[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 131 (Friday, July 24, 2020)]
[House]
[Pages H3843-H3844]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 COMMEMORATING THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES 
                                  ACT

  (Mr. HOYER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to mark the 30th anniversary on 
Sunday of the Americans with Disabilities Act being signed into law by 
George H.W. Bush, President of the United States.
  Mr. Speaker, I was proud to be the lead sponsor of that legislation 
in the House; a task that was assigned to me by our former whip, Tony 
Cuello of California.
  The ADA is an example of what we can do together, in a bipartisan 
way, to protect equal rights and help Americans access opportunities to 
get ahead, to be included, to be a part of one Nation indivisible.
  It was a landmark piece of civil rights legislation which passed the 
House and Senate with strong, bipartisan support, and was signed into 
law, as I said, by President George H.W. Bush.
  And when the Supreme Court ruled a narrow interpretation of the law 
that was overly limiting, Democrats and Republicans came together to 
pass the ADA Amendments Act in 2008, to restore the original intent and 
expand on its protections.
  The ADA hasn't just led to the construction of accessible spaces, it 
has also helped change America's perception of those with disabilities. 
And it brought dignity and recognition to millions who previously were 
excluded and thought to be lesser-than because of their disabilities.
  I have often said that the bill was misnamed. It should have been 
called the Americans with Abilities Act. Drop the ``dis.'' Drop dissing 
people. Understand what they can do, which is what is important.
  Over the past 30 years, the ADA has made it possible for so many of 
our fellow citizens to participate in the workforce, in government, and 
in every area of our society in ways they were previously unable to do 
without great difficulty.
  The law, Mr. Speaker, breathed new life into the words of our 
Declaration, that all 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.''
  Indeed, the ADA was, in so many ways, a declaration of independence 
for the millions of Americans living with disabilities, yearning not 
only to be seen and accepted, but to be treated equally as they pursue 
happiness and the American Dream.
  And it set a global standard, with its provisions adopted by 
literally scores of other countries throughout the world, so that the 
actions of this body and the United States Senate, and President George 
H.W. Bush were a signal to the world to include your citizens as well.
  As we celebrate this anniversary, Mr. Speaker, let us remember that 
Americans with disabilities still face many hurdles in employment, 
education, access to healthcare, accessible technology, and the ability 
to live independently.
  Mr. Speaker, I hope our country will use this moment, not only to 
reflect on the enormous differences we have made for people with 
disabilities, but also to rededicate ourselves to the task of 
continuing that work.
  I want to take a moment to thank a number of my colleagues and former 
colleagues on both sides of the aisle who were instrumental in getting 
the ADA passed and signed into law.
  But before I mention them, let me mention the literally unnamed, 
unknown thousands of people with disabilities who had the courage and 
the conviction to come to this body and say to us, I have great 
ability, but I am being shut out. Hear me. See me. Help me. And we 
responded, as a country, as a Congress.

  Among them, of course, I have mentioned Tony Cuello, but then there 
was Senator Tom Harkin, Senator Bob Dole, Senator Ted Kennedy, Senator 
David Durenberger, Steve Bartlett, as well as Ham Fish, Teddy Kennedy, 
Major Owens, and Silvio Conte, who are no longer with us.
  And, of course, the late President George H.W. Bush.
  I want to thank the many advocates who were instrumental in building 
grassroots support for the ADA, as well as the Congressional and White 
House staff.
  I would mention my own staff, Melissa Shulman, who did such an 
extraordinary job in shepherding the ADA through multiple committees, 
through hundreds of hours of discussion and debate as to how to make 
this a viable document, a workable document for inclusion and honoring 
the dignity of those with disabilities.
  We worked late nights and we produced a text and built consensus.
  I want to mention, in particular, Chai Feldblum, former lead attorney 
for the ACLU at the time and, later, an Equal Employment Opportunity 
Commissioner, as well as former White House Counsel Boyden Gray, under 
President Bush.
  I also, again, want to thank Melissa Shulman, who served on my staff 
and was critical to getting this law enacted.
  I want to thank Representatives Jim Langevin and Don Young, who today 
serve as co-chairs of the Congressional Disability Caucus. 
Representative Young, of course, was also involved in the passage of 
the law.
  There are too many others--including the former chairman of the House 
Judiciary Committee, the gentleman from Wisconsin, Jim Sensenbrenner--
to name here, individuals who gave their time, energy, and talents to 
making the ADA possible.
  I want to mention Senator Orrin Hatch, who worked so diligently in 
the Senate, not only on the passage of the bill, but on the amendments 
as well, passed years later, after the Supreme Court tried to narrow 
the protections afforded by the Americans with Disabilities Act.
  And I am proud to join my friend from Rhode Island, Representative 
Langevin, in introducing a resolution today to recognize the importance 
of the Americans with Disabilities Act, a celebration of the 
advancement of inclusion, and recognize the barriers that still remain 
for people with disabilities.

