member of the Judiciary Committee.
Mr. FRANKS of Arizona. I certainly thank the gentleman from Texas.
Mr. Speaker, today's resolution marks the 50th anniversary of the
Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King's visit to India and the positive
influence that the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi had on Reverend King's
work during the Civil Rights Movement. Likewise, later this month, we
will also celebrate President Lincoln's birthday because of his work to
lay the foundation for what would become the greatest of American
achievements, the recognition of the God-given equal value of all
individuals regardless of their race, and the consequent and natural
equal protection of the law for everyone.
Reverend King and President Lincoln had many things in common. But
most prominently of all was their life's work to humanize the
dehumanized, to give value to a human life that the law had previously
regarded as being lesser than other more politically powerful persons.
Reverend King reminded us in his 1963 Letter From the Birmingham Jail
that ``injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are
caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment
of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.''
Like Gandhi, Reverend King looked to his faith to transform society.
Reverend King ultimately paid with his life the price for working to
extend the equal protection of the law to all.
Mr. Speaker, those were the struggles of the past centuries. And
those were the heroes of the past centuries. But their work is not
done. The 21st century has its own civil rights struggle, Mr. Speaker.
As Day Gardner, president of the National Black Pro-Life Union, has
said, ``The biggest struggle for civil rights today is for the civil
rights of the unborn child.''
Last year I joined black activists and black mothers from around the
country at the corner of 16th Street Northwest in D.C. to protest what
has been the deadliest form of discrimination in our country's history,
the systematic elimination of millions, fully one-half of all black
Americans conceived in this country, primarily at government-funded
family planning clinics placed in our inner cities. Every day, Mr.
Speaker, almost 1,500 unborn black children are aborted. Black babies
are aborted at between four and five times the rate of that of white
babies. Mr. Speaker, this equates to a genocide against black America.
And yet our U.S. Government continues to increase the annual
appropriation to Planned Parenthood and to other abortion providers
every year.
Mr. Speaker, I have every conviction that if he were alive today,
that Reverend Martin Luther King would not be silent in the face of
such an outrage. Dr. King noted in his Letter From Birmingham Jail that
the early church ``by their effort and example, brought an end to such
ancient evils as infanticide.'' He didn't know that in 1973, 10 years
after he wrote those words, that the U.S. Supreme Court would revive
the practice of killing the innocent and that the black community would
pay a higher price in blood than any other. Abortion on demand is
called sometimes the exercise of hard-won rights. But in reality, Mr.
Speaker, it is the extinguishing of a legacy.
The greatest failure of human government is the failure to recognize
the inherent value of every human life. Unborn children in America are
the greatest example of that today. It is the civil rights struggle
before America in this century. Reverend King once said that ``The law
cannot change a heart, but it can restrain the heartless. The law
cannot make a man love me, but it can restrain him from lynching me.''
This Congress, I will introduce the PreNDA bill, the Prenatal
Nondiscrimination Act, to end sex-selection abortion and race-selection
abortion in America.
It is time to reject the discriminatory disgrace of aborting a child
based on race or sex. Doing so might remind us all it is also time for
the equal protection clause to realize its full meaning finally, that
every human being is a child of God, with the God-given rights of life,
liberty and the pursuit of their dreams. Nothing, Mr. Speaker, nothing,
would honor the work of Reverend Martin Luther King or Mahatma Gandhi
or President Abraham Lincoln more.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the fine
gentleman from the great State of Washington, Mr. Jim McDermott.
(Mr. McDermott asked and was given permission to revise and extend
his remarks.)
Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, I'm honored to join my friend and
colleague, Representative John Lewis, himself a legendary civil rights
leader, in strongly supporting H. Res. 134 and in carrying a message of
hope to an upcoming trip to India.
There is so much that we can learn from the lives of Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi's principle of
``satyagraha,'' nonviolent resistance, inspired change for the better
throughout the world and particularly in the United States. As Dr. King
said in a radio address in India in 1959 on this trip, ``the spirit of
Gandhi is so much stronger today than some people believe.'' That
statement is even truer today.
These two people changed their countries and the world for the
better. And the world today would benefit from a new Dr. King or a new
Gandhi. They taught us that violence begets violence. As Gandhi once
said, ``An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.'' No one doubts
that there are serious problems in the world today, violence in the
Middle East and many other places, the AIDS pandemic and extreme
poverty where 1 billion people in the world live on less than a dollar
a day. Missiles will not solve these crises. But people can, people of
good will with courage and character, people like Dr. Martin Luther
King and Mahatma Gandhi. We need them now more than ever. And this
resolution and this upcoming trip by the Congress to India will honor
their contributions to mankind and rekindle their spirit to seek peace
by living in peace.
