[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 13]
[House]
[Page 18568]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




           150TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION

  (Mr. BUTTERFIELD asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 150th 
anniversary of the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. In the 
early 19th century, 4 million slaves resided in the South, public 
opinion in the North began to oppose it, States resisted by ceding from 
the Union, and a brutal civil war ensued.
  In order to end slavery and the war, President Lincoln on September 
22, 1862, issued a preliminary emancipation proclamation directing all 
rebelling States to free their slaves and return to the Union in 100 
days.
  Lincoln made it clear: should they fail to do so, he would use his 
authority as Commander in Chief to end slavery. States failed to act, 
and Lincoln signed the proclamation January 1, 1863.
  More than 200,000 lives were lost in the war. Lincoln lost his own 
life with an assassin's bullet following reelection. This is American 
history that every individual must understand and appreciate.
  Today, Mr. Speaker, we commemorate 150 years of freedom for African 
American citizens.

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