Women’s Public Health and Safety Act

Madam Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 403 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Madam Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Mrs. Fischbach), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.

General Leave

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members be given 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Madam Speaker, yesterday, the Rules Committee met and reported a rule, House Resolution 403, providing for consideration of H.R. 1629, the Fairness in Orphan Drug Exclusivity Act, under a closed rule. It provides 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce. It also provides for one motion to recommit.

The rule also provides for consideration of H. Res. 275, the condemning the horrific shootings in Atlanta, Georgia, on March 16, 2021, and reaffirming the House of Representatives' commitment to combating hate, bigotry, and violence against the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community, under a closed rule.

It provides 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Oversight and Reform.

The rule deems as passed H. Res. 398, a resolution recognizing the forthcoming centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.

The rule amends H.R. 188 to provide recess instructions, suspension authority, and same-day authority through July 1, 2021.

Finally, the rule provides the majority leader or his designee the ability to en bloc requested rollcall votes on suspension bills considered on May 17 or 18. This authority lasts through May 20.

Madam Speaker, we are here today to consider two timely and important bills. The first is a resolution from our colleague, Congresswoman Judy Chu, condemning the horrific, shootings, in Atlanta, Georgia, in March, and confirming the House of Representatives' commitment to combating hate and violence against the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community.

I want to start by offering my condolences, prayers, and support for the family and friends of the eight people murdered in Atlanta on March 16 and the thousands of Asian Americans who have been physically or verbally attacked over the course of the pandemic.

The horrific act of gun violence that took eight lives in Atlanta, including six Asian women, is a tragedy unambiguously rooted in hate. It is a tragedy that followed 4,000 reported hate crimes against Asian Americans over the past year, and it is a tragedy that followed decades of bigotry, discrimination, and indifference toward the AAPI community.

We must recognize that physical and verbal attacks against people of Asian descent are not a new phenomenon and that our country has a shameful past of violence and discrimination directed against Asian Americans. From the Chinese Exclusion Act to the internment of Japanese Americans, to the innumerable acts of individual violence that have cost so many their lives or livelihoods, a vile and persistent racism has denied many people the basic safeties and individual freedoms that some others take for granted.

But we also need to recognize that at a time when we are all dealing with the hardships caused by the pandemic, Asian Americans have had to deal with additional pain, fear, and loss brought on by the callous and careless rhetoric of opportunistic politicians and bigots. I have heard from my constituents and staff members in my office about the pain that the increase in verbal and physical attacks has caused throughout our community.

I admire the incredible work being done by AAPI advocates and organizers in southeastern Pennsylvania and across the Nation to bring attention to anti-Asian discrimination and to call for change. Groups in my district, such as Asian Americans United, Cambodian Association of Greater Philadelphia, Laos In The House, VietLead, and others across the United States, have mobilized whole communities to come together and stand firm against hate and racism.

The anti-hate rallies and vigils organized in response to this year's shocking attacks are a resounding reminder that hate is not welcome in our cities and towns, but also that standing up to hatred requires more than just thoughts and prayers. It requires all of us to recognize and call out racism when we see it, to work with our neighbors to protect everyone in our communities, and to lift up voices that aren't always heard.

As we continue to confront the systemic racism that plagues so much of our culture, the passage of this resolution by the House must be part of a greater holistic effort to provide all Americans with prosperity, justice, and freedom from fear.

Congress cannot keep waiting for problems to boil over in order to do something about them. I ask that all of my colleagues keep that in mind as we work to address systemic racism and the other pressing problems of our day.

I thank Congresswoman Chu for her leadership, and I thank her and the

members of the Georgia delegation for introducing this important resolution.

Madam Speaker, I also rise in support of H.R. 1629, the Fairness in Orphan Drug Exclusivity Act. This bill is sponsored by my good friend and colleague from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Congresswoman Dean, who has bravely shared her family's experience with the hardships caused by substance use disorder, and who has been a tireless advocate for Federal solutions to the opioid epidemic.

This much-needed bill would close a loophole in our Federal drug approval laws, promoting greater competition and lower prices and allowing more medications to treat opioid use disorder, as well as other diseases, to come to market. Closing this loophole would increase access to low-cost treatments and would prevent pharmaceutical companies from abusing the current law to boost drug prices for medications that could be sold by competitors at much lower prices.

