Prescription Plan Preservation Act of 2005

Mr. Speaker, I thank former chairman Conyers for yielding me this time. It is really ironic that you would be on the Judiciary Committee during all of the years that it took to get the King holiday there; and also that, as a Member of Congress, you lived through the civil rights movement with the people that we have honored in the past and with Dr. Coretta King.

I think if we had to review where we are with Coretta King, it is that she wasn't that woman behind a successful man. She was truly a partner and a leader in her own right. Somehow she knew when to speak out and when just to leave it to Martin Luther King.

What I have found over the years is that she has such a personality and such a soothing voice; but, boy, I am telling you, if it dealt with a challenge against what is right, against inequality and injustice, this very soft spoken, beautiful woman knew how a civil rights leader is supposed to take risk and go to the mat.

When we lost Dr. King, how quickly she was able to pick up that torch and to give to this Nation the leadership that really turned us around from a Nation that was struggling with racism and even today continues in that fight for equality for all Americans.

Those of us that were able to march with Dr. Martin Luther King cannot think of a time when she was not there marching with him. Any pictures from the past, Coretta Scott King was there.

How often we work with these people as though they are mere mortals, only to find out when they are gone how deep that vacuum has been made by their loss. For all of the groups that Coretta Scott King has provided the leadership for, we hope since we cannot replace Coretta King, that all of us have in us some type, some quality of the conviction and the courage that Dr. King and his beautiful wife had. And collectively, if all of us can say this is not a struggle for the King family or a civil rights leader, but a struggle for this great country, I think we can move forward.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of Mrs. Coretta Scott King and to add my support to H. Res. 655 honoring the life of this extraordinary woman. As much as we loved and respected Mrs. King, her family has suffered an even greater loss. To the King children--Yolanda, Martin III, Dexter, and Bernice, know that you have our deepest heartfelt sympathy.

Hailed as the `First Lady of the Civil Rights Movement', Coretta Scott King had to endure injustices at an early age. Born in Heiberger, Alabama and raised on the farm of her parents Bernice McMurry Scott, and Obadiah Scott, she was exposed at an early age to the injustices of life in a segregated society. She walked five miles a day to attend the one-room Crossroad School in Marion, Alabama, while the White students rode buses to an all-White school closer by. Yet through it all, young Coretta excelled at her studies, particularly music, and was valedictorian of her graduating class at Lincoln High School.

She graduated in 1945 and received a scholarship to Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. As an undergraduate, she took an active interest in the emerging civil rights movement; and joined the Antioch chapter of the NAACP, as well as the college's Race Relations and Civil Liberties Committees.

Her life would be forever changed when she met a young theology student, Martin Luther King, Jr. They were married on June 18, 1953, in a ceremony conducted by King's father, the Rev. Martin Luther King, Sr.

Coretta Scott King was very supportive to her husband during the most turbulent days of the American civil rights movement. After his assassination in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968, she kept his dream alive while also raising their four children. In her own words, she was ``more determined than ever that her husband's dream would become a reality.''

For more than a decade, she worked tirelessly to have her husband's birthday observed as a national holiday. Her determination would payoff when it was first celebrated in 1986.

In 1969, she established the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta, dedicated both to scholarship and to activism.

With fierce determination and undying strength, Mrs. King worked to keep Dr. King's ideology of equality for all people at the forefront of people's minds. She picked up the baton when it was dropped by her husband's assassination and continued to move forward in the civil rights arena.

In her own words, ``We must make our hearts instruments of peace and nonviolence, because when the heart is right, the mind and the body will follow.''

She exemplified courage, strength, and a deep compassion for justice. Coretta Scott King will be remembered as one of America's greatest treasures and will be forever missed.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of Mrs. Coretta Scott King and to add my support to H. Res. 655 honoring the life of this extraordinary woman. As much as we loved and respected Mrs. King, her family has suffered an even greater loss. To the King children--Yolanda, Martin III, Dexter, and Bernice, know that you have our deepest heartfelt sympathy.

Hailed as the `First Lady of the Civil Rights Movement', Coretta Scott King had to endure injustices at an early age. Born in Heiberger, Alabama and raised on the farm of her parents Bernice McMurry Scott, and Obadiah Scott, she was exposed at an early age to the injustices of life in a segregated society. She walked five miles a day to attend the one-room Crossroad School in Marion, Alabama, while the white students rode buses to an all-white school closer by. Yet through it all, young Coretta excelled at her studies, particularly music, and was valedictorian of her graduating class at Lincoln High School.