I urge my colleagues to support H. Res 134.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how much
time is left for each side?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Georgia has 12 minutes.
The gentleman from Texas has 12\1/2\ minutes.
Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, we don't have any other speakers at
this time.
I would like to reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I would yield 3 minutes to the
honorable Representative from the great State of Texas, Ms. Sheila
Jackson-Lee.
(Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to revise
and extend her remarks.)
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. It is a privilege, Mr. Speaker, to have the
opportunity to come to the floor today for such an important
recognition of two iconic movers of change, individuals who laid the
underpinnings of the reformation of nations that already had a good
heart. Let me thank the manager, Mr. Johnson, for his leadership, and
of course our ranking member, Mr. Smith, my colleague from Texas, and
the author of this legislation, John Lewis. I know that he wrote this
legislation from the heart.
We will be recognizing this historic journey in a few days, the 50th
anniversary of Martin Luther King's visit to India and the recognition
of the intertwining of their spirits and their intellect between Martin
King and Mahatma Gandhi. I had the opportunity to view the years-old
film that was done on his life. Certainly we know that fictional
aspects may have been
[[Page H1110]]
included. But the underpinnings of the film was the willingness to
sacrifice for the greater good.
And as I reflect upon Martin King's life, having had the opportunity
to be a student worker of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
and absorbing the spirit of nonviolence that had been left by Dr. King,
I know how much he was influenced by the life-changing attitude of
Gandhi. Gandhi was willing to sacrifice life and limb in order to move
mountains of change. And what you saw in his determination for freedom
for the people of India were two things: One, the people of diverse
faiths and beliefs in this then very large country could come together
around the idea of freedom, and then at the same time, he was willing
to sacrifice the times that he spent in the fasts where he was near
death to show those that violence does not engender anything but
violence.
{time} 1730
And Martin King, in the various periods of his life, where the
younger generation challenged this seemingly hapless and helpless
method of nonviolence; you weren't accomplishing anything; they were
taking advantage of you; they weren't respecting you. But he was
willing to hold his ground and, in that, he was the masterful teacher
to all of us who looked upon this young man who was willing to lead a
country into freedom without violence. And so the intertwining of the
two is a special moment. And I'm so very gratified that John Lewis saw
fit to allow us to come to the floor of the House and acknowledge that
we are in partnership with the largest democracy.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. I yield an additional 1 minute to
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. We are in partnership with the largest
democracy, India, and the longest democracy, the United States. And I
hope we will take a lesson from this partnership of two men, now
celebrating 50 years of that coming together, that determination and a
way of handling people can garner us so much.
And this new President, who has claimed development and diplomacy as
key elements to his foreign policy, gets it; that you can work as
partnerships with those who you would think would be hostile to your
beliefs.
I am very gratified to support this legislation, H. Res. 134,
recognizing the 50th anniversary of the trip of Dr. Martin Luther King
to India and the work that he did with Mahatma Gandhi, and the two of
them, peace for ever and for everlasting.
Mr. Speaker, I rose today in strong support of H. Res. 134
``Recognizing the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s
visit to India and the point of influence that the leadership of
Mahatma Gandhi had on Dr. King's work during the civil rights
movement.'' I would like to thank Representative John Lewis, from
Georgia, for his leadership in bringing this resolution to the floor. I
urge my colleagues to support this important resolution. Because of the
importance of the importance of Gandhi's life teachings on non-
violence, I am participating in a historic CODEL to India, where
members of Congress will sojourn in the land of Gandhi during the
recess on next week.
It was through this experience that Dr. King, with a heart of
servitude, was transitioned to become the greatest civil rights
advocate of our century and possibly the greatest leader of our time.
Mahatma Gandhi was a formative influence upon Dr. King's political
civil disobedience. Dr. King and Gandhi believed that change would
occur once Americans acknowledged the humanity of the oppressed in
America.
Gandhi became a leader in a complex struggle. Following World War I,
Gandhi launched his movement of non-violent resistance to Great
Britain. Satyagraha, which involves utilization of non-violent measures
to undermine the opponent, and ideally to convert him rather than to
coerce him into submission, spread throughout India, gaining millions
of followers. A demonstration against the Rowlatt Acts, which allowed
certain political cases to be tried without juries and internment of
suspects without trial, but resulted in a massacre of Indians at
Amritsar by British soldiers. When the British government failed to
make amends, Gandhi proclaimed an organized campaign of non-
cooperation. Indians in public office resigned, government agencies
such as courts of law were boycotted, and Indian children were
withdrawn from government schools. Throughout India, streets were
blocked by squatting Indians who refused to rise even when beaten by
police. Gandhi was arrested, but the British were soon forced to
release him. His non-violent movement set a new precedent for dealing
with oppression and violence, no just in India, but the world over.