In particular, this bill would reduce the price of buprenorphine, a drug that is critically important for medically assisted treatment, or MAT, of opioid abuse disorder, but which has been made more costly and less available due to abuse of the current laws.

The opioid epidemic has devastated families in my district and across the country. Too many communities have experienced the terrible toll of opioid addiction, and I am glad this is an issue on which Democrats and Republicans have been able to work together and achieve real results for the American people.

Since 2018, Congress has been able to pass multiple bipartisan bills to increase funding for substance use disorder, provide more treatments and medications for those suffering from opioid addiction, and improve access to mental health services.

The Fairness in Orphan Drug Exclusivity Act is a straightforward bill with bipartisan support and sponsorship that passed the House of Representatives last Congress, and it was on track to pass this Congress last week before inexplicably being derailed when one of its former sponsors whipped votes against it.

I thank my Pennsylvania colleagues, Representatives Dean and Fitzpatrick, for their bipartisan leadership on this bill, which is so important, not just for Pennsylvanians, but for families across this country who have struggled to obtain effective and affordable treatment for loved ones suffering from substance use disorder. I urge its prompt passage.

Lastly, I want to voice my support for H. Res. 398, a resolution introduced by Congresswoman Jackson Lee to recognize the forthcoming centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. This event was one of the most abhorrent instances of racial violence in our Nation's history, and it is history that we should not ignore or forget.

With this resolution, we can at least recognize the people, families, and descendants irreparably harmed that day, even if we cannot give them the justice they deserved.

I thank my colleague, Congresswoman Jackson Lee, for her work to bring this resolution to the floor and to ensure that we recognize this terrible moment in our collective past.

I thank all of my colleagues who helped craft the bills we are considering today. I look forward to supporting this rule, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, like many, I am so excited to see our country begin to unwind many of the COVID-19 precautions of the last year, but we are not in the clear yet.

It is no secret that many Members of this body have refused to be vaccinated, and many of the same Members have also shown repeated disregard for the dangers posed by the pandemic. We need to extend certain measures in the House to provide the House with flexibility to ensure that Congress can expeditiously respond to the future needs created by the pandemic and the economy and to keep all of those who serve here safe.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Matsui), a former member of the Rules Committee.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, with all due respect to my colleagues, I must respectfully decline to chase the red herring that has been lobbed onto the House floor.

A vote on the PQ is strictly a procedural vote to move a bill forward. And as our colleagues know, voting ``no'' would simply mean that we would hand control of the House floor to them, which I decline to do.

As our colleagues know, they are under no obligation to offer any specific amendment, even if they faithfully promise to do so. So let's not distract from the bills that we are here to move forward today.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), the lead sponsor of H. Res. 398, recognizing the forthcoming centennial of the 1921 Tulsa massacre.

Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Texas.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn), the majority whip.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Green).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Horsford).

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Danny K. Davis).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

I wanted to mention that Senator Elizabeth Warren, a native of Oklahoma, carries the Senate version of H. Res. 398 recognizing the Tulsa centennial.

When I go home and meet with constituents, they want to know what we are doing here to make their lives better, not whether we have succeeded in obstructing the passage of necessary or popular legislation or in shutting down Congress. I suspect that is true for most Members, and I value those with whom I can work in good faith.

This Congress has already seen its fair share of parliamentary tricks to disrupt the legislative process, and I applaud the leadership's efforts to keep Members and staff safe, to advance legislation that will end the pandemic, and to serve the American people.

Let's be honest about why we are taking up floor time to debate and pass the orphan drug bill today, a bill with broad bipartisan support that passed without a single objection last term.

Last week's ``no'' vote by some of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle was incredibly disrespectful to the Americans we are all here to represent. Those Members voting ``no'' effectively told their constituents that they care more about whose name goes on a bill than they care about actually passing legislation.

Like my colleagues, I am frustrated that this bill did not pass on suspension last week. The opioid epidemic is a serious issue. Families in my district and across the country know firsthand the hardships caused by opioid abuse and addiction, and this issue deserves to be taken seriously and addressed by Congress, which is why we are bringing this bill back to the floor a week after one of its former sponsors blocked its

passage because his feelings were hurt when he wasn't asked to lead the bill this term.

