[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 111 (Friday, June 25, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H3152-H3153]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          IN THE LINE OF DUTY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 4, 2021, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Green) is recognized for 
60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.
  Mr. GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, and still I rise.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today not to speak of persons who die unjustly 
at the hands of the constabulary, I rise today to speak of members of 
the constabulary who die unjustly at the hands of persons who are among 
what we call ``the public.''
  I rise today to accentuate five words: ``In the line of duty.''
  These words may be meaningless to some, but there are those who have 
suffered the pain of having to live with these words for the rest of 
their lives after having lost someone that they love in the line of 
duty.
  Emily Dickinson, the great American poet, reminds us that, ``A word 
is dead when it is said, some say. I say it just begins to live that 
day.'' These words take on meaning for those who are left behind when 
someone leaves in the line of duty.
  I am standing here today in the House to make an appeal to those who 
have thoughts of doing dastardly deeds simply because a person happens 
to be a part of the constabulary.
  I would beg that you not consider these thoughts, that you abandon 
them. And I would beg that if you have the opportunity to go to one of 
the homegoing ceremonies of a person who has left in the line of duty--
I have been to these ceremonies. I have seen the suffering of the 
families, the tears. I have seen the children who will no longer have a 
parent to go home to.
  All life is precious. I have spoken many times about the lives that 
have been lost at the hands of the constabulary, but we should never 
forget that all lives are precious.
  And when someone takes the life of a member of the constabulary out 
of spite, for no cause that can be justified, that person, of course, 
has to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. But that doesn't 
end the suffering, just as it doesn't end the suffering for the 
civilian who loses his or her life. It doesn't end the suffering and 
the pain.
  We ought not allow ourselves to become so removed from the lives of 
others that we cease to have some degree of sympathy and empathy for 
persons who lose their lives in the line of duty.
  If a person finds some degree of comfort in knowing that a person 
lost life in the line of duty, then you must be a sadist. It is a 
sadistic thing to conclude that a life lost in the line of duty is 
something that you can take some degree of pleasure with. You need 
help.
  And I am saying these words today. I am calling this to the attention 
of people that I don't know, but I know what my staff has reported to 
me, about persons who lost their lives in the line of duty, and how 
this number is ticking up, and how many of these lives were lost 
senselessly.
  Madam Speaker, we must respect all life. I believe that we have a 
responsibility to those that we will never meet and greet, to say to 
the world that we disapprove of this senseless taking of life as it 
relates to those in the constabulary. And I am talking about those who 
are just sitting in a car and someone comes along and takes a life of a 
person serving in the line of duty.
  My uncle was a deputy sheriff. I had great respect for him. I 
conclude that I am who I am today because of words that my uncle said. 
My uncle and I were in his police vehicle, and I was asking a lot of 
questions. And my uncle's words were, ``This boy is asking a lot of 
questions. I think he is going to be a lawyer.'' I didn't know what a 
lawyer was, but I respected my uncle's words. And because I had such 
respect for him at a very young age--I was less than 10 years of age--I 
concluded that I shall be a lawyer--perhaps not in those words--but I 
concluded that I would be a lawyer.

  So all of my life from that point forward was dedicated to becoming a 
lawyer because my uncle, the deputy sheriff--well-respected--proclaimed 
that I would be a lawyer. I thank God that he didn't say, ``You know, 
this boy is asking a lot of questions. I don't think he is going to 
amount to anything. He doesn't know anything.''
  A word is not dead when it is said. I remember when my uncle died, 
deputy sheriff, well-respected. I didn't make it to his funeral. I was 
in the sky over Louisiana on a plane trying to get there, and we were 
forced out of the sky by an act of God. Destined to stay overnight in 
Lafayette, I missed his funeral, and I missed him.
  Madam Speaker, I want people to know that we who seek justice for 
those who have been treated unjustly, we don't do it out of some desire 
to see justice for one. I do it because I desire to seek justice for 
all. I know what ``in the line of duty'' means to people, and I know 
what my uncle meant to me.
  Madam Speaker, today, I tell my dear friends, I stand here in the 
House

[[Page H3153]]

of Representatives proud to be a part of this great country, but with 
this very simple message: I beg, let's show respect and pray that we 
will receive respect for those who serve and those who put their lives 
on the line such that some of them will suffer to have the words ``in 
the line of duty'' recalled as they make their transition, as their 
homegoing ceremonies are commemorated.
  I truly believe that this country needs to reconcile. We need 
reconciliation. There are just too many things happening now that are 
signs of this need of reconciliation that we have not had the 
opportunity to perfect. And I have suggested to the President that he 
establish a Department of Reconciliation with a Secretary of 
Reconciliation. Just as we have a Department of Labor and a Secretary 
of Labor, to deal with labor issues, we need someone to deal with the 
need for our country to reconcile our differences.
  I am not justifying anything that has happened because of past 
occurrences with reference to ``in the line of duty.'' I am merely 
saying that there are so many of these ugly things happening that we 
ought to find reason to put in place a means by which we can have a 
discussion about them and properly educate people about all of the 
things that can make a difference in our lives as we try to adjust our 
lives for the things that have happened in the past. The past does 
impact the present as well as the future, and it is time for us to 
reconcile, Mr. President.
  So Madam Speaker, I beg of Mr. President to give consideration to the 
establishment of a Department of Reconciliation. You would place on our 
agenda, long after you depart from the Presidency, the continuation of 
the need to bring this country closer together, to help us to 
understand each other better, to move forward with a greater desire and 
love for each other. I pray that we will do this, Mr. President.
  And finally, I pray that I will never have to attend another in-the-
line-of-duty ceremony. These things are related in this sense. There 
are people who believe that somehow the suffering that others have 
caused that have been inflicted upon people, somehow they are justified 
by taking the life of a person they do not know. I hope that we can 
prevent this from happening ever again. I know that it has happened, 
but I don't want to see it happen again. And I believe that we need to 
start this process of reconciliation. It will make a difference.
  And I pray that we will never again have to go to these ceremonies 
where we all leave saddened by the loss of someone who was but only 
doing his or her job.
  We need to resolve our differences in this country. There is no 
justification for what is happening.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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