[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 26 (Tuesday, February 14, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H1173-H1176]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  FROM DESEGREGATION TO RESEGREGATION

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Garrett). Under the Speaker's announced 
policy of January 3, 2017, the Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Al Green) for 30 minutes.
  Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on May 17, 1954, Chief Justice 
Earl Warren delivered the shock that was felt across the Nation.
  This was done when, on behalf of a unanimous Supreme Court, he 
announced:
  ``We conclude that in the field of public education the doctrine of 
`separate but equal' has no place. Separate educational facilities are 
inherently unequal.''
  These 24 words, Mr. Speaker, had a far-reaching impact upon our 
Nation. These words ushered in an era of de jure desegregation that has 
changed the course of history that has created a new sense of destiny, 
and literally these 24 words opened doors that were closed to many 
persons and created new opportunities.
  Mr. Speaker, before I go on, let me thank the many cosponsors of H. 
Res. 79, which recognizes the significance of Black History Month, and 
H. Res. 17, which honors the National Association for the Advancement 
of Colored People, the NAACP, on its 108th anniversary. I thank the 
many cosponsors and the many persons who have worked on these issues.

  I have a staff that has worked tirelessly to make sure that we have 
these resolutions prepared, such that they could be filed timely. I am 
grateful to my staff. One such staff member is with me tonight. My 
legislative director, Ms. Amena Ross, is in the Chamber with me. I am 
appreciative that on Valentine's Day she has chosen to be here as 
opposed to where she probably could be and will probably be going 
shortly.
  Mr. Speaker, given that in this month, the month of February, we 
celebrate Black history as well as the founding of the NAACP, I think 
that it is appropriate for me to speak on the topic from desegregation 
to resegregation. Mr. Speaker, it can happen.
  Mr. Speaker, while Brown v. Board of Education has not produced the 
utopian society many hoped for--it has not ended the de facto 
segregation that many prayed for. It has not engendered the quality 
education for all children and has not transformed public schools into 
perfect schools or equal schools--I still contend and firmly believe 
that we are a much better nation with Brown v. Board of Education than 
without it.
  Mr. Speaker, I think that it is important for us to give empirical 
evidence of these words that I have just spoken, my positions, if you 
will. I would like to do so by allowing the words of a Southern judge. 
I would like to allow his words to speak for themselves.
  This is a message that was delivered by a Southern judge on October 4 
of 1957. Mr. Speaker, I shall not call his name. I do not want to 
embarrass his family. But he was the vice president of a bar 
association. He was a circuit court judge. He received his BA from a 
prestigious institution, and he taught sociology.
  Mr. Speaker, please hear now his words so that people may understand 
why Brown v. Board of Education was so important to so many in this 
country. These are his words:
  ``Segregation in the South is a way of life. It is the means whereby 
we live in social peace, order and security.''
  Mr. Speaker, I trust that many people can understand why persons of 
my generation are concerned when we hear the terms ``law'' and 
``order,'' terms that indicate law enforcement will take law into its 
own hands by some standards. In fact, there was law and order at the 
Edmond Pettus Bridge on

[[Page H1174]]

