[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 16]
[House]
[Pages 21794-21796]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




    EXPRESSING SENSE OF CONGRESS THAT THE PRESIDENT SHOULD GRANT A 
           POSTHUMOUS PARDON TO JOHN ARTHUR ``JACK'' JOHNSON

  Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the 
rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 214) 
expressing the sense of Congress that the President should grant a 
posthumous pardon to John Arthur ``Jack'' Johnson for the 1913 racially 
motivated conviction of Johnson, which diminished his athletic, 
cultural, and historic significance, and tarnished his reputation.
  The Clerk read the title of the concurrent resolution.
  The text of the concurrent resolution is as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 214

       Whereas John Arthur ``Jack'' Johnson was a flamboyant, 
     defiant, and controversial figure in American history who 
     challenged racial biases;
       Whereas Jack Johnson was born in Galveston, Texas, in 1878 
     to parents who were former slaves;
       Whereas Jack Johnson was a professional boxer who traveled 
     throughout the United States and the world, fighting both 
     Black and White heavyweight boxers;
       Whereas in 1908, after being denied the opportunity to 
     fight two White boxing champions on purely racial grounds, 
     Jack Johnson was granted an opportunity by an Australian 
     promoter to fight Tommy Burns, the reigning world heavyweight 
     champion;
       Whereas Jack Johnson defeated Burns to become the first 
     African American to hold the title of world heavyweight 
     champion;
       Whereas the victory of Jack Johnson over Burns prompted the 
     search for a White boxer who could beat him, a recruitment 
     effort dubbed the search for the ``Great White Hope'';
       Whereas in Reno, Nevada, in 1910, in what was referred to 
     by many as the ``Battle of the Century'', a White former 
     heavyweight champion named James ``Jim'' Jeffries came back 
     from retirement to fight, and lose to, Jack Johnson;
       Whereas the defeat of Jeffries by Jack Johnson sparked 
     rioting and aggression toward African Americans and led to 
     racially motivated murders of African Americans nationwide;
       Whereas the resentment felt toward Jack Johnson by many 
     Whites was compounded by his relationships with White women;

[[Page 21795]]

       Whereas between 1901 and 1910, 754 African Americans were 
     lynched, some simply for being ``too familiar'' with White 
     women;
       Whereas in 1910, Congress passed the White-slave traffic 
     Act (commonly known as the ``Mann Act''), which outlawed the 
     transportation of women in interstate or foreign commerce 
     ``for the purpose of prostitution or debauchery, or for any 
     other immoral purpose'';
       Whereas in October 1912, Jack Johnson became involved with 
     a White woman, Lucille Cameron, whose mother disapproved of 
     the relationship, claimed that Johnson had abducted her 
     daughter, and sought action from the Department of Justice;
       Whereas Jack Johnson was arrested by United States marshals 
     on October 18, 1912, for transporting Lucille Cameron across 
     State lines for an ``immoral purpose'' in violation of the 
     Mann Act, but Cameron refused to cooperate with authorities, 
     the charges were dropped, and Cameron later married the 
     champion;
       Whereas Federal authorities continued to pursue Jack 
     Johnson and summoned Belle Schreiber, a White woman, to 
     testify that Johnson had transported her across State lines 
     for the purposes of ``prostitution and debauchery'';
       Whereas in 1913, Jack Johnson was convicted of violating 
     the Mann Act and was sentenced to 1 year and 1 day in Federal 
     prison, but fled the country to Canada and then to various 
     European and South American countries;
       Whereas Jack Johnson lost the heavyweight championship 
     title to Jess Willard in Cuba in 1915;
       Whereas Jack Johnson returned to the United States in July 
     1920, surrendered to the authorities, and served nearly 1 
     year in the United States Penitentiary at Leavenworth, 
     Kansas;
       Whereas Jack Johnson fought boxing matches after his 
     release from prison, but never regained the heavyweight 
     championship title;
       Whereas Jack Johnson supported this Nation during World War 
     II by encouraging citizens to buy war bonds and by 
     participating in exhibition boxing matches to promote the 
     sale of war bonds;
       Whereas Jack Johnson died in an automobile accident in 
     1946; and
       Whereas in 1954, Jack Johnson was inducted into the Boxing 
     Hall of Fame: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring),  That it is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) John Arthur ``Jack'' Johnson paved the way for African 
     American athletes to participate and succeed in racially 
     integrated professional sports in the United States;
       (2) Jack Johnson was wronged by a racially motivated 
     conviction prompted by his success in the boxing ring and his 
     relationships with White women;
       (3) the criminal conviction of Jack Johnson unjustly ruined 
     his career and destroyed his reputation; and
       (4) the President should grant a posthumous pardon to Jack 
     Johnson to expunge from the annals of American criminal 
     justice a racially motivated abuse of the prosecutorial 
     authority of the Federal Government, and to recognize Jack 
     Johnson's athletic and cultural contributions to society.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Zoe Lofgren) and the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Cannon) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from California.


