[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 11]
[House]
[Pages 15463-15466]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




          COMMEMORATING THE 100TH BIRTHDAY OF FANNIE LOU HAMER

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Kustoff of Tennessee). Under the

[[Page 15464]]

Speaker's announced policy of January 3, 2017, the Chair recognizes the 
gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson) for 30 minutes.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, tonight, I am privileged to 
rise in support of recognizing a true hero in not only the State of 
Mississippi, but this country as a whole. Her name is Fannie Lou Hamer. 
Fannie Lou Hamer will be 100 years old this week. I am happy to say 
that part of who I am can be attributed to my association with Ms. 
Hamer.
  Mr. Speaker, before I get into my message, I would like to yield to 
the gentlewoman from New Jersey (Mrs. Watson Coleman).
  Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague and my 
friend, Mr. Bennie Thompson, for organizing this important Special 
Order hour honoring his fellow Mississippian, Ms. Fannie Lou Hamer.
  Yesterday, Cosmopolitan published an article written by Zerlina 
Maxwell, aptly titled ``Trust Black Women.'' In the article, Maxwell, a 
fellow New Jerseyian, quoted her colleague, who said: ``Black women 
have been a part of every great movement that has happened in this 
country. We always show up.''
  Tonight, we celebrate the birth of Fannie Lou Hamer, a black woman 
who, like many of us, always showed up. In 1964, Fannie Lou Hamer 
showed up at the Democratic National Convention to speak on behalf of 
the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and highlight the hurdles, 
both physical and political, that were preventing Blacks in the South 
from showing up at the ballot box.
  During her testimony, she recounted her 26-mile journey to Indianola, 
Mississippi, to register to vote at the county courthouse where seven 
other men and women were looking to do the same. On the way, they 
encountered coordinated opposition from local and State law enforcement 
and men and women who sought to deter them from exercising their right 
to vote.
  Upon returning home, Fannie Lou Hamer found that she had been fired 
from her job. According to The New York Times, she said: ``They kicked 
me off the plantation; they set me free. It is the best thing that 
could happen. Now I can work for my people.''
  That same year, Fannie Lou Hamer ran for Congress as a candidate from 
Mississippi's Second Congressional District. And even in her defeat, 
Ms. Hamer continued to show up and work for her people.
  In 2014, 50 years after her testimony and her run for Congress, 
residents in New Jersey's 12th Congressional District elected me, the 
State's first ever African-American woman to represent them here in the 
House of Representatives.
  During my freshman term, I joined my two amazing colleagues, 
Representative Robin Kelly of Illinois and Representative Yvette Clarke 
of New York, to form the first ever Congressional Caucus on Black Women 
and Girls, a body of elected officials who work to ensure that Congress 
shows up for us.
  And in 2016, I stood at the Democratic National Convention, standing 
on the shoulders of Ms. Hamer's legacy, and proudly told America that 
this Nation is stronger when everyone has a chance to succeed.
  Ms. Hamer would beam with pride knowing that my colleagues and I 
continue to beat back hurdles placed at the feet of minorities and the 
poor that restrict their access to the vote.
  Ms. Hamer, however, would be very sad to know that, instead of being 
fired for trying to exercise the right to vote, they change polling 
places or amend requirements for valid identification. It is the same 
game, she would recognize, it is just different tactics.
  I am honored to stand here to honor the birthday of Ms. Fannie Lou 
Hamer, walk alongside her footsteps of greatness and, like she so often 
did, lift as I climb. We as women, and women of color, have to be the 
standard bearers we have been and continue to be. We have always and 
will continue to fight for what is right and what is necessary, even if 
we must do this alone.
  As we battle back against the racism, the sexism, and the bigotry 
that runneth over in this administration, we must always be awake, 
alert, and to show up.
  Today, in honoring the birthday of Fannie Lou Hamer, we 
simultaneously celebrate the strength of women, the ways we can 
encourage one another to be our sisters' keepers, and continue to build 
a future for the next generation of women ready and waiting to show up 
and to lead.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I will tell the gentlewoman 
from New Jersey that I had the opportunity to meet Ms. Hamer as a young 
college student at Tougaloo College. Facts about it, one of the first 
campaigns I worked on as a college student was Ms. Hamer's campaign for 
Congress, even though, as the gentlewoman indicated, she lost. But I 
now represent the Second District of Mississippi, and it was Ms. 
Hamer's spirit that still lives on.
  In Sunflower County, Mississippi, the majority of the population is 
African American. At the time she registered to vote, we had no African 
Americans elected officials in Sunflower County. I am happy to report 
to you now that the sheriff is African American; the chancery clerk, 
the circuit clerk, four of the five county supervisors are African 
American; so Ms. Hamer's work has not been in vain.
  As you also indicated, the Devil is busy creating tricks to 
disenfranchise people--voter ID, closing voting polls, making it more 
difficult for people in rural areas to get to the polls to vote, 
especially in areas where you don't have public transportation.
  So, Ms. Hamer's 100th birthday should be spent rededicating ourselves 
to her legacy. One of the things that everyone loves to quote is Ms. 
Hamer's words that she is ``sick and tired of being sick and tired.'' 
Well, that goes a long way, especially given the administration we are 
being challenged with here in Washington now. Hopefully, Ms. Hamer's 
spirit will live on.
  Congresswoman Karen Bass and myself visited Ms. Hamer's grave this 
past Saturday in Ruleville, Mississippi, and it was very touching. The 
community, in her death, has really embraced not only she, but her 
husband, Pat, and created a monument downtown Ruleville to her memory.
  When I was a freshman Member of this body, I named the post office in 
Ruleville, Mississippi, after Ms. Hamer, and I am happy to say that the 
mayor of Ruleville, Mississippi, now is an African-American female.
  So Ms. Hamer's legacy, her involvement with SNCC, her involvement 
with the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, all those things have 
made not just Mississippi, but this country a better place--affordable 
housing, all those things that she wanted, access to not only 
healthcare, but access to affordable healthcare, many of those items 
she talked about.
  As a Christian woman, she believed in nonviolence, but she also 
believed in direct action. She was assaulted in the Winona, 
Mississippi, jail for advocating the right to vote.