Bloody Sunday, but there was not justice at the Edmond Pettus Bridge.
  Many people seek justice when they look for law enforcement to 
enforce and maintain order. They look for justice as well.
  He goes on to say: ``Ninety-eight percent of both races prefer 
segregation.''
  He is now speaking for people that we now call African Americans. At 
that time, they were called Negroes.
  ``Integration is urged by the NAACP, a few Southern mulattoes''--this 
is a means by which light-skinned African Americans were separated from 
the darker African Americans.
  He says that `` . . . a few Southern mulattoes, Northern Communist-
front organizations and left-wing labor groups who would use the 
unsuspecting Negro as their tool.''
  It is remarkable that someone would think that people yearning to be 
free would see those who are lending a hand as persons who are using 
them as tools.
  He goes on to say: ``It does not work any economic hardship nor 
deprive the Negro of any of his constitutional rights.''
  He is talking about segregation.
  Then he goes on to say: ``The Negro has made great strides and the 
Southern white man is largely responsible for these advancements.''
  This is a judge. One can only imagine what it must have been like to 
appear before him if you were Black.
  He goes on to say: ``If in the South the Negro was permitted, as he 
is in some Northern States, to obtain the ballot by simply reaching 21 
years of age, it would mean that no qualified white man in many 
counties throughout the South could ever hold public office. It would 
also mean that in the halls of Congress, seats now held by competent 
white representatives would be held by ignorant, incompetent Negroes.''
  These are the words of a judge shortly after the Brown decision.
  He explains: ``An exhaustive study of the program and results of 
integration in the schools of Washington, D.C., which the NAACP and 
other left wing groups''--thank God for the NAACP and leftwing groups--
``fostering integration said would be a model for the rest of the 
United States to follow, clearly reveals that the average white student 
who was integrated in the class room with the Negro has been retarded 
two to three years in his educational progress. Therefore, it is not to 
the best interest of America that the white children, particularly in 
certain congested sections, be retarded three years in their 
educational advancement.''
  He then states later on in his speech that `` . . . we have already, 
by constitutional amendment, authorized our legislature as other 
Southern States will do, to abolish the public schools if the Negro and 
white children are ever integrated therein. Make no mistake about it, 
we will abolish our public school system and establish private schools 
for our white children, and we will still provide and see that the 
Negro is educated separately. It will cost dearly, but we will do it.''
  Finally, he concludes with these words. This is a judge. These are 
facts in the sense that these are statements that he had made. The 
history is there for those who wish to read it.
  He indicates that: `` . . . As long as we live, so long shall we be 
segregated, and after death, God willing, thus it will still be!''

                              {time}  1900

  Mr. Speaker, I call this to our attention because it is important for 
us to understand what the horrors of segregation were really like; that 
this was not something that persons of African ancestry enjoyed; that 
segregation caused many persons more than an inconvenience. It really 
cost a good many people their lives.
  So I thank God, Mr. Speaker, for the NAACP, for labor unions, and for 
people of goodwill of all hues who worked hard to make sure we arrived 
at this point in our history.
  I thank God for Brown v. Board of Education, but I also understand 
that the Brown case, Mr. Speaker, was as much about fate as it was 
about facts. I contend that, but for the intrusive hand of fate, the 
Brown decision could have been, at minimum, a partial endorsement of 
segregation.
  Unfortunately, because the Chief Justice at that time, whose name I 
shall not mention--I need not embarrass his family--was a notorious 
supporter of the doctrine of segregation.
  However, Mr. Speaker, after arguments were made in the Brown case in 
1952, and before the decision was announced in 1954, fate intruded, and 
the Chief Justice suffered a heart attack from which he did not 
recover.
  A conservative President then had the duty to appoint a man to the 
new seat as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. President Eisenhower 
appointed a man who participated in the World War II internment of 
Japanese Americans. This was Governor Earl Warren. He was appointed as 
the new Chief Justice. With this appointment, many persons thought that 
little would change on the Supreme Court. However, when Warren achieved 
a unanimous decision outlawing segregation, President Eisenhower is 
said to have stated that this was one of the biggest mistakes that he 
made by appointing Warren to the Supreme Court as his Chief Justice.
  The Brown decision, Mr. Speaker, was little less than a minor 
miracle, and it has had a remarkable impact on our society. I probably 
stand here today because of the Brown decision. At the time the 
decision was rendered, there were two African Americans in Congress. 
Today we have approximately 50 African Americans in Congress.
  The Brown decision has made a difference in the lives of people. 
Integration of schools has been of benefit to young people.
  I have an article that I would like to read from. It is styled: ``The 
Benefits of Socioeconomically and Racially Integrated Schools and 
Classrooms.'' This is from the Century Foundation, a reputable 
organization.
  In the general sense, here is what the article addresses:
  It indicates that students in integrated schools have higher average 
test scores.
  Students in integrated schools are more likely to enroll in college.
  Students in integrated schools are less likely to drop out.
  Integrated schools help to reduce racial achievement gaps.
  Integrated classrooms encourage critical thinking, problem-solving, 
and creativity.
  Attending a diverse school can help reduce racial bias and counter 
stereotypes.
  Students who attend integrated schools are more likely to seek out 
integrated settings after they leave school and enter life.
  Integrated classrooms can improve students' satisfaction and 
intellectual self-confidence.
  Learning in integrated settings can enhance students' leadership 
skills.
  Finally, of the many things--and I have not cited them all--diverse 
classrooms prepare students to succeed in a global economy.
  Mr. Speaker, there is little question in my mind and in the minds of 
many that integration has made a difference in the lives of people in 
this country. Integration has not only been of benefit to us in 
classrooms, but the truth is that we live in a society wherein 
integration has allowed us, by virtue of Brown v. Board of Education, 
to sleep where we sleep, to eat where we eat, to live where we live.
  Brown v. Board of Education has had far-reaching implications beyond 
that of the classroom. In fact, the economic order, the political 
order, and the social order were positively impacted by Brown.
  So, Mr. Speaker, I want to make it clear that I believe we have to, 
in this country, protect the integration and desegregation that society 
has produced.
  I see that I have another colleague present. Mr. Speaker, can you 
give me the amount of time that I have left?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Texas has 14 minutes 
remaining.
  Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. I assure my colleague that I will provide 
ample time.
  Continuing, Mr. Speaker, I am concerned about the re-segregation of 
our society. I believe that it can occur, and I believe that we must 
guard against it. I believe that the voucherization of public school 
funding has been and continues to be the enemy of desegregation and 
integration.
  Allow me to explain. After the Brown decision, as I have indicated, 
many States sought to repeal the requirement that they maintain a 
public