She graduated in 1945 and received a scholarship to Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio. As an undergraduate, she took an active interest in the emerging civil rights movement; and joined the Antioch chapter of the NAACP, as well as the college's Race Relations and Civil Liberties Committees.

Her life would be forever changed when she met a young theology student, Martin Luther King, Jr. They were married on June 18, 1953, in a ceremony conducted by King's father, the Rev. Martin Luther King, Sr.

Coretta Scott King was very supportive to her husband during the most turbulent days of the American civil rights movement. After his assassination in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968, she kept his dream alive while also raising their four children. In her own words, she was ``more determined than ever that her husband's dream would become a reality.''

For more than a decade, she worked tirelessly to have her husband's birthday observed as a national holiday. Her determination would payoff when it was first celebrated in 1986.

In 1969, she established the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta, dedicated both to scholarship and to activism.

With fierce determination and undying strength, Mrs. King worked to keep Dr. King's ideology of equality for all people at the forefront of people's minds. She picked up the baton when it was dropped by her husband's assassination and continued to move forward in the civil rights arena.

In her own words, ``We must make our hearts instruments of peace and nonviolence, because when the heart is right, the mind and the body will follow.''

She exemplified courage, strength, and a deep compassion for justice. Coretta Scott King will be remembered as one of America's greatest treasures and will be forever missed.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman for yielding me this time and for his leadership and say to him what an honor it is to serve with him. Mr. Conyers is truly an icon and someone for us all to follow.

It is with a deep sense of gratitude and yet a deep sense of sadness that I rise tonight to pay tribute to the late Coretta Scott King and offer my sincerest condolences and prayers to her family and friends.

Today we mourn the loss of an incredible woman, an American legacy. She joined her husband, the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., on the front lines of the civil rights movement and made it her life's work to ensure that civil rights, a nonviolent struggle for justice, continued. You see, Mrs. King's marathon for justice and yes, for peace,

transcended race, gender and national boundaries.

Mrs. King was really an example for us all of us. I remember her leadership in fighting to end apartheid in South Africa and her determination to connect all of the dots of how social injustices affect us all.

As a congressional staffer to my predecessor Congressman Dellums, I remember the 15-year legislative battle, led by the great Congressman Mr. John Conyers to create a national holiday honoring Dr. King, but it took a grassroots national movement and Mrs. King's tireless advocacy to finally have this legislation enacted into law. That is when I first met this brilliant, beautiful woman.

Mrs. King was a role model for many women, including myself. On several occasions she reached out to me to offer her counsel, support and love. I will always remember her words of support and her comfort during some very challenging times for me. She hugged me, and would always tell me to stay the course, and she would say that is what Martin would want.

Several years ago I was invited to keynote the Martin Luther march and rally in Atlanta on Dr. King's birthday. Again, she encouraged me to remember Martin and his quest for peace through nonviolence as part of my work as a Member of Congress. I will deeply miss this great woman.

Mrs. King stood tall when many would have been overwhelmed. Imagine how she coped when her husband was arrested, beaten and wiretapped. She was an amazing woman, and we are going to miss her.

Mr. Speaker, my thoughts and prayers are with the King family this evening as we honor and as we celebrate the life of this great woman. Let us ensure that the flame of nonviolence and peace burns in her memory.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Conyers for making sure that we have the opportunity to reflect on this great woman tonight.

Mr. Speaker, it is with a deep sense of sadness yet gratitude that I rise to pay tribute to the late Coretta Scott King, and offer my sincerest condolences and prayers to her family and friends.

Today, we mourn the loss of an incredible woman--an American legacy. She joined her husband, the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., on the frontlines of the civil rights movement and made it her life's work to ensure that the civil rights and non-violent struggle for justice and peace continued.

You see Mrs. King's marathon for justice and peace transcended race, gender and national boundaries. Mrs. King was an example to us all; I remember her leadership in fighting to end apartheid in South Africa, and her determination to connect the dots of how social injustice affects us all.

As a congressional staffer to my predecessor Congressman Ronald V. Dellums, I remember well the 15-year legislative battle led by Congressman Conyers to create a national holiday honoring Dr. King. It took a grassroots, national movement, and Mrs. King's tireless advocacy to finally have this legislation signed into law. That is when I first met this brilliant, beautiful woman.

Mrs. King was a role model for many women, including myself. On several occasions, she reached out to me to offer her counsel, support and love. I'll always remember her words support and comfort during some challenging times for me. She hugged me, told me to stay the course and that would be what Martin would want.

