[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 34 (Wednesday, March 10, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H1228-H1232]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
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COMMEMORATING THE 45TH ANNIVERSARY OF BLOODY SUNDAY
Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the
concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 249) commemorating the 45th
anniversary of Bloody Sunday and the role that it played in ensuring
the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
The Clerk read the title of the concurrent resolution.
The text of the concurrent resolution is as follows:
H. Con. Res. 249
Whereas brave people in the United States, known and
unknown, of different races, ethnicities, and religions,
risked their lives to stand for political equality and
against racial discrimination in a quest culminating in the
passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965;
Whereas numerous people in the United States paid the
ultimate price in pursuit of that quest, while demanding that
the Nation live up to the guarantees enshrined in the 14th
and 15th Amendments to the United States Constitution;
Whereas the historic struggle for equal voting rights led
nonviolent civil rights marchers to gather on the Edmund
Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, on March 7, 1965, a day that
would come to be known as ``Bloody Sunday'', where their
bravery was tested by a brutal response, which in turn sent a
clarion call to the Nation that the fulfillment of democratic
ideals could no longer be denied;
Whereas, March 7, 2010, marks the 45th anniversary of
Bloody Sunday, the day on which some 600 civil rights
marchers were demonstrating for African-American voting
rights;
Whereas Congressman John Lewis and the late Hosea Williams
led these marchers across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma,
Alabama, where they were attacked with billy clubs and tear
gas by State and local lawmen;
Whereas during the march on Bloody Sunday, Congressman
Lewis was beaten unconscious, leaving him with a concussion
and countless other injuries;
Whereas footage of the events on Bloody Sunday was
broadcast on national television that night and burned its
way into the Nation's conscience;
Whereas the courage, discipline, and sacrifice of these
marchers caused the Nation to respond quickly and positively;
Whereas eight days after Bloody Sunday, President Lyndon B.
Johnson called for a comprehensive and effective voting
rights bill as a necessary response by Congress and the
President to the interference and violence, in violation of
the 14th and 15th Amendments, encountered by African-American
citizens when attempting to protect and exercise the right to
vote;
Whereas a bipartisan Congress approved the Voting Rights
Act of 1965 and on August 6, 1965, President Lyndon B.
Johnson signed this landmark legislation into law;
Whereas the Voting Rights Act of 1965 stands as a tribute
to the heroism of countless people in the United States and
serves as one of the Nation's most important civil rights
victories, enabling political empowerment and voter
enfranchisement for all people in the United States;
Whereas the Voting Rights Act of 1965 effectuates the
permanent guarantee of the 15th Amendment that ``the right of
citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or
abridged by the United States or by any State on account of
race, color, or previous condition of servitude'';
Whereas the Voting Rights Act of 1965 has increased voter
registration among racial, ethnic, and language minorities,
as well as enhanced the ability of those citizens to
participate in the political process and elect
representatives of their choice to public office; and
Whereas the citizens of the United States must not only
remember this historic event, but also commemorate its role
in the creation of a more just society and appreciate the
ways in which it has inspired other movements around the
world: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That Congress--
(1) commemorates the 45th anniversary of Bloody Sunday;
(2) observes and celebrates the 45th anniversary of the
enactment of the Voting Rights Act of 1965;
(3) pledges to advance the legacy of the Voting Rights Act
of 1965 to ensure its continued effectiveness in protecting
the voting rights of all people in the United States; and
(4) encourages all people in the United States to reflect
upon the sacrifices of the Bloody Sunday marchers and
acknowledge that their sacrifice made possible the passage of
the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Tennessee (Mr. Cohen) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe) each will
control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Tennessee.
General Leave
Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have
5 legislative days to extend their remarks and include extraneous
material on the concurrent resolution under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Tennessee?
There was no objection.
Mr. COHEN. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, just this past Sunday, on March 7, we commemorated the
45th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, one of the most significant moments
in the
[[Page H1229]]
civil rights movement. It was a day in which I was in Selma, Alabama,
with John Lewis, one of the heroes of this United States of America,
one of the great saints and heroes of this United States Congress.