Dr. King and Gandhi journey's ironically began in the same fashion.
It was a train ride in South Africa that created Gandhi. It was a bus
boycott in Alabama that made Dr. Martin Luther King. They were ordinary
men only seeking to heighten the moral conscience of the time. These
men were the spokesmen for the oppressed, unjustly treated, and those
denied their God given privileges to life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness. Institutionalized racism and bigotry sought to keep the
people of India, African Americans, and others from achieving those God
given virtues.
Dr. King's journey to India came at a vital time in American history.
The Montgomery boycott had ended and had proven to be a great success.
The nation's leaders were now dealing with a new challenge, one it had
not seen before, non-violent social disobedience. People, both black
and white, were looking to the newly famed leader from Georgia as the
conscience of the nation. While they looked to Dr. King, he looked to
the east for inspiration. It was Mahatma Gandhi's teachings of non-
violence that helped achieve success in Alabama. He knew that it would
be Gandhi's teachings that would help the movement to achieve greater
success in his quest for civil equality in the United States.
On the trip to India, Dr. King was surprised to find the extent to
which the bus boycott was covered in India and throughout the world.
King recalled, ``We were looked upon as brothers, with the color of our
skins as something of an asset. But the strongest bond of fraternity
was the common cause of minority and colonial peoples in America,
Africa, and Asia struggling to throw off racism and imperialism.''
Dr. King's meetings with satyagrahis deepened his commitment to
nonviolent resistance. His interactions with the Gandhi family
ingrained in him the power of nonviolent resistance and its potential
usefulness throughout the world, even against totalitarian regimes.
While discussing non-violence to a group of students in India, Dr.
King said, ``True nonviolent resistance is not unrealistic submission
to evil power. It is rather a courageous confrontation of evil by the
power of love, in the faith that it is better to be the recipient of
violence than the inflictor of it, since the latter only multiplies the
existence of violence and bitterness in the universe, while the former
may develop a sense of shame in the opponent, and thereby bring about a
transformation and change of heart.''
The trip to India affected Dr. King in a profound way, deepening his
understanding of nonviolent resistance and his commitment to America's
struggle for civil rights. ``Since being in India, I am more convinced
than ever before that the method of nonviolent resistance is the most
potent weapon available to oppressed people in their struggle for
justice and human dignity. In a real sense, Mahatma Gandhi embodied
certain universal principles that are inherent in the moral structure
of the universe, and these principles are as inescapable as the law of
gravitation,'' Dr. King said.
The contributions of Gandhi and Dr. King are many. The roles that
these two humanitarians traveled to arrive at their respective
destinations in history were long and difficult, but they deserve all
the respect and admiration that history can bestow upon them. As
Members of Congress, we have to respect and acknowledge the work of
Gandhi and the teachings he left behind that greatly influenced and
changed Dr. Martin Luther King.
Dr. King's trip to India further solidified his belief in nonviolence
and peaceful resistance. Gandhi and Dr. King embodied the belief of
doing unto others as you would have them to do unto you. They also
believed in becoming the visible change you want to see in the world.
They believed that men could live together peacefully despite their
religious, racial, and cultural differences. Mohandas changed the way
Indians were treated in South Africa and in India. Overthrowing the
imperial British rule was no easy task, but Gandhi was able to do it.
Through his Satyagraha teachings and non-violent protest, Gandhi put
forth an example that vicariously aided in the liberation of African
Americans in the United States.
It is imperative that we commemorate Dr. King's trip to India. It
would be shameful of this Congress to pass on an opportunity to
acknowledge the contributions of Gandhi and Dr. King to America's
history.
Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, it is my distinct honor to join
my friend and colleague Representative John Lewis in support of H. Res.
134. This resolution commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of the
Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s visit to India, and the role
played by the revered leader of Indian independence Mahatma Gandhi--and
those who followed in his footsteps--in influencing Dr. King's non-
violent approach to achieving
[[Page H1111]]
social and political justice. I embrace this opportunity to look back
at the men and the movement which pressed this nation forward in its
journey towards the fulfillment of our founders' creed, and look
forward as the march toward opportunity, justice, and freedom for all
continues.
When Dr. King left for India in February 1959, he was just beginning
to make his mark as a leader of the national movement for civil rights.
He had organized the successful boycott of Montgomery, Alabama's public
transportation system in 1955, and founded the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference two years later. His burgeoning success had
provided his non-violent movement with the momentum and potential to
become a truly powerful force in the pursuit of equal rights for all
Americans. This momentum became entrenched during Dr. King's trip to
India, where his immersion in the world of Mahatma Gandhi's own non-
violent success led King to commit himself in his philosophical
entirety to the principle of meeting hate and injustice with persistent
non-violence.