Several years ago, I was invited to keynote the MLK March and Rally in Atlanta on Dr. King's birthday. Again, Mrs. King encouraged me to remember Martin in his quest for peace through non-violence as part of my work as a Member of Congress. I will deeply miss this great woman.

As the head of the first family of the civil rights movement, Mrs. King always handled everything with a distinct style and grace. As a single-parent to their four children--Yolanda, Martin III, Dexter and Bernice, she raised and educated her children while keeping Dr. King's dream alive. What a woman.

Mrs. King stood tall when many would have been overwhelmed. Imagine how she coped with her husband being arrested, beaten and stabbed, her home being bombed, her phone ringing with hate calls at all times of the day and night. Imagine how she felt isolated and hunted by the very ones who swore to protect her family.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to read an excerpt from Mrs. King's autobiography, My Life with Martin Luther King, Jr., just to give you a glimpse of how the King family persevered despite being under constant attack--by segregationists, by pro-war radicals, and even by her own government. She wrote:

``. . . By 1965 we were sure that the FBI was tapping lines and was treating the Movement as if it were an alien enemy. We accepted that as part of the evil and injustice that come with leadership which challenges the status quo. We knew we did not deserve that treatment from our government. . . . We believed in our vows; we never became embittered or disillusioned; we held on to our faith. . . . We were not intimidated; we just realized that it was too much to try to take on an organization like that while maintaining our struggle for civil rights. How much farther we still had to go!'' Mrs. King endured warrantless domestic spying.

In Northern California, many continue to look to Coretta Scott King as a beacon of dignity in the face of adversity. We are a cultural and ethnic mosaic and continue to strive to realize the goals of the Kings' dream--peace, equality, and freedom.

Today as we pay tribute to Mrs. King's legacy, we must never forget her sacrifices and contributions to protect the liberties and rights that so many of us take for granted. And we need to recommit ourselves to the goals and ideals that she envisioned and embodied.

Wars and rumors of wars permeate our existence. Many of our young people see violence as an option to solve their problems. Mrs. King's life was about non-violence, and those who mourn her loss should embrace her ideals of peace and non-violence. It is in times like these that we must recall the legacy of Mrs. King embodied in places like Oakland's Martin Luther King, Jr. Freedom Center which brings together our community to develop peaceful, nonviolent solutions to the challenges we all continue to face.

My thoughts and prayers are with the King family this evening as we honor and celebrate the life of this great woman. Let us ensure that the flame of nonviolence and peace burns in her memory.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of resolution (H. Res. 655) honoring the life and accomplishments of Mrs. Coretta Scott King and her contributions as a leader in the struggle for civil rights, and I also express my heart felt condolences to the King family on her passing.

As the wife of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., Mrs. King was recognized by many as the ``first lady'' of the Civil Rights movement. Born and raised in Marion, Alabama, Coretta Scott graduated valedictorian from Lincoln High School. She received a B.A. in music and education from Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, and then went on to study concert singing at Boston's New England Conservatory of Music, where she earned a degree in voice and violin. While in Boston she met Martin Luther King, Jr. who was then studying for his doctorate in systematic theology at Boston University. They were married on June 18, 1953, and in September 1954 took up residence in Montgomery, Alabama, with Coretta Scott King assuming the many functions of pastor's wife at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church.

During Dr. King's career, Mrs. King devoted most of her time to raising their four children: Yolanda Denise (1955), Martin Luther, III (1957), Dexter Scott (1961), and Bernice Albertine (1963). She performed a series of Freedom Concerts which combined prose and poetry narration with musical selections and functioned as fundraisers for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the direct action organization of which Dr. King served as first president.

In 1957, she and Dr. King journeyed to Ghana to mark that country's independence. In 1958, they spent a belated honeymoon in Mexico, where they observed first-hand the immense gulf between extreme wealth and extreme poverty. In 1959, Dr. and Mrs. King spent nearly a month in India on a pilgrimage to disciples and sites associated with Mahatma Gandhi. In 1964, she accompanied him to Oslo, Norway, where he received the Nobel Peace Prize. Even prior to her husband's public stand against the Vietnam War in 1967, Mrs. King functioned as liaison to peace and justice organizations, and as mediator to public officials on behalf of the unheard.

In 1969, Coretta Scott King published the first volume of her autobiography, My Life with Martin Luther King Jr. In the 1970s, Mrs. King maintained her husband's commitment to the cause of economic justice. In 1974 she formed the Full Employment Action Council, a broad coalition of over 100 religious, labor, business, civil and women's rights organizations dedicated to a national policy of full employment and equal economic opportunity; Mrs. King served as Co-Chair of the Council.