                              {time}  2015

  In spite of what she encountered, she served as a shining example of 
what a truly committed individual can accomplish.
  Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN. Will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. I yield to the gentlewoman from New 
Jersey.
  Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I did not ever have the pleasure 
and honor of meeting her in person, but I remember watching television 
during that Democratic National Convention, which was taking place in 
my home State in the great city of Atlantic City.
  I remember the conscious bearing energy that evolved around all of 
that activity, and it made me very proud. And I would say that, indeed, 
Fannie Lou Hamer's work has not gone, has not been in vain. But she 
also is smiling down knowing that what she started, you are continuing 
on, and that you are serving in the very district that she loved enough 
to fight for way back when.
  It is my honor to know you, and to know that you have been touched by

[[Page 15465]]

her. So that means that with less than 6 degrees of separation, I have 
been touched by her, and that is my blessing.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I would also like to say to 
the gentlewoman that that 1964 Atlantic City Democratic National 
Convention set the tone for opening up the Democratic Party to people 
of all races and colors because Mrs. Hamer challenged the all-White 
makeup of the Mississippi delegation by saying Black people couldn't 
participate. They were systematically excluded from the selection 
process, and she appealed to that convention to do better.
  I am happy, as you know, to report that the convention heard Mrs. 
Hamer and decided that an all-White delegation from the State with the 
highest percentage of African Americans in the country could not be 
justified. So the delegation was not only integrated at the convention, 
but, for a time, we shared the chairmanships of the party. We had a co-
chair that was White and a co-chair that was African American. So Mrs. 
Hamer's spirit still lives on.
  One of the real issues that really touches most of our hearts is that 
she was a very humble person. She had the kind of spirit in her 
delivery that you just had to pay attention to. She had the aura when 
she walked in a room that whatever you were doing, you had to stop and 
pay attention to this very simple person who came in. But every time 
she opened her mouth, something very prophetic would come out.
  So for a lot of individuals who think that Fannie Lou Hamer's time 
has come and gone, I think it is fitting and proper that at this 100th 
birthday celebration, we recommit ourselves to many of the things that 
Mrs. Hamer stood for: inclusion; not leaving people out because they 
don't live in the big house on the hill; to make sure that our children 
receive the best education possible. All of those things Mrs. Hamer was 
noted for.
  Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN. Will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. I yield to the gentlewoman from New 
Jersey.
  Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I think it is vitally important on 
this 100th anniversary of Ms. Hamer's birth to also recognize that we 
are still fighting for the unfettered access to the vote, and that here 
in Congress, we have the opportunity to eliminate barriers and to fix 
the problems with the Civil Rights Act that just negatively impacts 
access and unfettered access to voting. There are just so many 
fundamental things that we could be doing today that honor the work 
that she did and that she gave her life's work to.
  In closing for me, I want to just say that I thank the gentleman so 
very much for doing this because I know that there are people who 
listen to these moments of Special Orders hours on C-SPAN, or catch it 
in some other form. It is important for our communities to recognize 
just how significant this woman's role was in ensuring that they have 
the access to the things that they have access to today, and to demand 
their right to vote, and to exercise that right to vote every chance 
they get.
  I am very grateful for the gentleman carrying this message this 
evening.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for 
the very kind comments. But to talk about Mrs. Hamer and her work is 
easy. It speaks for itself. I am very privileged, as I indicated, to 
have known her, to have participated in a number of meetings.
  One of the other things that I realized, she didn't--as we used to 