                             General Leave

  Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time 
as I may consume.
  I rise today in support of this resolution expressing the sense of 
Congress that the President should grant a posthumous pardon to John 
Arthur ``Jack'' Johnson for the 1913 racially motivated conviction of 
Mr. Johnson, which diminished his athletic, cultural and historic 
significance and tarnished his reputation.
  More importantly, Mr. Speaker, adoption of this resolution and 
granting of this posthumous pardon by the President would remove a 
nearly century-old stain from the reputation of this Nation. Although 
the harm inflicted on Mr. Johnson can never be undone, it is 
nevertheless important that we set the record straight and acknowledge 
that he was wrongfully convicted in a disgraceful climate of racial 
hatred.
  John Arthur ``Jack'' Johnson was a flamboyant, defiant and 
controversial figure in American history who challenged racial biases. 
The son of former slaves, Jack Johnson was a professional boxer who 
traveled throughout the United States and the world, fighting both 
black and white heavyweight boxers. He was without question one of the 
greatest boxers this Nation has ever produced.
  The resentment felt towards Mr. Johnson by many whites was not 
limited to his successes in the ring. It was compounded by his 
relationship with white women, an issue which aroused not just anger, 
but brutal violence. Between 1901 and 1910, 754 African Americans were 
lynched, some simply for being perceived as ``too familiar'' with white 
women.
  In 1912, Jack Johnson was arrested by United States marshals and 
charged with transporting his future wife, Lucille Cameron, across 
State lines for an ``immoral purpose'' in violation of the Mann Act. 
Ms. Cameron refused to cooperate with the authorities, the charges were 
dropped, and she later married the champion.
  Federal authorities continued to pursue Jack Johnson and subsequently 
sought to prosecute him based on charges of ``prostitution and 
debauchery.'' This time they were able to obtain a conviction, and Mr. 
Johnson was forced to flee the country.
  He returned to the United States in July 1920, surrendered to the 
authorities, and served nearly 1 year in the United States Penitentiary 
at Leavenworth, Kansas. Jack Johnson fought boxing matches after his 
release from prison, but never regained the heavyweight championship 
title.
  Although this Nation failed him, Jack Johnson remained a patriotic 
American. He supported this Nation during World War II by encouraging 
citizens to buy war bonds and by participating in exhibition boxing 
matches to promote the sale of war bonds. He died in 1946. In 1954, 
Jack Johnson was finally inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame, a 
fitting recognition of the outstanding accomplishments of this great 
sportsman.
  It is time that we also recognize the wrong that was done and do what 
is in our power to make amends for this wrongful conviction, which 
destroyed a great boxing career, but not a courageous and indomitable 
sportsman.
  I urge my colleagues to support the measure.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CANNON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  The gentlewoman from California has eloquently set forth the facts, 
the simple facts that relate to why we are here today. This is a 
profoundly important piece of legislation because it transforms a wrong 
in American history.
  I would just like to say that one of the profoundly important things 
in our time, one of the things that I am most proud of and most pleased 
with, in fact one of the things that gives me the greatest pleasure in 
life, is the fact that we are in a time when a person's ethnicity is 
less important than his or her capabilities.
  I think it is time that we ask the President to pardon Jack Johnson, 
because he represents some of the difficulty in our past. I am 
impressed that he was killed in a car accident after he sped away from 
a restaurant that refused to serve him. Every American today is 
uncomfortable with that. It was a standard at one point in time. It is 
not the standard in America today, something that I think is wonderful 
in our country.
  At a time with other crises going on around us, I am pleased to ask 
for our colleagues to support this bill and do something right, or 
recognize that some wrong was done in America and do something about 
that.
  I support the passage of House Concurrent Resolution 214, which calls 
on the President to grant a posthumous pardon to Jack Johnson for a 
racially motivated conviction for violating the Mann Act.
  Jack Johnson was the first African American boxer to become the 
heavyweight champion of the world. But the Mann Act conviction 
diminished Mr. Johnson's athletic, cultural, and historic significance 
and tarnished his reputation.
  Jack Johnson was born in Galveston, TX, in 1878. The son of former 
slaves, Johnson grew up poor. He attended school only until the fifth 
grade and began boxing as a young teenager.

