[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 8]
[House]
[Pages 11102-11103]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    DARK PERIOD IN AMERICAN HISTORY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Butterfield) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express the utter outrage of 
the Congressional Black Caucus regarding the Calvert amendment, 
scheduled for later this afternoon, which is an amendment to the 
Interior Appropriations bill.
  That amendment would allow Confederate imagery to remain on graves on 
Federal lands. Don't Republicans understand that the Confederate battle 
flag is an insult to 40 million African Americans and to many other 
fair-minded Americans?
  The Confederate battle flag, Mr. Speaker, is intended to defend a 
dark period of American history, a period when 4 million Blacks were 
held as slaves, held as property, as chattel, not as human beings. The 
slaves were bought and sold and mortgaged and gifted as chattel.
  Mr. Speaker, this period of enslavement continued for more than 200 
years and did not legally end until December 6, 1865.
  Here is the history, Mr. Speaker. Following President Lincoln's 
election in November 1860, 12 Southern States ceded from the Union in 
response to their belief that President Lincoln would free the 4 
million slaves. South Carolina was the first State to cede from the 
Union, on December 20, right after Lincoln's election.
  These Southern States formed the Confederate States of America. They 
empowered a military, elected a President, adopted a constitution, and 
adopted a currency. They engaged in a brutal, brutal civil war with the 
Union. Thousands of lives were lost on both sides of the battle. The 
Confederate flag, Mr. Speaker, was their symbol; it was their flag.
  The Southern States lost the war. The States then rejoined the Union. 
President Lincoln then proposed the 13th Amendment, legally ending 
slavery. That amendment, Mr. Speaker, passed this Congress on January 
31, 1865, and finally was ratified by Georgia on December 6, 1865. 
During the period of ratification, President Lincoln was assassinated.
  For the next 50-plus years, every Black person living in the South 
faced the possibility of lynching. More than 4,000 Blacks were lynched 
between 1890 and 1950, and 136 Black people were lynched in South 
Carolina.
  There are some now who want to continue to honor slavery and to honor 
bigotry, and this House, Mr. Speaker, must not be complicit.
  The horrific shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, was an example 
of a 21st century lynching.

                              {time}  1030

  The manifesto left by the Charleston killer stated:

       I have no choice. I am not in the position to, alone, go 
     into the ghetto and fight. I chose Charleston because it is 
     the most historic city in my State, and at one time had the 
     highest ratio of Blacks to Whites in the country.

  He was right, 57 percent.

       We have no skinheads, we have no real KKK, no one doing 
     anything but talking on the Internet. Well, someone has to 
     have the bravery to take it to the real world, and I guess 
     that has to be me.

  Mr. Speaker, bigotry continues to exist in this country. This 
Congress should not pass any legislation, today or any other day, that 
would embolden those who continue to hold racist beliefs.
  The Calvert amendment--the Calvert amendment--is misguided, and it 
emboldens bigotry. I ask my colleagues, Democrat and Republican, 
respectfully, let's defeat the Calvert amendment this afternoon, and 
even if the gentleman would consider to withdraw his amendment and not 
put this House through this turmoil today.

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