[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.
____________________