Our colleagues extol, when convenient, the virtues of unity and bipartisanship, but it is important for them to realize that bipartisanship relies upon trust. And in the wake of January 6, despite having witnessed the carnage created by falsehoods about the election results, the majority of our Republican colleagues voted with no evidence to cancel the electoral votes of several States.

For those of us who represent Pennsylvania, which was ground zero for those falsehoods and the efforts to undermine and overturn our electoral process, it is particularly tough to trust Members who have shown more interest in silencing those who would challenge the lies than in defending the Constitution.

It is a shame that a bipartisan bill to combat opioid abuse needs to be reconsidered under a rule, and I hope this time around my colleagues do what is right and pass the bill to improve access to low-cost medications to combat opioid addiction.

We are here to pass legislation for the American people, not to put our names on things. Stunts like what we saw last week are disrespectful to the House, to its Members, and most of all to the people we are here to represent.

I thank all of our colleagues who helped craft the bills we are considering today. I look forward to supporting this rule, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on the rule and the previous question.

I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

Madam Speaker, I thank the manager for her leadership. I also thank all of those on the floor who understand the indignity of massacres, racism, and devastating histories that our country has faced.

We, too, are Americans, and I love this country.

Last night, on the floor of the House, I said that, as a young girl, I knew about the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria; I knew about Columbus and Abraham Lincoln and George Washington. And that was well, though, obviously, there are challenges to that history, even today. That is what we knew. But we did not know the history--the slave history or even the fact that there was something called Tulsa, Oklahoma, a bright and shining star of economic opportunity.

This picture shows young girls dancing in a parade, just like today, with cowboy hats on, the high school dance team, if you will. None of that was taught to any of us, this prosperous place.

And then a community known as Greenwood, in June of 1921, after a series of heinous events that nearly entirely destroyed Greenwood. We knew nothing about this. A hundred years; three living descendants. We will be on our way.

I thank the Congressional Black Caucus for championing this with me, and Chairwoman Beatty for understanding the validity of telling the truth.

In this story, they saw men, women, and children driven like cattle, huddled like horses, and treated like beasts. I saw hundreds--this is a testimony--of men march through the main business section with their hats off, their hands up, with dozens of guards marching them with guns and cursing them from everything mentionable. Three hundred of them died, and are buried in unmarked graves. They were murdered.

The attackers looted and intentionally burned an estimated 1,256 homes in Greenwood, America's Black Wall Street, along with nearly all of the district's churches, schools, and businesses.

When others began to say, ``Pull yourself up by your bootstraps,'' these freed slaves, for barely 100 years, developed Greenwood.

Yet this is what happened. This is the body of a charred Negro killed in the riot.

How many were like that?

As I said, the death toll came about because something happened in an elevator, a word, something like Emmett Till said to a White woman. In a firestorm of hatred and violence, that is perhaps unequal in peacetime in the history of the United States, the White mob destroyed almost 40 square blocks, left almost 9,000 Greenwood district residents homeless.

So this is a story from 100 years ago. Look at the smoke coming from the buildings that were industries. People had ice cream parlors, restaurants, and boarding houses burned to the ground.

We come today to say, the burned-out ruins of Greenwood--there is one door left in Tulsa, to be able to embrace those from Tulsa, Oklahoma. They will be here tomorrow for a hearing in the Judiciary Committee. I am honored this legislation will honor them.

Madam Speaker, we will know and history will tell us that embedded in the annals of the Congressional Record will be H. Res. 398 that talks about that story.

Yet we rise above that, not so much to ignore it, but we ask that we condemn the violence in this resolution. We ask for rejection and active opposition to the false ideology of white supremacy. We ask for tolerance and unity. We ask and are calling upon Americans to celebrate ethnic, racial, and religious diversity.

We, too, mourn those who were killed in Atlanta for Asian hate. It says, encouraging all persons in the United States to reflect upon all of our history. Yes, we can rise above it, but we must know that the stories that are told say that Tulsa must have some repair, some say reparations.

Finally, as I close, we hear a testimony from the great-granddaughter of Howard and Harriet Ector. They were builders and pillars of Black Wall Street. They were featured in the Smithsonian. As a little girl, their great-great-granddaughter was saved by hiding in a chicken coop at age 9 to dodge bullets. It was a race war. We should not ignore our differences, but we should be unified by who we are.