[[Page H1175]]

school system, and many did. After the Brown decision, vouchers were 
seen as a means by which public schools could be privatized, so that 
the public school system would exist with private tax dollars that were 
in the form of vouchers, and would allow people to still go to the 
schools of their choice. ``School choice'' was one of the watchwords of 
the day.
  After the Brown decision, in 1955, thereabouts, Milton Friedman, 
Nobel Laureate, proposed that vouchers be used to allow children to go 
to the schools of their choice, allow their parents to have this 
opportunity to send their children to the schools of their choice.
  Mr. Speaker, these vouchers, had they been used as proposed, would 
have continued to perpetrate segregation and perpetuate it for years to 
come. These vouchers were not used, thank God. I regret to say, 
however, that many States are currently proposing voucher systems that 
can lead to the re-segregation of society.

  We have a duty to protect the gains that have been made, that have 
been fought for by the NAACP, by labor unions, by people of goodwill of 
all hues. We have got a duty and an obligation to protect these gains, 
and not allow our country to slip back into a dark past that no one 
wants to relive.
  I would hope, Mr. Speaker, that as we continue our progress, we will 
remember the past that we have been able to extricate ourselves from. 
And in so doing, it is my desire that we give special attention to 
these attempts to use tax dollars, to voucherize tax dollars so that 
public schools can be privatized with tax dollars, which can lead to 
separation, which can lead to the re-segregation of society.
  At this time, Mr. Speaker, I have my colleague, the Honorable Jim 
Clyburn present from South Carolina. He is known as a historian par 
excellence. I am so honored to yield to him so that he may speak on the 
subjects related to Black history and the NAACP.
  I yield to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn).
  Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, HBCUs, Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities, have been the topic of a great deal of discussions 
recently, and I rise, as part of the observance of Black History Month, 
to recognize and celebrate one of them, Allen University in Columbia, 
South Carolina.
  Similar to the many Historically Black Colleges and Universities 
across the Nation, Allen University's contributions to my home State of 
South Carolina and the Nation are immeasurable. Founded to offer 
education and opportunity to formerly enslaved African Americans, HBCUs 
have been central institutions in African-American communities for 
generations.
  In 1870, 5 years after the end of the Civil War, the clergy of the 
African Methodist Episcopal Church set out to create an institution to 
educate newly freed slaves and train clergy for the AME Church. The 
Church purchased land in Cokesbury, South Carolina, and named the new 
college Payne Institute in honor of AME Bishop Daniel Payne, a native 
of Charleston, South Carolina. Bishop Payne had become the first Black 
college president in the United States at Wilberforce University in 
1863, which he had helped found.
  In 1880, Bishop William Dickerson sought to relocate the college to 
Columbia and acquired land on which the campus sits today. The 
institution was renamed Allen University after Richard Allen, the 
founder and first bishop of the AME Church.
  Higher education remained segregated in South Carolina until the 
early 1960s. The University of South Carolina, also in my district, 
only a mile away from Allen, for example, admitted its first African 
American in 1963, 2 years after I graduated college.
  Throughout the Jim Crow era, Allen University offered degrees in law, 
education, and theology, and at one time also offered elementary and 
high school classes.
  Several of its buildings are on the National Register of Historic 
Places, forming the Allen University Historic District. Arnett Hall, 
the oldest building on campus, was constructed in 1891 by the students 
themselves. It was named after Benjamin W. Arnett, an early leader of 
the AME Church, who served on Allen University's Board of Trustees.
  The Chappelle Administration Building, which houses the Chappelle 
Auditorium, was designed by John Anderson Lankford, known as the dean 
of Black architects, and completed in 1925. It was named after William 
David Chappelle, the great-grandfather of comedian Dave Chappelle, and 
a graduate of Allen University, who later served as its president. 
Chappelle Auditorium is one of five buildings in Columbia designated a 
National Historic Landmark.
  This historic campus has been central to the Waverly neighborhood and 
the African-American community in Columbia. Black artists, such as 
Leontyne Price, Langston Hughes, and Brook Benton, all appeared at 
Chappelle Auditorium.
  In 1947, the Reverend James Hinton, then-president of the NAACP of 
South Carolina, held a rally at Chappelle, which was attended by 
Reverend Joseph A. DeLaine, an Allen University alumnus. Inspired by 
the event, Reverend DeLaine organized families in Summerton, South 
Carolina, to petition their school district to provide buses for Black 
students who, at the time, were forced to make a daily walk of 9 miles 
to school.

