[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 13]
[EXTE]
[Page 18869]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[[Page 18869]]




            IN MEMORY OF FEDERAL JUDGE FRANK M. JOHNSON, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 29, 1999

  Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to 
the late Federal Judge Frank M. Johnson Jr. As a federal judge, Judge 
Johnson's decisions literally shaped the future and the force of the 
civil rights movement in the 1960s. As an individual, he was a man 
whose commitment to his ideals and the law did not wane, despite 
considerable personal risk and significant sacrifice. Mr. Speaker, it 
is vital that Congress honor Judge Johnson for both of these roles, and 
to recognize the loss that his recent death represents.
  Judge Johnson served on the U.S. District Court in Montgomery, 
Alabama, for twenty-five years, during the height of the civil rights 
movement in the 1950s and 1960s. In that time he made several decisions 
that formed the thrust of the civil rights movement. In 1956, when 
deliberating the Montgomery bus boycott case, he outlawed segregation 
on public transportation, in parks, restaurants, libraries and schools. 
In the 1960s, Judge Johnson also signed the original order to integrate 
the University of Alabama, as well as the order to allow Martin Luther 
King Jr. and voting rights activists to march from Selma to Montgomery. 
Moreover, Judge Johnson participated in the decision that ultimately 
became the ``one man, one vote'' principal put forth by the Supreme 
Court.
  Clearly, Judge Johnson's contribution to the civil rights movement 
was both significant and integral to its ultimate success. His impact 
was felt not only in Montgomery, but throughout the South and the 
nation as well. One must wonder to what extent the civil rights 
movement would have succeeded without the support, honesty, and courage 
of Judge Johnson.
  While these decisions are hailed today as just and honest, Judge 
Johnson faced severe criticism, damaging slander, and even personal 
danger in the time that he made them. Then Governor George Wallace 
fueled his gubernatorial race by denouncing Judge Johnson, while his 
mother's home was bombed and a burning cross was placed on his own 
lawn. Yet Judge Johnson did not abandon his principles or his 
commitment to the law. He simply upheld the Constitution and did not 
question the consequences.
  Judge Johnson was truly a great man, whose unwavering principles are 
too rare today. As a legislator, former judge and lawyer, I am 
personally inspired by Judge Johnson's commitment to the law, and am 
grateful for his influence and the example he set for us all. Indeed, I 
am fully aware that I was able to become the first African American 
Federal Judge in Florida because of the principles Judge Johnson 
promoted and the opportunities he made possible for the African 
Americans of my generation.
  Today, I remember him for these opportunities, the strides he made in 
civil rights, the definition he gave to the movement, and most of all, 
his commitment to what he perceived as right and just. Judge Johnson 
deserves this recognition, and I hope my colleagues will join me in 
paying tribute to this legacy that he has left after him.

                          ____________________