I am delighted to support this resolution, and I ask my colleagues to vote for it.

Madam Speaker, I include in the Record a report by the Oklahoma Commission to Study the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921.

1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Factsheet

Source--Tulsa Race Riot: A Report by the Oklahoma Commission to Study

the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, Feb. 28, 2001

Following World War I, Tulsa, Oklahoma was recognized

nationally for its affluent African American community known

as the Greenwood District. This thriving business district

and surrounding residential area was referred to as ``Black

Wall Street.'' In June 1921, a series of heinous events

nearly destroyed the entire Greenwood area.

``I saw men, women and children driven like cattle, huddled

like horses and treated like beasts. Thus, I fully realized

the attitude of the Southern white man when he has you

bested. I saw hundreds of men marched

through the main business section of ``White Town'' with

their hats off and their hands up, with dozens of guards

marching them with guns, cursing them for everything

mentionable. I saw large trucks following up the invaders, as

they ran the colored people from their homes and places of

business. Everything of value was loaded on these trucks and

everything left was burned to ashes. I saw machine guns

turned on the colored men to oust them from their

stronghold.'' --Anonymous primary source

Starting late on the evening on May 31 and continuing into

the day of June 1, 1921, a White mob attacked the Greenwood

district of Tulsa, Oklahoma, razing it to the ground. The

attackers looted and intentionally burned an estimated 1,256

homes in Greenwood--America's ``Black Wall Street''--along

with nearly all the district's churches, schools, and

businesses.

The number of persons killed in the riot may never be

known, but a 2001 report by a commission created by the

Oklahoma legislature estimated, based on available evidence

at that time, that at least 75 to 100 people died in the

Massacre, and found that one credible contemporary source

estimated the death toll at 300 people. All told, in what the

late historian and Tulsa survivor John Hope Franklin

described as a ``firestorm of hatred and violence that is

perhaps unequaled in the peace time history of the United

States,'' the White mob destroyed almost forty-square-blocks

and left almost 9,000 Greenwood district residents homeless.

As the White invaders moved through the district, a violent

pattern of murder, looting, and arson emerged. Armed Whites

would force Black residents from their homes or businesses

where they were held at ``a growing number of internment

centers,'' loot what valuables or furnishings they could

carry, and then torch the structure. They summarily shot any

Black men found in a home with a firearm as well as anyone

else who resisted. This pattern was repeated, ``[h]ouse by

house, block after block'' until all of the city's Black

neighborhoods were engulfed in flames.

Whites engaged in the attack also committed numerous other

atrocities. According to one Black eyewitness, White looters

murdered a Black elderly disabled man who, despite having

expressed a willingness to do so, could not comply with their

order to leave his home. According to one White eyewitness,

prominent Black surgeon Dr. A.C. Jackson was gunned down on

his front lawn with his hands up after attempting to comply

with the White rioters. Another Black eyewitness recounted

how he and 30 or 40 other men who had surrendered to the

rioters were lined up and forced to run with hands over their

heads to an interment center located at Convention Hall, all

while some of their White captors shot at their heels with

guns. A group of White men even ran a car into the group,

knocking over two or three of their number. In another

horrifying display of brutality, a Black disabled homeless

man was tied by his leg to a car and dragged by ``white

thugs'' through the streets of the downtown business district

where he panhandled.

While some might attribute these atrocities to the actions

of a few ``rogue'' officers, the ``official'' police response

to the violence also appears to have been, at best, mired in

confusion and, at worst, to have reflected unfounded racial

fears of a so-called ``Negro uprising.'' Responding to the

baseless rumors that Blacks were coming from outside of town,

the police chief ordered roughly one-fifth of the officers on

duty to setup checkpoints on various roads leading into the

city, and at the railroad station, wasting precious manpower

that could have been used elsewhere to prevent the violence

and destruction.

Following the Massacre, local authorities did less than

nothing to provide justice for the many Black victims.

Thousands of Black residents remained in internment camps in

the days immediately following the Massacre.