Other Congress people were there from both sides of the aisle.
We first went to Brown Chapel in Selma for a prayer service, where
Rev. C.T. Vivian led us with a wonderful sermon. It was a civil rights
pilgrimage that the Faith and Politics Institute put on.
The culmination of that, after going to Birmingham, where we went to
the 16th Street Church and the Civil Rights Institute, and to
Montgomery, where we saw the Rosa Parks Museum and went to Rev. Ralph
Abernathy's church at the First Baptist Church and the Dexter Avenue
Church, the church of Dr. Martin Luther King, as well as the Center for
Poverty Law headed up by Morris Dees, culminated in Selma, and it was
significant.
John Lewis marched there 45 years earlier. Alabama State troopers and
Alabama police, the government, stopped them with horses and sticks and
gas and all other means of oppression to stop people who were marching
simply to have the right to vote and participate in this country's
great democracy.
Voting is essential, and African Americans were denied voting. After
the Civil War, they had the right to vote up until about the turn of
century. But then Jim Crow laws came into place, and the effort to
protest those, with John Lewis being a leader, culminated in Selma,
where they were beaten.
After that and the retreat to Brown Chapel, the government came to
the aid of John Lewis and others and saw to it they could march, and
Dr. King joined that march and Ralph David Abernathy joined that march.
They marched down Highway 80 from Selma to Montgomery, culminating just
across from the capital, going straight to the capital. Just around the
corner is the Dexter Avenue Church of Dr. Martin Luther King.
Eventually, the Voting Rights Act was passed, which Lyndon Johnson,
in a speech to this Congress right from that lectern, said was the most
important legislation that that Congress had passed and one of the most
important pieces of legislation ever passed by this House.
It was fought by a lot of people, fought by a lot of people from the
South. But that voting rights act was so important, and it started
because a group of people said, We are not going to stand it anymore.
We are going to stand up for our freedom. We are going to march and
bring attention to this issue and participate in this democracy and
start a change that is going to fulfill America's purpose and promise.
That started in Selma. It started with John Lewis, and it culminated
with that great march.
So it is important that this Congress take time to recognize the 45th
anniversary of Bloody Sunday that forced this Nation to live up to its
ideals of justice, freedom, and equality in society, generally, and in
the realm of voting rights, specifically.
The pilgrimage was one of the best experiences I have had. I am from
Memphis, Tennessee, where Dr. King was slain on April the 3rd. There
were times when Mr. Lewis and other Members came up to me and asked me
to go on the pilgrimage. I thought, I was from Memphis. I had spoken at
Mason Temple. I had been to Mason Temple. I had been to the Civil
Rights Museum. I had been to the Lorraine Hotel so many times, and I
knew about civil rights history.
But nobody really knows it until they go to the battleground, where
this country's future and its promise was turned around and brought to
bear because of a group of students and ministers, both black and
white, who came together to march for civil rights and to make this
country fulfill its destiny and its promise.
Mr. Lewis is a man we are lucky to serve with, and I am lucky to
serve with, and I appreciate him getting me to go, and for what I
learned this weekend from being with him on the Edmund Pettus Bridge
where the first march ended in violence, and later started on the long
struggle to Montgomery and to freedom and to voting rights. Six hundred
civil rights marchers stood strong in solidarity in the march to
Montgomery 45 years ago.
Our democracy reflects a government of the people and by the people,
a principle that had been articulated by President Abraham Lincoln in
1863. But until Bloody Sunday and Dr. King's participation and the
successful march and the passage of the Voting Rights Act by Congress,
it wouldn't have happened.
It had not been a government of the people and by the people. It was
a government of the white people. It was a government of the wealthy
people, the propertied people. In Alabama, there were literacy tests
and there were taxes, and these stopped people from having the right to
vote. There were intentional impediments to letting people participate
in a democracy that you wouldn't have thought would happen in a country
with our great Constitution. But the words in our Constitution were
simply words. They needed to have purpose and a spirit put behind them
and a fulfillment, and that didn't happen until Montgomery and Alabama.