say, there were no big Is and little yous. She saw everyone the same. 
It didn't matter whether you belonged to the Student Nonviolent 
Coordinating Committee, or the Black Panther Party, or the Deacons for 
Defense and Justice. You still had room at the table under Mrs. Hamer's 
tutelage. Many of us are privileged to have known her in that way, and 
we try to pattern our lives after her.
  The National Council of Negro Women really worked very hard with Mrs. 
Hamer in producing affordable housing and to making sure that farmers 
cooperatives could be developed in the Mississippi Delta. Because as 
some would choose to forget, Mrs. Hamer was put off the plantation that 
she lived on because she was encouraging people to register and vote.
  But those were the times that we all lived in, and we saw it. When I 
ran for Congress, there were people who worked on farms who were 
required to work overtime so that they couldn't go to the polls before 
they closed. So there are a lot of things that we saw during Mrs. 
Hamer's time. The tricks are still being played.
  So it is in the spirit of Fannie Lou that we pay tribute tonight to 
her. It is in that spirit of Fannie Lou that we wish her a happy 100th 
birthday. But it is also in her spirit that, as they say in South 
Africa, ``the struggle continues,'' ``a luta continua.''
  I know in the Congressional Black Caucus we call ourselves the 
conscience of Congress. We have to be. If we don't speak up for many of 
the people that Mrs. Hamer loved the most, who will? We were sent here 
to care for the opposition on behalf of the people who can't afford to 
hire lobbyists; on behalf of the people who can't get on a plane and 
fly to Washington and talk to their congressperson; on behalf of the 
little child who not only is struggling to get into the Head Start 
program, but whose parents are having a hard time.
  So our representation as members of the Congressional Black Caucus is 
predicated on many of the things that Mrs. Hamer stood for in her 
lifetime. We can't ever forget her spirit. We can't ever forget her 
energy. And even though we have the opportunity as Members of Congress 
to meet people from all over the world, one of the things that she used 
to say is: ``You know, I walked among kings, but I have always kept the 
common touch.''
  It is in that spirit that I appreciate the gentlewoman helping me 
carry forth this time for Mrs. Hamer as she celebrates here 100th 
birthday. If the gentlewoman has some closing comments or something she 
would like to add, I yield to the gentlewoman from New Jersey (Mrs. 
Watson Coleman).
  Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  I would just like to note that there was an amazing demonstration of 
people in front of the Supreme Court demanding that we do something 
about gerrymandering because that is another way of negatively 
impacting the impact of one man and one vote.
  So it is, again, fitting to be honoring this woman who gave her 
life's work to ensuring that everybody who was eligible to vote was 
given the right to vote; to eliminate any obstacles that were placed in 
their way so that we could open up opportunities to elect people who 
would be fair in the policies that are important; to ensure that there 
is equality of opportunity in this country for all people, predicated 
upon their ability to do the intellect and their willingness to work 
hard, therefore, the content of their character versus the color of 
their skin. So it is indeed an honor to have shared this moment with 
you. Thank you for the invitation.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Thank you very much Mrs. Watson Coleman 
for your participation.
  The last point I would like to make is, in Mrs. Hamer's day, it was 
poll tax. It was: How many bubbles are in a bar of soap? How many 
grains of sand are on the beach?
  Now it is moving the polls in the interest of saving money, but you 
are disenfranchising people who don't have the ability to go further. 
It is the gerrymandering of districts so that you have the richest 
people in an area in the same district as the poorest people in that 
area. There are no real communities of interest.
  If I am worried about paying the light bill or the rent, then there 
is a great possibility that I won't go vote. But if I own a house and 
own a car and know where my next meal is coming from, I will go vote. 
So we have what we call communities of interest, and Mrs. Hamer talked 
about that.
  So, again, we wanted to make sure that this week did not go by 
without giving Mrs. Hamer her due recognition