Local officials actively sought to hinder the Black

community's rebuilding efforts. Within a week of the

Massacre, the Tulsa City Commission passed a fire ordinance

aimed at preventing Black Tulsans from rebuilding the

Greenwood commercial district where it originally stood, and

the so-called Reconstruction Commission established by White

business and political leaders batted away offers of outside

aid. Black Tulsans successfully challenged the ordinance,

which was later struck down as unconstitutional by the

Oklahoma Supreme Court, and managed to rebuild at least parts

of the community where it once stood. Many other Black

residents left homeless or rightfully feeling fearful and

unwelcome left Tulsa. Thousands of survivors were likely

traumatized by the violence they witnessed or experienced in

the Massacre.

The Massacre also destroyed millions of dollars in Black-

owned property. The 2001 commission also estimated the

property damage at 17 million in 1999 dollars, which would be

more than 25 million today. Another source estimates the

total value of the property destroyed at between 50 and 100

million in today's dollars.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.

Why at this time should we come together bipartisanly on this vote? That is the question that I am going to attempt to answer.

Members of this body are going to have the opportunity as we move forward here to either support Hamas or to not, to fight against them. The choice will be made. People will decide which direction they want to go.

My bill, H.R. 261, the Palestinian International Terrorism Support Prevention Act of 2021, would make clear that the United States stands with Israel and would sanction those who provide financial support to Hamas. It is that simple.

Now, why do we need to do that? Why is it important to come together on this? To put a fine point on it, this is not one pissed-off Palestinian that picked up a shoulder-fired RPG, put it on their shoulder, and fired it 100 yards over at Israel. That is not what we are talking about here.

Hamas is sophisticated. They are well organized, and there is a complex infrastructure involved in getting them their weapons. They don't just go down to the Gaza Strip rocket depot in order to pick up these things. They are smuggled across Iraq, Syria, Jordan, into one of the most densely populated areas of the world without anybody noticing or saying anything. That is why we need these sanctions.

Why should we come together bipartisanly on this to support our friend and ally Israel to stand against Hamas?

Because the rockets that Hamas smuggles and fires at Israel are not science-fair bottle rockets. Many of them are Fajr-5 missiles, 21-plus feet long. That is longer than a Chevy Suburban. There are hundreds of pounds of explosives on the end of that.

The explosives that detonated underneath my legs were about 5 pounds to 10 pounds of explosives, to put that into perspective.

Why come together bipartisanly to support this?

Because Hamas is not firing these rockets in order to make a pretty fireworks show. They use these missiles specifically to target large towns and cities with the express hope of killing Israeli civilians, like so many that we have heard about.

Ido Avigal was a 5-year-old boy who was murdered when shrapnel from a rocket ripped through his window in a fortified room that he was hiding in with his mother.

Daniel Tragerman was a 4-year-old Israeli boy who was killed by a mortar shell fired by Hamas in 2014.

Soumya Santosh was killed when a rocket fired on Israel by Hamas on May 11th detonated close to her. She worked as a caretaker to an elderly woman who had been living in Israel for the last 7 years.

These individuals and so many others are not just collateral damage. They and millions of other Israeli civilians are targeted. They are targets of Hamas.

After I was blown up in Afghanistan, I volunteered to serve alongside Israel Defense Forces. There, I served alongside soldiers that were driven by their love for their fellow man, rather than by hatred for their enemies.

I had the honor of getting to know some of the most creative and caring people I have ever met, who adapted to some of the worst situations that anybody could be placed into. Every family that I encountered during my time in Israel shared a desire for their children to grow, like we do, and to be educated safely without the looming threat of war.

I learned at the Shabbat tables of my hosts there just how much each family truly desires peace between every neighbor of Israel, regardless of religion, regardless of history. They don't want to be attacked. They want to live in peace. They want to see their children grow.

So why support bipartisanly this legislation?

Because Hamas, on the other hand, uses their own people as shields and cannon fodder. They don't stand for their people. They don't defend their people. They stand behind their people. They build their command and control infrastructure inside hospitals and schools. They launch their missiles from heavily populated areas.

And this recent round of fighting between Hamas and Israel is exactly that, a round in an ongoing conflict that goes back decades. Hamas has consistently launched thousands and thousands of rockets into Israel, killing and maiming hundreds of civilians.

Why come together bipartisanly?

