[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 38 (Wednesday, February 26, 2025)]
[House]
[Pages H840-H841]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING RESILIENCE, RESISTANCE, AND RELENTLESS STRUGGLE, LESSONS OF 
                             BLACK HISTORY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Ohio (Ms. Brown) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. BROWN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Black History 
Month.
  Black History Month means a lot to me, and it means a lot to my 
constituents in northeast Ohio.
  Just in the last few days, we have been reminded of how the past and 
present are connected. Last week, in Cleveland, we celebrated the 90th 
birthday of the Reverend Dr. Otis Moss, Jr., and his wife, Edwina Moss, 
two local civil rights icons who have fought for justice, fairness, and 
opportunity for Black people in Cleveland for decades.
  Sunday was also the 100th birthday of Congressman Louis Stokes, the 
first Black American to represent Ohio in Congress. Congressman Stokes 
was a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus and represented 
northeast Ohio for 30 years. He also established a legacy of leadership 
that carried on to Stephanie Tubbs Jones and Marcia Fudge. They are 
three strong Black leaders who represented the district I now 
represent.
  Black History Month isn't just about trailblazers, icons, and famous 
names. It is also about Black culture, community, and excellence, and 
the history and experience that binds us all. It is often a time of joy 
and celebration.
  Black History Month feels a little different this year. President 
Trump and his MAGA allies have frozen funding for programs that address 
inequality and support equal opportunity, rolled back decades of civil 
rights and discrimination protections, and tried to erase Black history 
in our schools. He jumps at every opportunity he gets to attack Black 
America, using DEI as a racist dog whistle and pushing false and 
offensive ideas that Black Americans haven't earned or deserved their 
success.
  Let's call this what it is: Trump's resegregation agenda.

                              {time}  1015

  We know what happens when prejudice prevails. Opportunity is 
obstructed, and red lines are drawn with Federal funds. We have seen 
this story before.
  Yet despite the dark clouds gathering above 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, 
Black Americans have long battled bigotry, broken barriers, and built a 
brighter future despite the odds.
  The fight is familiar. Black history teaches us the power of 
resilience, resistance, and relentless struggle. That is what I owe my 
constituents, and that is what we owe each other.


                     elon musk must justify his job

  Ms. BROWN. Mr. Speaker, this weekend, unelected, unaccountable, 
unvetted, and unconfirmed billionaire, Elon Musk, demanded every 
Federal worker justify their job. He demanded five reasons they deserve 
to keep it.
  Let's turn that around. Here are five things the world's richest man 
did just last week:
  One, DOGE deleted the five biggest spending cuts it bragged about 
just last week, because nearly one-half of those savings don't exist. 
The receipts didn't add up.

[[Page H841]]

  Two, more than 20 employees resigned from DOGE, refusing to 
``jeopardize Americans' sensitive data, or dismantle critical public 
services.''
  Three, one of Musk's companies secured a lucrative FAA contract, 
laying bare his blatant conflicts of interest. Somehow, I doubt that 
one will be canceled.
  Number four, he fired 6,000 veterans serving the American people.
  Why? Apparently, it is because a disabled vet's salary is wasteful, 
but $4.5 trillion in billionaire tax breaks are necessary.
  Five, he axed bird flu experts, nuclear safety officers, and IRS 
workers, right in the middle of tax season.
  So before Elon Musk demands five justifications from a VA nurse in 
Cleveland, maybe he should justify his own job. Instead of asking 
nurses, firefighters, air traffic controllers, and Federal scientists 
to justify their jobs, let's ask the billionaire to justify his.
  Mr. Speaker, I promise you, the American people won't need more than 
five reasons to fire him.

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