Besides voting rights, that march led to other issues. There is
economic justice as well as social justice, and we are working in those
areas. Access to education, housing, health care, and more have not
been available to all. Dr. King, in his famous speech in New York at
the Riverside Church, talked about not only racism, but militarism and
materialism.
There are still problems in this world today and problems that affect
this Congress, when too many times we do work on military solutions
rather than peaceful solutions, and we worry about materialism rather
than spiritual goods. We worry too much about people who have and not
people who don't have enough. That is part of Dr. King's dream and part
of the legacy that has not been fulfilled in this country, and this
Congress needs to do more. That is why jobs bills are so important, to
give people opportunities, and job training bills that we are working
on.
So it was fortunate that we had this opportunity to participate in
the pilgrimage. This country needs to reflect back on what happened 45
years ago, understand that the promise is not fulfilled, pay homage to
those individuals that participated and made this country a better
country, but know that the dream is not finished, the dream endures. We
need to fulfill that destiny, and there are opportunities to do it here
on this floor with jobs, with tax policy, and with other issues.
I urge my colleagues to support this important resolution.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I support House Concurrent Resolution 249. This
resolution commemorates the 45th anniversary of Bloody Sunday and the
role it played in ensuring the passage of the Voting Rights Act of
1965.
On Bloody Sunday, March 7, 1965, John Lewis, now Congressman John
Lewis and Chairman John Lewis, and the late Hosea Williams, led a march
in Selma, Alabama, to demand racial and political equality in the
United States.
They led 600 civil rights marchers east out of Selma, Alabama, toward
the State's capital in Montgomery. They got as far as the Edmund Pettus
Bridge six blocks away, where State and local lawmen attacked them with
clubs and tear gas and forced them back into Selma. Congressman Lewis
was beaten unconscious, leaving him with a concussion and many other
injuries.
The events on Bloody Sunday were televised nationally, and the Nation
responded to these actions. As a result, within eight days, President
Lyndon Johnson called for a comprehensive voting rights bill to protect
African Americans and other citizens' right to vote, which is already
guaranteed in the 15th Amendment.
Bipartisan majorities in both Houses of Congress approved the Voting
Rights Act of 1965, and President Johnson signed this historic
legislation into law on August 6, 1965, less than 5 months after Bloody
Sunday.
I totally support this resolution's observance and celebrate the 45th
anniversary of the Bloody Sunday marchers, whose sacrifices made it
possible for the Voting Rights Act to come into being. I urge my
colleagues to join in supporting this resolution.
I reserve balance of my time.
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Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the majority leader, the
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), who joined us on this civil rights
pilgrimage. I was so proud to be with him. He is one of the most
constant attendees, and it reflects on his character that he goes and
participates.
Mr. HOYER. I thank my friend for yielding, and I thank the ranking
Republican for his comments. I thank Mr. Cohen for his leadership on
this issue.
``We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created
equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable
Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of
Happiness.''
So spoke our Founding Fathers. Our Founding Fathers spoke, however,
without a clear understanding of the impact of their words. Even as
great as our Founding Fathers were, they did not live out the promise
of those words in this land. Some were slave owners. Clearly, the
contradiction between our words and the actions of our day-to-day lives
were a contradiction from our stated values to our practices.
Martin Luther King, Jr., called America's attention to that paradox,
to that contradiction, to that schizophrenic life that we had led.
Martin Luther King, Jr., had a lieutenant who was a giant of a leader
in his own right, and we are honored to serve with him; in my view, the
most historic figure that serves among the 535 of us who have been
given the privilege to represent our people and defend the Constitution
and protect and preserve our democracy. John Lewis is a giant among us;
a quiet, self-effacing, humble giant, but a giant nonetheless.
Forty-five years ago, civil rights activists attempted to march from
Selma to Montgomery to demand that their Governor honor their right to
vote and their God-given equality. Remember Jefferson's words, that our
rights are not given by the majority. They are not given by Congress.
They are not even given by the Constitution. They are given to us by a
power higher than us. That is the glory of America, that every
individual is an important being, endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable rights.