[[Page H3844]]

  Mr. Speaker, I hope all of my colleagues will join in supporting that 
resolution, and in celebrating this anniversary as well, in our shared 
commitment to further progress in the march for the rights, dignity, 
and full equality of those with disabilities.


        Recognizing and Honoring the Service of Michael Collins

  Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, we will honor next week, as we have honored 
this week, an extraordinary American, John Robert Lewis. He will lie in 
state just a few yards from here. He will be honored by thousands who 
will walk by the Capitol and his casket, and that will be right.
  In the Gospel of Matthew, Christians read, and others read, the 
parable of the talents, in which a returning master praises his 
servants for being good stewards of his house.
  ``Well done, good and faithful servant,'' he says.
  Last Friday, I believe that God welcomed John Lewis into His embrace 
with those very same words: ``Well done, thou good and faithful 
servant.''
  Faithful to his God, faithful to our people, and faithful to his 
country. For such he was, God's faithful servant on Earth, spending his 
life in service to all of God's children, to their equal dignity and 
equal rights, to their safety and success.
  That is how he approached his service as a Congressman as well.
  Those of us who served with John in this House and who were his 
friends know that he did not perform that work alone.
  And, therefore, I rise to honor, to thank, and to revere another good 
and faithful servant. His name, Michael Collins. We all know him. He 
was, arguably, John's closest friend, closest confidant, and greatest 
supporter. His Chief of Staff deserves great praise for not only all he 
did for John Lewis, but for all of us.
  Michael Collins was at John's side for more than two decades as his 
chief adviser, confidant, and manager of his Washington office. Michael 
did not just work for John. They were family. Not ``like'' family; they 
were family.
  Michael was like a second son to John Lewis, and all of us who are 
grieving with John Lewis' family this week have been grieving with 
Michael as well. A void will exist in his life that we should all help 
fill. Thank him.
  Michael was an example, Mr. Speaker, of the best of those who work 
for this institution, the House of Representatives. Those who sit at 
the desk, those who appear on the floor with us, those who work in our 
offices, those who work back in our districts, they do it because they 
love their country.
  And I know, Mr. Speaker, for myself, I love those who work with me. 
And my great benefit in life is they love me. We Baptists would call it 
an agape love; not a physical love, but a love of spirit, a love of 
soul, a love of vision.
  Michael Collins and John Robert Lewis were of one mind, of one 
spirit, and Michael reflected the best that was in John Lewis. Let us 
all do the same. Michael Collins can be an example for all of us.
  When I called John for the last time--actually, Michael Collins 
called me. It was Saturday, before the Friday of John's passing. And he 
put John on the phone with me. He said, Mr. Hoyer, John would like to 
talk to you.
  His was a weak voice, but a strong conviction, evidencing the courage 
he displayed throughout his life.
  And, of course, Mr. Speaker, I cried because I knew that it was 
probably the last time that I would talk to John. And I am so thankful 
to Michael Collins that he got me on the phone so that I could say 
goodbye to my dear, dear friend.

                              {time}  0930

  It was a dear, dear friend, Michael Collins, who got him on the phone 
from Atlanta with me.
  As we mourn John this week, I have heard from countless people, 
telling me how much Michael made sure John never missed an opportunity 
to do good, to do right, and to do justice.
  So on behalf of us all, I want to thank Michael.
  Michael Collins enriched John's life as John enriched his. He took 
good care of our friend, and he was at John's side with such loyalty 
and good counsel for all those years.
  To him, let us all say: Well done, good and faithful servant.
  God blessed John Lewis with Michael Collins, and God blessed us all 
with John Lewis.

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