[[Page 15466]]

for her 100th birthday. There will be a lot of other activities after 
this Special Order hour in memory of Mrs. Hamer.
  We have a movie that will be produced talking about her life and 
legacy and her contribution to this great country of ours. I look 
forward to that as well as making sure that our children and 
grandchildren understand who this great woman was and what she meant to 
this country of ours and so many of us who pattern after her. So, 
again, thank you very much.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to call attention to President Trump's lack of 
concern for the thousands of Americans affected by the hurricanes 
throughout the U.S. and most recently in the U.S. Virgin Islands and 
Puerto Rico, which has reminded us of the devastation Hurricane Katrina 
caused. Instead of showing compassion to those suffering, the president 
and his administration have condemned African-American athletes and a 
Black, female sports commentator for exercising their constitutional 
right to protest and voice their opinions.
  Today, I stand with the athletes who choose to take a knee during the 
national anthem and those who speak out fighting against racial 
inequality that still persists throughout this country.
  I suggest President Trump spends less time tweeting discriminatory 
comments and more time focusing on the issues of our country.
  Tonight, I recognize a civil rights hero whose work is no small part 
of the reason I and many other African-American members of Congress are 
able to stand before you today.
  Ms. Fannie Lou Hamer was born in 1917 in Montgomery County, 
Mississippi. During the civil rights era, Ms. Hamer, at the age of just 
6-years-old joined her family picking cotton on the plantation of W.D. 
Marlow in Sunflower County, Mississippi.
  Though, she began to pick cotton at a young age, Ms. Hamer was able 
to complete many years in school learning how to read and write, which 
helped her serve hundreds of African-Americans throughout her life.
  In the 1960s, Ms. Hamer joined the Student Non-Violent Coordinating 
Committee, an organization providing African-Americans the opportunity 
to register to vote. Ms. Hamer taught Black Mississippians how to read 
and write in order for them to pass discriminatory literacy tests 
designed to prevent Black Americans from registering to vote.
  In 1962, Ms. Hamer along with 17 Black Mississippians traveled by bus 
from Ruleville, Mississippi, to Indianola, Mississippi, to register to 
vote. Upon arrival, the group was blocked from entry by local law 
enforcement. But, Ms. Hamer and one of her fellow travelers were able 
to fill out a voter application and take the literacy test, but due to 
discrimination the two were unable to register. This did not deter Ms. 
Hamer's passion and willingness to fight racism throughout Mississippi.
  On the group's way back to Ruleville, the bus was stopped by local 
police officers and the driver was arrested. In that very moment of 
racism and trail, Ms. Hamer began to sing Negro spirituals leaving a 
clear message to her oppressors that she would never give up.
  Her leadership was a beacon of hope for so many Black Mississippians 
that in 1964, Ms. Hamer ran for Congress to represent Mississippi's 
Second Congressional District as a Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party 
candidate, a party which she founded to promote equal rights for 
African-Americans in Mississippi.
  During the 1960s, very few women especially women of color threw 
their hat into the ring for a Congressional bid. Her willingness to run 
in Mississippi at that time was and continues to be a powerful act in 
itself. Though she was unsuccessful, her speeches, messages and visits 
to African-Americans around the state resonated.
  Ms. Hamer provided inspiration for me to work for the Student Non-
Violent Coordinating Committee, while I attended Tougaloo College 
continuing Ms. Hamer's work to get African-Americans across Mississippi 
registered to vote. I remember volunteering for Ms. Hamer's 
Congressional campaign and getting inspired to serve the people of 
Mississippi. Today, I represent Mississippi's Second Congressional 
District, and I cannot help but think that Ms. Hamer is smiling down on 
me. Her courage and brilliance is one of the reasons I stand on this 
floor today.
  I am honored to be able to give time to honor a legend and civil 
rights icon. Ms. Fannie Lou Hamer's legacy will forever live on, and I 
stand here today along with my colleagues to pay homage to a true hero.