In 1983, she marked the 20th Anniversary of the historic March on Washington, by leading a gathering of more than 800 human rights organizations, the Coalition of Conscience, in the largest demonstration the capital city had seen up to that time.

Mrs. King and three of her children were arrested in 1985 at the South African embassy in Washington, DC, for protesting against apartheid. Mrs. King led the successful campaign to establish Dr. King's birthday, January 15, as a national holiday in the United States. By an Act of Congress, the first national observance of the holiday took place in 1986. Dr. King's birthday is now marked by annual celebrations in over 100 countries. Mrs. King was invited by President Clinton to witness the historic handshake between Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Chairman Yassir Arafat at the signing of the Middle East Peace Accords.

Mrs. King devoted much of her energy and attention to developing programs and building the Atlanta-based Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change as a living memorial to her husband's life and dream. Situated in the Freedom Hall complex encircling Dr. King's tomb, The King Center is part of a 23-acre national historic park which includes his birth home, and which hosts over one million visitors a year.

In 1995 she turned over leadership of the King Center to her son, Dexter Scott King, who served as Chairman, President & CEO until January 2004. On that date, Mrs. King was named interim Chair and her eldest son Martin Luther King, III assumed the leadership position of President & CEO.

She remained active in the causes of racial and economic justice, and most recently devoted much of her energy to AIDS education and curbing gun violence.

A woman of wisdom, compassion and vision, Coretta Scott King has tried to make ours a better world and, in the process, has made history. I am saddened by the loss of our ``First Lady''. She met the challenge of preserving the memory of her husband head on. Her tireless work in keeping the dream alive has been invaluable not only to civil rights, but to human rights. Mrs. Coretta Scott King kept the torch burning and as opposed to passing the torch, she lit torches along the way. She is a true inspiration to us all.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Mrs. Coretta Scott King, a true hero, who departed this earth on January 30, 2006, due to stroke complications. Although usually referred to as the widower of the incomparable Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the work she did after his death secured her place as one of the greatest leaders, voices, and phenomenal women in American history.

Mr. Speaker, Mrs. King was born on April 27, 1927 in Marion, Alabama to Obadiah and Bernice Scott. Her parents farmed on land they had owned since the Civil War. At an early age, she witnessed the racial inequities that occurred in the Deep South; however, she recalled, ``my mother always told me that I was going to go to college, even if she didn't have but one dress to put on''.

Through her mother's teachings coupled with her deeply spiritual roots in the Christian Baptist faith, Coretta persevered and graduated as the valedictorian of Lincoln High School in 1945. Blessed with both vocal and musical instrument gifts, she pursued and received her B.A. on a scholarship in music and education from Antioch College in 1951. In 1953, she furthered her education and earned a graduate degree in voice and music education from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston.

While attending school, she met a young Martin Luther King, Jr., who was pursuing his doctorate in theology at Boston University. Although hesitant about the courtship in the beginning, through prayer and confirmation from God, Mrs. King married Dr. King on June 18, 1953.

The couple relocated to Montgomery, Alabama and Dr. King began work in the ministry and the Civil Rights Movement. After this relocation, there lives became almost immediately tumultuous. In fact, the first boycott occurred 2 weeks after their first child was born in 1955, and in 1956 their house was bombed. But this was no ordinary couple--the Kings went on to build a family of four children--all while helping to build the civil rights platform for a nation.

People talk about Dr. King's dream, but he wasn't the only one who had the dream. She bought into his dream, and he bought into hers, too. Mrs. King admits ``when I say I was married to the cause, I was married to my husband whom I loved, I learned to love, it wasn't love at first sight--but I also became married to the cause. It was my cause, and that's the way I felt about it. So when my husband was no longer there. . . ., I prayed that God would give me the direction for my life. . . .'' Mr. Speaker, it is clear that God answered her prayers.

They were partners in the freedom movement and it is my belief that they shared the same spirit. She ran the race with him, holding the baton with him, and when he had to let go, she kept running and was able to cultivate the dream they shared.

This notion was evident in the way she transformed her grief into an aspiration to eradicate social injustice and achieve equality for all. When Dr. King was assassinated prior to a planned march, four days after his death, she traveled to Memphis and led a march of 50,000 people.