                              {time}  1915

  This case, Briggs v. Elliott, was the first of the five cases that 
became Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas. It is no 
exaggeration, Mr. Speaker, to say that Allen University was the 
birthplace of the movement that overturned ``separate but equal'' and 
brought an end to legal segregation in America. Allen University will 
remain central to the struggle for civil rights.
  In the early 1960s, Allen University students led demonstrations at 
segregated lunch counters and participated in many of the marches in 
Columbia during that period. National leaders such as Martin Luther 
King, Jr., Roy Wilkins, and Ralph Abernathy visited Allen during these 
demonstrations, often staying on campus when they came to town.
  Today Allen University is a liberal arts institution still operated 
by the AME Church. It has graduated many notable elected officials, 
including State Representative William Clyburn and his wife, Beverly 
Dozier Clyburn, who retired from the Aiken, South Carolina, City 
Council several years ago. Retired State Senator Kay Patterson is also 
a graduate. Two of Allen's alumni, former Senator Clementa Pinckney and 
Tywanza Sanders, were among the nine who were murdered during the 
attack at Emanuel AME Church in 2015.
  Several of its historic buildings, like Arnett Hall and Chappelle 
Auditorium, have been restored recently with Federal funding from the 
HBCU Historic Preservation Program, which this body in its collective 
wisdom voted unanimously last year to reauthorize. I plan, along with 
my friend Representative Green and other members of the Congressional 
Black Caucus, to reintroduce that bill this year. I am hopeful that we 
will repeat the unanimity this year and that the Senate will support 
our efforts.
  Allen University has made an indelible mark on our society over the 
past 147 years. I ask all of my colleagues to join me in honoring its 
great contributions to this great Nation.
  Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. I thank Mr. Clyburn for those wonderful 
comments. They were most edifying, and I am sure that a good many 
people have acquired a better understanding of Allen University.
  Mr. Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman has 2 minutes remaining.
  Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I will simply say this in my last 
2 minutes. I am grateful that the NAACP was there not only for me, but 
for this country. The NAACP filed and won many cases, but Brown v. 
Board of Education has to be one of the most outstanding pieces of 
litigation that it engaged in.
  Of course, you can't talk about Brown without mentioning the 
Honorable Thurgood Marshall, who was the lead counsel in the Brown case 
who went on to become a Justice on the Supreme Court.
  The Brown case has transformed American life. It desegregated and 
integrated American society, the economic order, and the political 
order as well. I am blessed to be here because of

[[Page H1176]]

Brown v. Board of Education, and my hope is that we will understand 
that desegregation and integration are here now--and we will fight for 
them--but we have to also understand that we can go from desegregation 
to resegregation. We must be careful, we must vigilant, and we must 
protect the gains that we have made.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________