                             general leave

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their 
remarks on my Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Mississippi?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of 
my time.
  Ms. FUDGE. Mr. Speaker, let me first begin by thanking my friend and 
colleague Rep. Bennie Thompson for leading today's effort in honoring 
the life and legacy of Fannie Lou Hamer. October 6th marks the 100th 
anniversary of her birth in Montgomery County, Mississippi.
  An honorary member of Delta Sigma Theta, Fannie Lou Hamer dedicated 
her life to the fight for civil rights. Born in 1917, she was the 
daughter of sharecroppers and the youngest of 20 siblings. By the age 
of six, she was helping her family in the cotton fields.
  Fannie Lou Hamer was a woman of courage. She used her voice to raise 
awareness about the plight of African Americans in the Mississippi 
Delta. She was a woman of strength who was able to channel the 
injustices committed against her into activism.
  Working for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, Hamer 
helped African Americans register to vote and worked to end 
segregation.
  After attempting to register to vote herself in August 1962, Hamer 
lost her job and was kicked out of her home. The following year, she 
and fellow activists returning from a training workshop were unjustly 
jailed and severely beaten. While the beating left permanent damage, 
the officers were later acquitted by an all-white jury.
  Hamer was also a trailblazing political activist. She helped to found 
the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and the National Women's 
Political Caucus. She almost derailed the re-election of President 
Lyndon Johnson and changed the Democratic Party's delegate selection 
process. In 1968, she would become the first African American to serve 
as an official delegate at a national-party convention since 
Reconstruction and the first woman ever from Mississippi.
  Although unsuccessful in her bids for elected office, Hamer remained 
committed to voting rights and antipoverty efforts. She filed a lawsuit 
to push forward desegregation efforts in local schools, led the cotton 
pickers resistance movement and helped to bring a Head Start program to 
her community.
  Fannie Lou Hamer's contributions to the American Civil Rights 
movement and our nation are undeniable. As then UN Ambassador Andrew 
Young eulogized at her funeral, ``None of us would be where we are now 
had she not been there then.'' His words still ring true 40 years 
later.

                          ____________________