The world knows what happened to those marchers; how they were
stopped by State troopers at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, how
they were savagely beaten with nightsticks, and how this 23-year-old
giant, whose name was then not known, this young man from Troy,
Alabama, John Lewis, who was helping to lead the march from the front
with Hosea Williams, was beaten to the ground and took life-threatening
injuries.
Today, as a Member of Congress, John Lewis still bears those scars,
but he does not bear resentment. What a lesson for all of us who suffer
the verbal slings and arrows almost daily in this public profession
which we pursue.
But John Lewis took more than rhetorical slings and arrows. He was
beaten, subjected to hate, spit upon, subjected to prejudice and
division and segregation and rejection. But still, Christ-like, John
Lewis, following Gandhi's example, turned the other cheek and said, I
seek justice, and I will continue to seek justice for myself and for
others, no matter the opposition.
{time} 1100
I will not do so violently. I will not do so by assaulting those who
assault me. But I will appeal to the conscience of the Nation. I will
appeal to the promise in our declaration, in our Constitution, and in
the principles for which this Nation stands. And it was a powerful
appeal.
This weekend, I and others--Mr. Cao was with us--were privileged to
walk with that giant of a man, John Lewis, across that bridge. It is a
bridge across a river, but it is also a bridge to brotherhood; a bridge
to a realization of America's promise; a bridge to a better America; a
bridge to a better country; a bridge, as my friend and brother John
Lewis would say, to the beloved community; a bridge, then, over
troubled waters, who have to some degree been stilled, but not
silenced.
There is still prejudice in this land. There is still division in
this land. There is still not the reconciliation that America still
strives for. And that is why I return almost every year with my friend
John Lewis to walk over that bridge, to remind myself--and I have taken
my granddaughter to remind her as well--that although the mission of
Martin Luther King, Jr., was extraordinarily successful, and the
mission of John Lewis, which continues to this day, has been
successful, it is not over. The mission and the commitment must
continue. That is what we must remember on this anniversary of March 7,
1965, when a group of our fellow citizens peacefully walked to register
to vote. Is there any more sacred right in a democracy than that--the
ability to express your opinion, unbowed by government or unbowed or
dissuaded by threats? That was John Lewis's mission then. He was so
successful. But the mission is not over. And as we vote on this
resolution, we ought to all commit ourselves to walking with the wind
of justice, of which John Lewis spoke, of which he has written. But,
much more importantly, the life that he has led teaches us the power of
conscience, the power of peacefully standing up for the rights of which
Jefferson spoke: the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the
pursuit of happiness.
God has blessed America through the life of John Lewis and so many
others whose courage and convictions have made us better. Support this
resolution. But, more than that, live out its promise for all of our
citizens.
Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman
from Louisiana (Mr. Cao).
Mr. CAO. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise in support of House Concurrent
Resolution 249 to commemorate the 45th anniversary of Bloody Sunday and
the role that it played in ensuring the passage of the Voting Rights
Act of 1965.
Today, we remember a momentous occasion in our history. On March 7,
1965, 600 marchers, led by my esteemed colleague from Georgia,
Congressman John Lewis, were savagely attacked by State and local
police as they attempted to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge into Selma,
Alabama. These brave marchers used the power of nonviolence to demand
that most basic of democratic rights of a citizen: the right to vote.
In return, the marchers were met with billy clubs and tear gas. But the
marchers confronted terror with courage. Their dignity in the face of
brutality moved this House to pass the Voting Rights Act, which
reaffirmed this Nation's commitment that every citizen has the right to
participate fully in the political life of the Nation.
This past weekend, my family and I traveled to Selma to honor the
45th anniversary of Bloody Sunday. Kate, my wife, our two daughters,
Betsy and Sophia, and I marched from Brown Chapel to the top of Edmund
Pettus Bridge. Along the way, not only did we learn of the significance
of the march, but also the love and admiration that the people still
have for the historical marchers. Among those was John Lewis. I
commented then and firmly believe today that I owe so much of my
personal and political success to the struggles of the African American
community. Because of their perseverance and sacrifice, doors have been
opened permanently to every minority community in America.
