[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 84 (Monday, May 19, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2959-S2960]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                REMEMBERING REVEREND DR. JAMES D. PETERS

  Mr. HICKENLOOPER. Mr. President, I come to the floor today to honor 
the incredible life of Rev. Dr. James D. Peters, Jr., who passed away 
last week at the age of 92. And what a life he lived.
  James was truly one of the greatest men I have ever known. Reverend 
Peters' story started not far from these walls here in Washington, DC. 
He grew up in Washington during a time of deep segregation and became 
an early leader in the civil rights movements of the 1950s, 1960s, and 
into the 1970s.
  In 1957, he helped found the Southern Christian Leadership 
Conference, along with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He worked with Dr. 
King for many years to help shape the course of American history.
  He marched unbowed in the March on Washington in 1963 and numerous 
other marches--notably Selma, crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge in 
1965.
  Reverend Peters carried that same commitment when he came to Denver 
and to Colorado--that same commitment to justice. For more than 28 
years, he preached Dr. King's gospel of freedom and unity as pastor of 
the New Hope Baptist Church, the largest Black church in Denver. He 
served many years on the Colorado Civil Rights Commission to make 
Colorado a better place for all of our residents.
  Along the way, he had a significant impact on many of Colorado's 
leaders. I was one of them.
  In 2003, I was the newly elected mayor of Denver. I was not quite 
inaugurated yet. On July 5, Paul Childs was shot and killed in his own 
front hall by an inexperienced Denver police officer. Paul was only 15 
years old, but he was beloved by his community, and his death shook the 
entire city.
  Following that awful tragedy, Reverend Peters, alongside my 
predecessor Wellington Webb--one of the great mayors of the 20th 
century--they helped organize their community and mentored me on the 
appropriate ways to address this tragedy in such a way that it could be 
constructive, that somehow the community would be made stronger and 
more resilient.
  Reverend Peters knew that the community had to change and use this 
tragedy to make a better future for the entire community. He was one of 
the leaders who helped us create Denver's first Citizen Oversight Board 
to oversee the Denver Police and Sheriff Departments and to make sure 
any allegations of police misconduct could be investigated and to make 
sure that all neighborhoods had an active voice in how their 
neighborhoods were policed.
  He also helped us start the Office of the Independent Monitor, with 
subpoena power, again, to make sure that allegations of police 
misconduct could be fully investigated. Over the past 20 years, the 
Citizen Oversight Board and Independent Monitor have worked to improve 
the policies of Denver's police department and improve the relationship 
and the trust between the community and law enforcement.
  Many, many years later--about 8 years ago--I was fortunate enough to 
join Reverend Peters, along with Rev. Dr. Patrick Demmer and a small 
group, in Montgomery to visit the National Memorial for Peace and 
Justice, our country's first national memorial to victims of lynching 
and racial terrorism in the United States. It is hard to describe the 
feeling of that memorial--the power is so immense; the weight of our 
country's nagging, persistent shame remains so heavy.
  In walking through the memorial with Reverend Peters, he spoke about 
his life growing up in Washington, DC, during segregation and his 
fierce belief in nonviolence and nonviolent movements. He reflected on 
how their nonviolent tactics led more and more people to join them. He 
knew that they were--and that we are--strongest when we are united, 
when we are marching hand in hand.
  In walking next to Rev. Dr. Peters, it was impossible not to feel 
buoyed up by the enduring hope that he carried with him, pretty much at 
all times. I think so many of those lessons from Rev. Dr. Peters still 
ring true today.
  As Reverend Peter's friend and mentor, Dr. King famously said:

       The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward 
     justice.

  Like many around the country today, I have felt in recent years that 
the arc has not bent as far as we had

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hoped, but if Reverend Peters taught us one thing, it is that neither 
today nor tomorrow is the day to bow our heads. We can't give up our 
work and our dreams that Dr. Peters fought so hard for.
  I yield the floor.

                          ____________________