[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 10635]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           VOTING RIGHTS ACT

  (Ms. SEWELL of Alabama asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Ms. SEWELL of Alabama. Mr. Speaker, I stand today to join with my 
colleagues in expressing my deep disappointment in the Supreme Court's 
decision on the Voting Rights Act. I stand not just as a Member of 
Congress but as a Member of Congress who represents Selma, Alabama. I 
stand not only as a Member who represents Selma, Alabama, but also as a 
native of Selma.
  I can tell you that, as I think about the Edmund Pettus Bridge each 
and every time I go home, I think about John Lewis and of so many foot 
soldiers who dedicated their lives for the right to vote. I know that I 
would not be able to stand in this well had it not been for their 
fight.
  So I implore my colleagues: we as elected officials cannot afford to 
not protect the right to vote. It is sacred, our right to vote. I think 
that the only way that we, with dignity, can continue as elected 
officials is if we protect each and every person's right to vote in 
America. So I implore us to work together to figure out a coverage 
formula that will work. I also urge all of us to remember what it's 
like to see John Lewis in this well. John Lewis is the face of voting 
rights in America. I ask us to work together to figure out a formula to 
protect the right to vote.

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