Though Gandhi had passed away eleven years prior to Dr. King's
journey, King was no less attentive to the followers of the great
shanti sena--the ``non-violent army'' that Gandhi led in his successful
effort to free his country from the grasp of colonialism. He
encountered those who had stood with Gandhi through the long, arduous
struggle for India's sovereignty, and came to deeply understand the
necessary commitment and purpose of which believers in non-violence
must never lose sight. Dr. King came to believe that if India can
assert its independence from the bonds of the British Empire without
violence, then the United States of America can achieve racial equality
with the same approach. He took the lessons of a people half a world
away and applied them to the struggle of his own nation, illustrating
that a righteous cause pursued by means which justify its ends holds
universal promise. Perhaps it is best articulated by Dr. King himself:
``As I delved deeper into the philosophy of Gandhi, my skepticism
concerning the power of love gradually diminished, and I came to see
for the first time its potency in the area of social reform.''
Now, with the passage of five decades, let us commemorate this
historic journey of our beloved Dr. King, focusing on the lessons it
taught him and the strength it provided him as he met the challenges of
his day. Let us not only remember the past, but rather carry its
lessons into a brighter future of promise and freedom. I once again
express my heartfelt appreciation for Congressman Lewis, a man whose
own journey and career follow closely the principles and vision laid
out by these two men, and urge all my colleagues to take this
opportunity to honor those who refuse to allow the forces of hate and
oppression to provoke them to lose sight of their vision for justice by
embracing the nonviolent path.
Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 134,
which recognizes the 50th Anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s
visit to India.
It will be my honor to co-chair a delegation led by Congressman John
Lewis, a colleague of Dr. King and true hero of the civil rights
movement, that is going to New Delhi to commemorate his historic trip.
The lessons that Dr. King drew from Mahatma Gandhi's teachings of
nonviolence came at a pivotal time in American history.
A century earlier, the issue of race and equality tore the United
States apart. President Abraham Lincoln, whose 200th birthday we
celebrate this year, prophetically said, ``I believe this government
cannot endure permanently half-slave and half-free.'' Unable to resolve
this fundamental issue of human rights either politically or
peacefully, the United States descended into an awful Civil War. After
four bitter and bloody years, slavery was abolished and America's soul
saved, but the undressed wounds of injustice and intolerance were deep
and raw.
Several lifetimes later, amid a crescendo for full civil rights from
millions still denied, leaders like Dr. King faced a choice. Was the
way again through armed conflict, with all of its suffering, or through
nonviolent resistance relying on the power of morality over mortar?
The principles of Gandhi helped show the way.
We know that Dr. King's gracious welcome and textured experiences in
India served to guide him more surely down the path he had chosen for
his people and country. He said, ``Since being in India, I am more
convinced than ever before that the method of nonviolent resistance is
the most potent weapon available to oppressed people in their struggle
for justice and human dignity.''
Those beliefs would be put to the test during the civil rights
struggles of the 1960s, including in my home state in Alabama.
Sometimes, the challenges were visible and shocking, as they were with
the church bombings in Birmingham and beatings at the Pettus Bridge in
Selma. More often, there were the subtle slights born of fear and
prejudice.
But whatever the indignity or assault suffered, the response was
never hate. In his Letter from a Birmingham Jail, Dr. King set the
direction: ``I have consistently preached that nonviolence demands that
the means we use must be as pure as the ends we seek.''
It is now 2009, 50 years since Dr. King's visit to India. I believe
the U.S. has come farther in these last 50 years than in the preceding
100 years.
Providing all of our citizens with true equal protection under the
law has made us a better, stronger nation. We will recognize the
lasting legacy of the movement for nonviolent change next month when
the Faith and Politics Institute holds its biennial Civil Rights
Pilgrimage to Alabama. It has been my privilege to be associated with
the Institute and this event, which brings citizens of all ages and
races together to reflect on the lessons of the civil rights movement
and retrace the steps of its courageous pioneers.
One mark of how far we've come is the creation of the Birmingham
Civil Rights Institute, which overlooks the same park where fire hoses
and police dogs were unleashed against peaceful citizens in 1963.
But what will be remembered in American history for all time is the
inauguration of President Barack Obama. There is a small vignette from
that day that perfectly illustrates the healing that has transpired in
America and gives hope for the future. About 30 constituents from
Congressman Danny Davis's Chicago District was in the hallway where my
office is located, unable to squeeze into a hearing room to view the
President's speech on television. My staff invited them in and they all
watched the speech together, a group of African-American constituents
in the office of a Southern conservative. That is a mighty
transformation since the racial turmoil in Birmingham.
We were united in celebration of the hope and promise that is
America. Hope and faith is what inspired Dr. King during his mission
and it is what brings us together today.
Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my
time as well.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson) that the House suspend the rules
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 134.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and
nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
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