[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 46 (Tuesday, March 20, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H1397-H1398]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       PROTECTING AMERICA'S YOUTH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise this morning on a 
number of issues that I think are enormously important, and I am 
delighted to join initially my colleague from Texas to again emphasize 
and truthfully tell the story about the Affordable Care Act that is now 
2 years old. But as a founder and the cochair of the Congressional 
Children's Caucus, and because our children are our presents and our 
tomorrows, I think it's important to ask the question: Do we want 
healthy children? And should health care be a question of wealth and 
status? Or should it be open to all of our beautiful and precious 
children and youth?
  The Affordable Care Act allows our young college students to remain 
on their parents' health insurance until the age of 26. The Affordable 
Care Act allows a baby that has a proclivity to asthma as a preexisting 
condition to be able to be covered by insurance. It provides an 
opportunity for extensive research into some of the unsolved childhood 
diseases, such as pediatric cancer. And, of course, it provides greater 
access to health care by expanding what we call community health 
clinics, something that I have been a proponent of since coming to 
Congress and throughout the Bush administration, when I asked President 
Bush directly about the number of community health clinics not only in 
the Nation but in my State of Texas, where we have the highest number 
of uninsured persons.
  So I don't know why our Republican Presidential candidates and many 
think that the rising pathway to victory is to condemn an opportunity 
for our children. I find that curious, at best. And I would applaud and 
celebrate President Obama and his administration, the Secretary of 
Health and Human Services, Secretary Sebelius, and all of those who are 
contributing to the implementing of this legislation. I can tell you, 
in Texas today, as I stand, women are being denied access to health 
care. Thank God for the Affordable Care Act for its constitutional or 
its Federal premise of providing access to health care for all 
Americans. At least we have something that we can use to question the 
denial of access to health care to women in the State of Texas.
  I indicated that I chair the Congressional Children's Caucus, so I 
rise

[[Page H1398]]

today to applaud the Justice Department decision to investigate the 
death, the murder, of Mr. Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Florida. A 
youngster, the child of two loving parents, minding his own business, 
wearing the attire of youthful people, hoodies, sneakers. I understand 
that he had his earphones in his ear and may have been bopping along to 
a little music.
  I support Neighborhood Watch. I come from local government. Neighbors 
should watch out for each other but not a neighborhood vigilante. If 
the 911 call said to that individual, Mr. Zimmerman, ``Don't follow 
him,'' then get in your car and sit quiet. The police are on the way.
  Every one of us, as parents--I have a son--this is not an issue that 
should strike us as color. It should be anyone that has a teenager, 
bopping along with a hoody on and sneakers and earphones in his ear, 
just going to get candy, to be able to sit in front of the all-star 
game, and he winds up with a gunshot to the chest that kills him dead 
in his tracks.
  Thank you Justice Department for recognizing that the harsh law in 
the State of Florida that says that you can stand your ground and 
defend yourself, this man should have retreated. He should have never 
been out there after that boy. That boy was not found coming out of a 
window, going through a door. He was on a sidewalk. And it is an 
outrage. Thank you to President Obama's Justice Department for 
recognizing that his civil rights are now in question of having been 
violated. And the Federal law preempts Florida's law, which is the 
harshest law in this Nation. Every parent should think at least that if 
their child is just being a child, just being a teenager, a youngster 
who liked to babysit and play football, that he still had life ahead of 
him.
  I also want to say that I support moving the ``R'' status from the 
bullying bill. I held a major hearing in my district. Bullying is an 
epidemic. And I have introduced major legislation, H.R. 83, and I am 
encouraging the Judiciary Committee to pass this legislation dealing 
with bullying. It is an epidemic. We can reauthorize the block grant to 
give money for best practices to help parents, to help schools, to help 
children learn about bullying. I believe in our children. I want this 
Congress to believe in our children, and this Nation to believe in our 
children.

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