[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 115 (Tuesday, July 10, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E987]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




IN RECOGNITION OF THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE RATIFICATION OF THE 14TH 
                               AMENDMENT

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 10, 2018

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in recognition and celebration 
of the 150th anniversary of the ratification of the Fourteenth 
Amendment.
  On July 9, 1868, 150 years ago, two great defects in the original 
Constitution were corrected.
  First, Section 1 of the Fourteenth Amendment repealed the ``three-
fifths'' provision in the original Constitution and declared that ``any 
and all persons born or naturalized in the United States would be 
guaranteed all the rights and privileges of citizenship.''
  Second, the Fourteenth Amendment provided and guaranteed to all 
persons in the United States due process and the equal protection of 
the law.
  I ask that we reflect upon the progress this nation has made in 
fulfilling its founding promise that ``we hold these truths to be self-
evident that all men are created equal.''
  This promise of liberty and equality has been withheld from far too 
many for far too long.
  While life and liberty is enshrined in our documents, this was not 
true for all.
  Contrary to the spirit of the American Revolution, the Southern slave 
population at the time increased to 1.1 million in 1810 and then to 
nearly 4 million in 1860; by 1860 in my state of Texas, over 30 percent 
of the population was comprised of slaves.
  Our democratic institutions--instruments of modern, civil government 
founded to ensure that barbaric tyrannies against humanity would be 
consigned to history--repeatedly upheld such blatant oppression in the 
form of legislation and judicial decisions that justified the horrific 
practices.
  Even after the Thirteenth Amendment and the defeat of the 
Confederacy, ``Black Codes,'' passed in numerous Southern States, 
continued to deny African Americans basic rights and privileges enjoyed 
by white citizens, such as the right to free travel, to own certain 
property, or to bring suit in court.
  Therefore 150 years ago, the Fourteenth Amendment was ratified as an 
endeavor to reshape the fundamental fabric of race relations in 
America.
  Let us remember, however, that the amendment is but a single mile 
marker in the arduous march of courageous Americans who sought to hold 
our nation accountable to its founding principles.
  We must also remember that the Fourteenth Amendment, and the struggle 
and sacrifice that came thereafter, ultimately allowed this government 
to become a more diverse, dynamic body to better uphold the promise of 
America.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in this chamber on this occasion to 
reaffirm that I will not squander my hard-earned opportunity to fight 
for the rights of all Americans regardless of race, religion, 
ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
  And on the sesquicentennial of this very important moment for 
progress and equality, the current president plans to select a nominee 
to fill a seat on the highest court in the land.
  I remind this body that the next jurist will replace a justice who 
recognized the importance of affirmative action as a necessary means to 
help heal the scars of segregation and Jim Crowe; the next jurist will 
further likely be required to calibrate the balance of power between 
labor unions and their employing entities.
  Given the importance of these and other issues, like voting rights, 
reproductive rights, the rights of the LGBTQ community, and countless 
others, those who believe the Court is the arbiter of fair justice, are 
looking for a jurist who will dispense fair justice for all Americans 
as guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment.
  I call upon my colleagues in the Senate to put aside partisanship to 
ensure that the blood and sweat of patriots who gave their lives to 
safeguard our civil liberties shall not be in vain.
  Mr. Speaker, the America that the Fourteenth Amendment saw is a 
nation with infinite potential for progress: that despite our history, 
we must continue to look toward finally achieving that shining city 
upon a hill.
  I urge my colleagues in Congress, our faithful public servants in the 
myriad of federal institutions across the nation, as well as our 
friends in the Supreme Court to join me in celebrating that vision in 
this critical time of our republic by bravely choosing to step into the 
future by expanding civil liberties in our nation, not fumble in the 
past for a purportedly greater bygone era.

                          ____________________