[[Page 21796]]

  By 1902, Johnson had won at least 50 fights against both white and 
black opponents. However, his efforts to win the heavyweight title were 
thwarted as world champion Jim Jeffries refused to face him. In 1905, 
Jeffries retired from the sport rather than give Johnson a title fight.
  In 1908, Johnson finally won the heavyweight title when he knocked 
out Tommy Burns in Sydney, Australia. However, Johnson was not 
officially recognized as champion until 1910, when he bested Jim 
Jeffries who came out of retirement specifically for the fight.
  Johnson went on to defend his title a number of times. But in 1913, 
at the height of his career, the boxer was convicted of violating the 
Mann Act--a law that outlawed the transportation of women across state 
lines for ``any immoral purpose.''
  After his conviction, Jack Johnson fled the country and spent several 
years abroad as a fugitive. In 1915, he lost his title to Jess Willard 
in Cuba.
  Five years later, Johnson returned to the United States, surrendered 
to authorities, and served 1 year and 1 day in prison. He was never 
given another shot at the heavyweight title, and he never cleared his 
name. He died in a traffic accident in 1946 at age 68. He was furiously 
speeding away from a restaurant that refused to serve him.
  In 2004, filmmaker Ken Burns initiated the movement for a pardon 
after producing a documentary about Jack Johnson's life. That year, the 
Senate approved Senate Resolution 447, an earlier version of today's 
resolution, by unanimous consent.
  In 2005, a bipartisan group of Senators, led by Senator McCain, wrote 
a letter to the President to request a pardon. The letter stated that a 
pardon ``would be a strong and necessary symbol to the world of 
America's continuing resolve to live up to the noble ideals of freedom, 
opportunity and equal justice for all.''
  Although it has been over 90 years since Jack Johnson's conviction 
and over 50 years since his death, a Presidential pardon would be 
untimely but still just.
  I join my colleagues in supporting this resolution and ask that the 
President grant a long-awaited pardon to Jack Johnson.
  Mr. KING of New York. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in support of H. Con. 
Res. 214, a resolution granting a posthumous pardon to John Arthur 
``Jack'' Johnson for his 1913 racially motivated conviction. On 
September 17, 2007, I introduced this resolution with Congressman Jesse 
Jackson, and I join today with 40 of my cosponsoring colleagues in 
urging the House to pass this resolution today.
  Jack Johnson became the first black World Heavyweight Boxing Champion 
in 1908 after defeating Tommy Burns in Australia and kept the title 
until 1915. He was a flamboyant and controversial figure in American 
history who paved the way for African-American athletes to participate 
and succeed in racially integrated professional sports in the United 
States.
  Prompted by his success in the boxing ring and his relationship with 
a white woman, Jack Johnson was wronged by a racially motivated 
conviction under the Mann Act. He was convicted in 1913 after fleeing 
to Canada, Europe and South America and served one year in prison. 
Being convicted ruined his career and wrongly destroyed his reputation.
  Because of this, we believe the President should grant a posthumous 
pardon to Jack Johnson to clear his name and recognize his athletic and 
cultural contributions to society. I am proud to have sponsored this 
resolution on his behalf
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support this resolution.
  Mr. CANNON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of this 
measure. I appreciate Mr. Cannon's comments, and yield back the balance 
of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Zoe Lofgren) that the House suspend 
the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 214.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. CANNON. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a 
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not 
present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.
  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

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