Because in the last week alone, they have fired more than 3,000 rockets into Israel. This didn't make the news, but in April, over 44 rockets fired into Israel. In January, three rockets fired into Israel. That is just this year.

Why come together bipartisanly?

In 2020, more than 130 rocket attacks. In 2019, 650 rocket attacks. In 2018, 350 rocket attacks.

That is more than one a day. Imagine if that was going on here in the United States.

Why come together bipartisanly?

To make sure that we sanction the enablers of Hamas.

In 2016, Hamas bombed a bus in Jerusalem, killing 2 and wounding 21.

At another time, a Hamas suicide bomber killed one and injured nine.

Another bombing, Palestinian Islamic Jihad claims responsibility for a suicide bombing in a neighborhood bakery.

Another bombing in a shawarma restaurant in Tel Aviv killed 11 and wounded 70. Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility, one of the listed sanctioned groups in this bill.

In another bombing, at a vegetable market, seven people killed. Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility.

In another bombing, two commuter buses in Beersheba, 16 people killed and over 100 wounded. Hamas claimed responsibility.

Why is this bill needed? Why do we need to come together?

Because Hamas does not finance terrorism with bake sales. They receive significant support from individual groups and foreign governments, like Iran.

The U.S. Government has estimated that Iran, by itself, has provided as much as $100 million annually to Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and other Palestinian terrorist organizations. These foreign sponsors seek to bring death to the Jewish state. It is that simple.

Under my bill, the United States will sanction these groups that are supporting terrorism. If we do not pass this bill, we will not stand together to sanction these groups that are enabling this terrorism.

This is common sense, which is why it passed the House of Representatives without any opposition last Congress. The bill even includes humanitarian exemptions that Democrats in the Foreign Affairs Committee wrote last Congress, before all voting in favor of this piece of legislation.

Given the ongoing attacks on Israel, and the bipartisan support for this bill last Congress, I have asked that this bill be expedited for consideration again.

Unfortunately, some of our colleagues are now pushing the opposite direction for the United States to withhold American weapons shipments to Israel, but they will not support steps to cut off the flow of weapons and funding from Iran to Hamas that is killing our Israeli friends. There is a false equivalency that is going on, and there is a rooting for a terrorist organization that is happening as well.

So, Madam Speaker, this is my request. Many of you supported this bill 2 years ago. Support it again now. Stand with our ally, Israel. Stand against Hamas. Stand against their enablers. Pass this bill unanimously.

Madam Speaker, I thank the Representative from Pennsylvania for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, we are here today to debate the rule governing the consideration of the Fairness in Orphan Drug Exclusivity Act and the resolution to condemn the horrific shootings in Atlanta this past March.

I want to say right away that it is not the substance of these two bills to which I take exception; it is the process the majority is following or not following to move legislation forward.

The first bill in this rule is H. Res. 275, a resolution condemning the horrific shootings in Atlanta, Georgia, this past March. As Members of the House of Representatives, we unequivocally condemn violence and hate against any person or group of people. What happened in Atlanta is an unimaginable tragedy that must be denounced in no uncertain terms. I support the idea of the resolution, but not the way my colleagues in the majority are handling it.

The majority chose to circumvent the prescribed process for a resolution of this nature, bypassing the usual committee markup altogether and sidestepping an opportunity for the majority to address concerns from the minority and allow the House to speak with one unified voice.

That is not the way the people's House was intended to work, and it negatively affects both Members of this body and our constituents when we can't have the kind of discussion required on important pieces of legislation like this.

The other underlying bill, H.R. 1629, the Fairness in Orphan Drug Exclusivity Act, came before the House last week and failed to garner the two-thirds majority needed to pass on suspension after one of our Republican colleagues was left off the bill that he had long championed, left off the bill for an issue unrelated to the bill.

Again, I support H.R. 1629 and hope you will, too. But not only did the Democrats ignore the spirit of bipartisanship by which they claim to abide and block Republican Members from signing on to this bill, they did so by continuing to ram through bills without any respect for process, rules, or courtesy, which brings me to the extension of rule changes included in the resolution.

It has been 1 year since this body instituted martial law, as my friend and colleague Ranking Member Cole said during the Rules Committee hearing yesterday. While at the time there was certainly a need for changes to the rules to rapidly move legislation at the onset of the pandemic, the landscape has dramatically shifted, and we are more than ready to get back to normal.