Mr. Speaker, it was an honor to have been a part of this momentous
commemoration, to work with dedicated public servants like my good
friend from Georgia, and I ask my colleagues to support this important
resolution.
Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman who responded to Martin Luther King when he first met him as
a young man in Alabama, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis).
Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. I want to thank my friend and colleague, the
gentleman from Memphis, Tennessee, Mr. Cohen, for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, 45 years ago, on March 7, 1965, Hosea Williams and I led
600 peaceful, nonviolent protestors attempting to march from Selma,
Alabama, to the State capitol in Montgomery to dramatize to the world
that people of color wanted to register to vote. We left Brown Chapel
AME Church that afternoon on a sacred mission, prepared to defy the
dictates of man to demonstrate the truth of a higher law. Ordinary
citizens with extraordinary vision walked shoulder-to-shoulder, two-by-
two, in a silent, peaceful protest against injustice in the American
South.
We were met on the Edmund Pettus Bridge crossing the Alabama River by
[[Page H1231]]
a sea of blue--Alabama State troopers. Some were mounted on horseback,
but all of them were armed with guns, tear gas, billy clubs, and beyond
them were deputized citizens who were waving any weapons they could
find on that day. Some even had bullwhips.
Then we heard, ``I am Major John Cloud. This is an unlawful march.
You cannot continue. You have 3 minutes to go home or return to your
church.'' We were preparing to kneel and pray when the Major said,
``Troopers advance.'' And these troopers came toward us, beating us,
spraying tear gas, chasing us. I was hit on the head by a State trooper
with a nightstick and I fell unconscious on the bridge. On that day,
Mr. Speaker, I thought I was going to die. I thought I saw death. The
most brutal confrontation of the modern-day civil rights movement
became known as Bloody Sunday. It produced a sense of righteous
indignation in this country and around the world that led this Congress
to pass the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
Eight days after Bloody Sunday, President Lyndon Johnson addressed a
joint session of the Congress and made what I believe is the greatest
and most meaningful statement of speech any President has ever made on
the importance of voting rights in America. He began by saying, ``I
speak tonight for the dignity of man and for the destiny of
democracy.'' President Johnson went on to say, ``At times, history and
fate meet at a single time, in a single place, to shape a turning point
in man's unending search for freedom. So it was at Lexington and
Concord. So it was a century ago at Appomattox. So it was last week in
Selma, Alabama.''
In this speech, President Johnson condemned the violence in Selma,
and called on the Congress to enact the Voting Rights Act. He closed
his speech by echoing the words of the civil rights movement, and he
said over and over again, ``And we shall overcome. And we shall
overcome.'' I was sitting next to Martin Luther King, Jr., in the home
of a local family in Selma, watching President Johnson on television as
he said, ``And we shall overcome.'' And tears came down Dr. King's
face. He started crying. And we all cried a little to hear the
President say, ``And we shall overcome.'' And Dr. King said, John, we
will make it from Selma to Montgomery, and the Voting Rights Act will
be passed. Congress did pass the Voting Rights Act, and on August 6,
1965, it was signed into law by the President.
Mr. Speaker, this past weekend we have heard from the majority leader
and my colleagues, Mr. Cohen and Mr. Cao, that we went back to Selma,
along with Mike Pence and Senator Brownback and several others with the
Faith and Politics Institute on the journey. During this journey, we
brought our fellow Members of Congress on this unbelievable trip of the
historic Civil Rights Act, not just in Selma, but Montgomery and
Birmingham. We ended our time together in Selma by crossing one more
time on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, crossing that bridge.
I know at times here in this body we talk, we debate, maybe sometimes
in not such a nonviolent way, but on this bridge we didn't see
ourselves as Democrats or as Republicans or adversaries. We saw
ourselves as Americans on a journey to discover not just our history
but to help create a more perfect union to help move us closer to a
truly beloved community, truly closer to a multiracial democracy. We
all come away from this journey with a deeper appreciation of our
democracy and the power of people to make a difference in our society.
Mr. Speaker, with this resolution we honor the sacrifice and courage
of those brave and courageous souls who used the power of peace, the
power of love, the power of nonviolence to redeem the soul of our
democracy; to remind ourselves that freedom is really not free; and
that we must continue to struggle every day.