She worked diligently and tirelessly--traveling worldwide, giving speeches, organizing marches and sit-ins, receiving awards on her late husband's behalf, leading peace delegations, and developing and performing in Freedom Concerts, where she incorporated her artistic gifts in song and poetry to narrate stories of the Civil Rights Movement.

In 1969, she founded the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Non- Violent Social Change in Atlanta as a memoriam to her husband. She served as the founder, president, and CEO for 27 years. The organization provides an extraordinary history of the Civil Rights movement while offering interpretations of Dr. King's philosophies to over 1 million visitors each year.

In 1986, through her endless efforts, the Federal Government established a national holiday on her husband's birthday to commemorate his achievements. Mrs. King also authored 3 books, earned 60 honorary degrees, and also served in dozens of organizations. She was an untiring nonviolent warrior whose work created a lasting effect--of raising the level of civil rights consciousness and civility around the globe.

I remember asking her after a lecture she delivered in Baltimore what one lesson would she like for us to extrapolate from her life.

She replied ``the thing to always remember is that the baton is handed from one generation to another. You've just got to make sure, first of all, to grab it and then don't drop it.'' What we must do now is make sure her efforts, spirit and commitment live on in us.

Mrs. King was an icon and a paragon of excellence. It was no coincidence that she died in her sleep--for she exited this world in the way that she physically dreamed it--with everlasting peace and love for all of humanity.

God Bless Coretta Scott King. My deepest condolences to her family.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this resolution honoring the memory of Coretta Scott King who passed away yesterday morning. In a lifetime of effort and tireless struggle, Mrs. King championed the principles of peace, integrity, and human dignity. Alongside her husband, the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., Mrs. King strove for civil rights, endured bombings on her home, and dreamed of a better life for her children. Because of her and so many others, my children and grandchildren are growing up in a world of greater opportunity.

After her husband was taken away tragically, Mrs. King, still shouldering the immense emotional burden of her loss, did not choose to withdraw from the world. She chose instead to continue forward with the work they had started and the legacy they had built. Only 4 days after the death of King, Mrs. King led a march of 50,000 people through the streets of Memphis. For her determination and courage, we are forever grateful.

Coretta Scott was born in Heiberger, near Marion, Alabama, on April 27, 1927. Growing up on her parents' farm, Coretta walked 5 miles every day to her one-room school in order to receive an education. As a young woman, she learned the lessons of struggle and perseverance from her determined mother. These lessons helped her excel and graduate as the valedictorian from Lincoln High School. Mrs. King then went on to enroll at Antioch College where her sister Edythe had been the first full-time black student to live on campus.

Mrs. King majored in education and music, pursuing the love she had inherited from her mother. By her graduation in 1951, Mrs. King decided to become a professional singer and accepted a scholarship to the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. It was in Boston that she met Martin Luther King, Jr., a fellow student. They were married 2 years later. Their first child, Yolanda, was born in 1955, only 2 weeks before the Montgomery bus boycott. Three more children soon followed: Martin Luther III, Dexter, and Bernice.

During the campaign for civil rights, Coretta Scott King did more than support her husband, she worked as his peer; giving speeches in her husband's stead and traveling to Geneva on behalf of Women's Strike for Peace as a delegate at the Disarmament Conference in Geneva in 1962. Mrs. King maintained her passion for music throughout this turbulent period, often giving concerts on behalf of civil rights. In May 1968, only months after her husband's assassination, Coretta Scott King took up his place in the Poor People's March to Washington. That year, Mrs. King founded the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, the first institution built in memory of an African American leader.

Mrs. King was also instrumental in the establishment of the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Holiday. After personally leading an enormous education campaign and seeking an Act of Congress, Mrs. King oversaw the first national observance of the holiday to honor her husband in 1986. In 1974, she formed the Full Employment Action Council, a coalition of over 100 organizations dedicated to full employment and equal economic opportunity. In 1983 Mrs. King gathered over 800 human rights organizations on the 20th Anniversary of the historic March on Washington in the Coalition of Conscience. While protesting apartheid in 1985, Mrs. King and three of her children were arrested outside the South African embassy in Washington, DC. Nearly a decade later, she stood in Johannesburg as Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as the new President of South Africa.

Throughout her life, Coretta Scott King remained a devoted promoter of positive social change. Despite grief and constant sacrifice, she continued to lend her voice to issues of social justice, human equality, and democratic progress. Mrs. King advocated for a more open- minded global community.

The world is better because of Coretta Scott King. She affected countless lives and her voice will be deeply missed, especially by those who carry on her incredible undertaking.