Instead, more than 1 year later, we are still being governed by martial law in what has become the least transparent Congress ever. Democrats in the majority continue to chip away at the rights of the minority. Before we know it, those in the minority will have no rights left at all.

The majority of us in this body are fully vaccinated. The science says that fully vaccinated individuals can and should resume prepandemic behavior. So why won't the Democratic majority follow the science and resume regular order in this body?

It is the American people who are losing out, and it would behoove the Democratic majority to bring the time-tested processes and transparency back to this institution.

Madam Speaker, I do support the underlying bills. However, I have serious concerns over the continuance of measures in this rule that limit transparency and strip the minority's rights in this body. It is for this reason that I oppose the rule, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, if the issue that the majority has with reopening is related to vaccinations, I understand the majority claims that their side is 100 percent vaccinated. I would just say that if that is the case, science says they have nothing to worry about coming to the House floor or being in public. But that is not what this is all about. This is about the Speaker holding on to her slim and tenuous majority by any means necessary, even weaponizing the House rules to do so.

If we do defeat the previous question, I will offer an amendment to the rule to provide for consideration of Representative Mast's H.R. 261, the Palestinian International Terrorism Support Prevention Act of 2021.

I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the Record, along with the extraneous materials, immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.

Madam Speaker, the Israelis are among our greatest allies and a critical strategic partner in the international fight against terrorism. Congressman Mast understands this better than most.

H.R. 261 sanctions foreign governments and persons who provide support for Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Madam Speaker, I yield 10 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mast), who represents the 18th Congressional District.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Gimenez).

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I just want to reiterate that while I do support the idea of the underlying bills, I do not support the way the Democrats are running the House.

The Democratic majority continues to move on bills with virtually no input from Republicans and continues to prioritize partisanship over the American people. We are making great progress with the pandemic and do not need to consider legislation in this manner. We have got this rule without a semblance of traditional process, and one of the resolutions contained in this rule was moved to the Rules Committee without any sort of markup, leaving the Members of this body without the means to make amendments or lodge their objections.

That is not the way this body should function. I urge the majority to make the necessary changes to restore regular order to the House of Representatives. I do not believe that it is a healthy nor respectful way to govern.

For this reason, I oppose this rule and urge my colleagues to oppose it as well.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Madam Speaker, 100 years ago this month, hundreds of Black men, women, and children were brutally terrorized, brutalized, and murdered in a massacre in the Greenwood district of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Their homes, businesses, and churches were burned to the ground. Their land was stolen from them. The thousands of survivors were locked down and deprived of their liberty without charges.

As the 100-year anniversary of the Greenwood massacre approaches, it is important that we bring a focus to and examine this piece of history that has been swept under the rug lest we be bound to repeat it.

If the events of January 6 showed us anything, it is that we are so close to repeating history. That is why I stand today in full support of passing H. Res. 398, a resolution offered by my good friend, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, that commemorates in the Congressional Record for posterity the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Race Massacre.

This resolution serves as a reminder that Black people in America to this day continue to fight to end racist violence perpetrated against Black people in America.

H. Res. 398 also heralds a Congressional Black Caucus initiative that CBC chair Joyce Beatty entrusted to my friend, Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence and I to co-chair; that is, a commemorative virtual event which will commemorate and examine this horrific massacre. The virtual event we are hosting will take place on Thursday evening, May 27, at 8 p.m., and is entitled, Remembering the Greenwood Massacre: 100 Years from Tulsa to the Insurrection (Reconciliation, Restoration, and Reparations).

Again, this virtual event will be held on May 27, Thursday, from 8 to 9 p.m. This event will be on Zoom, and we are encouraging all to attend. It is meant to both educate the public about this horrific attack on a thriving Black community and the massacre of its inhabitants. It will highlight the relevance and significance of this race-based attack, especially as it relates to the events of January 6 and the many similarities that exist between these two events.

Anyone interested in attending this virtual event--and, again, I encourage all to do so within the sound of my voice--they can go to my website, HankJohnson.House.gov to sign up and receive the Zoom information.

It is important that we all participate in this event, even if it is just by listening or hearing from others.