On this 45th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, we must use this occasion
to renew our pledge to protect the right to vote for every American
citizen. We have come a distance. We've made a lot of progress. But
there's still a distance to travel.
{time} 1115
Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I think it's well said, as our majority leader pointed out, that in
the Declaration of Independence, the basis for who we are, states
``that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their
Creator with certain inalienable Rights.'' In other words, we get our
rights from the Almighty. We don't get our rights from government or
from others or from the king. We get our rights because we get them
from the Almighty. And as it states in the Declaration of Independence,
that governments are instituted to secure those rights. And first it
was the 15th Amendment, and yet there needed to be more legislation.
Because of the events that occurred on Bloody Sunday, ironically a
President from the South signed the Civil Rights Act of 1965, President
Lyndon Baines Johnson from Texas. This was a bipartisan piece of
legislation in that in this House of Representatives, the majority of
the Democrats, 217, and the majority of the Republicans, 111, voted for
this legislation with about 20 percent or less in both parties voting
against it. Bipartisan legislation passed with a vast majority of both
the Republicans and the Democrats, a sign that bipartisanship on
important pieces of legislation is necessary, and it is effective.
So I totally support this resolution. I commend those folks 45 years
ago when you and I, Mr. Speaker, were just in--I guess you'd be in
elementary school. I was in junior high. And this event occurred, those
noble 600 that walked through the streets of Alabama, and thus, the
Civil Rights Act, as we have today.
So I yield back the balance of my time, totally supporting this
resolution.
Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to thank each of the
speakers, particularly Mr. Lewis, whom we are privileged to serve with
and I was privileged to go to Montgomery with; and Leader Hoyer, who
made such eloquent remarks; and the other gentlemen and ladies who were
on the trip, Mr. Barrow, Dr. McDermott, Mr. Filner, Ms. Kirkpatrick,
and others.
I want to remind, Mr. Speaker, this House that this is an important
event to remember. And there are people that go to Montgomery and go to
Selma and go to Birmingham to reflect on their history. And in Brown's
Chapel, there was a full church in Selma on Sunday, including Ms. Ruby
Wharton, a distinguished attorney in my city and the mayor's wife of my
city, AC Wharton. She goes every year. Also there was John Nixon,
district court judge in Middle Tennessee and then a Sixth Circuit Court
judge. He goes every year because he was with the Civil Rights Division
in 1965 when the march that succeeded with Dr. King took place. There
are people that go back every year to renew their thoughts and their
experiences because we shall overcome someday, and I submit that day
hasn't occurred yet, Mr. Speaker.
The 110th Congress passed a resolution apologizing for slavery and
Jim Crow. And in that resolution, passed by voice vote by everybody up
here, we said that we're going to rectify the lingering effects of
slavery and Jim Crow. And lingering effects include seeing that life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness are truly part of the American
Dream. And you can't have life without health care, and many of the
people without health care don't have it because they've been denied
the opportunities to participate in the economic dream of America, to
have jobs that give them insurance and to afford that opportunity.
That's part of what Bloody Sunday was about.
To pass this resolution is so important, but to pass it and not to
carry out what will happen someday and overcoming the obstacles that
have been placed before so many because of the horrific institution of
slavery and those laws that were subsequent to it throughout this
country of Jim Crow that denied people's rights is wrong. So we must
commit ourselves to someday, and that day is now--the fierce urgency of
now that Dr. King talked to us about--and fulfill that life, which
includes health care, and liberty and the pursuit of happiness, which
gives people a job and an opportunity to participate. So I would ask
all of the Members to vote ``aye,'' to pass this resolution today and
move passage.
Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in
strong support of
[[Page H1232]]
H. Con. Res. 249 to commemorate the 45th anniversary of Bloody Sunday
and the role that it played in ensuring the passage of the Voting
Rights Act of 1965.
As we commemorate this day, I am reminded of the pain and hardships
that the African-American community faced prior to the enactment of the
Voting Rights Act. The use of intimidation, literacy tests, and poll
taxes throughout the South ensured the disenfranchisement of most
blacks, and while we have a difficult time fathoming these realities
today, these practices were very common in the period before this
historic legislation became law.
It is often regarded that the marches from Selma to Montgomery in
1965 were key in bringing about the Voting Rights Act, and perhaps the
first march, which took place on March 7, 1965, or Bloody Sunday, was
the most important of these. On that day, roughly 600 people led by
Hosea Williams and John Lewis were beaten and bombarded with tear gas
at the Edmund Pettus Bridge on the Alabama River. From this, two
subsequent marches took place that culminated with the gathering of
roughly 25,000 people on March 25, 1965 on the steps of the Alabama
capitol. A few short months later, on August 6, 1965, the Voting Rights
Act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson to outlaw
discriminatory voting practices.
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to mention briefly how privileged I am
to work with an American Hero and civil rights leader, Congressman John
Lewis. His dedication to civil rights is unfaltering, and I am so
fortunate to consider him a dear friend.
Mr. Speaker, Bloody Sunday and the march on Selma will continue to be
infamous subjects in American history, and it is important for us to
reflect on these events with solemn hearts. However, we have never been
a nation to forget the future either, and as we continue to look
towards tomorrow, we must not disregard our hope for that which is to
come. For this reason, I ask my fellow colleagues to join me in
commemorating the 45th anniversary of Bloody Sunday so that we can
honor the civil rights leaders of yesterday and encourage the
generation of tomorrow to continue to work towards a more democratic
America.
Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my
strong support for H. Con. Res. 249 which honors the 45th anniversary
of Bloody Sunday and acknowledges the role that it played in ensuring
the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. I would also like to
commend Representative Lewis, the sponsor of this resolution, for his
continued commitment to preserving the importance of Bloody Sunday and
to also acknowledge the unwavering courage of Congressman John Lewis,
and all of those men and women who suffered the brutality of Alabama
State Police on that Sunday on March 7, 1965. Much blood was shed when
all white troopers and sheriff's deputies used tear gas, nightsticks
and whips to break up the march. I urge my colleagues to support this
resolution.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is pertinent today as it continues to
provide much needed protection for minorities in my District and
Americans across the country. Because of Bloody Sunday and the Voting
Rights Act of 1965, all of my constituents in the Fourth District of
Georgia have the opportunity to exercise their rights under the
Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. Indeed,
it was because of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that all Americans were
extended the right to vote guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution.
Mr. Speaker, in the century following reconstruction, African
Americans faced tremendous obstacles to voting. Despite the Fourteenth
and Fifteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, which had
enfranchised black men and women, southern voter registration boards
used poll taxes, literacy tests, and other bureaucratic impediments to
deny African Americans their legal rights. Southern blacks also risked
harassment, intimidation, and physical violence when they tried to
register or vote. As a result, African Americans had little if any
political power. Sunday, March 7, 1965 was certainly a milestone for
the United States. I am proud to say we have come a long way from that
time. It is an honor to be an African American representative from
Georgia and to be a legacy of the day on which 600 civil rights
marchers were demonstrating for African-American voting rights. It is
through the work of leaders like Representative Lewis and the late
Hosea Williams--who was a DeKalb County Commissioner, reverend,
political activist, and science teacher from Georgia--that helped to
codify civil rights in both the law and the heart of America that I am
able to have the privilege of representing the great State of Georgia
in the House of Representatives today.
Mr. Speaker, as the 45th anniversary of Bloody Sunday has come to
pass, let us not forget the work of the 600 men and woman who marched
across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, and what they did
for America and the world and let us recognize the importance of this
anniversary.
I applaud Congressman Lewis for his leadership in bringing this
important legislation to the floor. Furthermore, I commend him for
leading those brave marchers across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma,
Alabama to stand up for political equality and fight against racial
discrimination. This resolution recognizes the heroism of these freedom
fighters with respect to the events that occurred on Bloody Sunday and
their commitment to ensuring equal voting rights for all Americans.
I strongly support H. Con. Res. 249.
Mr. COHEN. I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Cohen) that the House suspend the rules
and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 249.
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. COHEN. 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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