Condemning the killing of 14 individuals and violence on Bloody Sunday, one of the most tragic of days during the Troubles 50 years ago, and calling on all parties to take meaningful steps toward peace and reconciliation.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 888) expressing the hope for justice for the victims of Bloody Sunday, one of the most tragic of days during the Troubles, on its 50th anniversary as well as acknowledging the progress made in fostering peace in Northern Ireland and on the island of Ireland in recent decades, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on H. Res. 888, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of my resolution expressing the hope for justice for the victims of Bloody Sunday, one of the most tragic days of the Troubles, a violent time which lasted 30 years from approximately 1968 to 1998.

This resolution acknowledges the progress made in fostering peace on the island of Ireland in recent decades and calls on all parties to come together to ensure full implementation of the Good Friday Agreement.

This resolution comes at an important time during the 50th-year anniversary of the massacre and on St. Patrick's Day, a day where people of Irish descent around the world remember our roots and celebrate our history. I am proud the resolution is moving forward on this day of all days.

First, I thank many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for their sponsorship of this resolution. To the original cosponsors-- Representatives Richie Neal, Mike Kelly, Brian Fitzpatrick, David Cicilline, Jim McGovern, Nicole Malliotakis, Gerry Connolly, Juan Vargas, and Tom Suozzi--and almost 40 other cosponsors, I am grateful for their support and for their longstanding work on this issue.

I also express my deepest gratitude to Chair Meeks, Ranking Member McCaul, Leader Hoyer, and the House Foreign Affairs Committee staff for their support of this resolution.

As a member and as a former chair of the Europe, Energy, the Environment and Cyber Subcommittee himself, Chair Meeks understands firsthand the importance of peace and stability on the island of Ireland.

I introduced this resolution to honor the lives lost during Bloody Sunday, a singular day amidst a long period of struggle that exacerbated the conflict in Northern Ireland.

On January 30, 1972, I was a college student in Boston, a city known for its deep connection to Irish-American culture. I vividly recall the images and displays of unbridled violence during a peaceful protest in Derry that reverberated throughout the world. Even today, I remain deeply affected by the actions of British soldiers that led to the wounding of 26 unarmed civilians and the death of 14 individuals.

On January 30, 2022, as 50 years had passed, I expressed to the families of the victims my firm belief that Bloody Sunday represents one of the deadliest injustices to take place during the Troubles. I underline that as we continue to mourn the loss of those who perished that day, we must also advocate for justice while taking the necessary steps to build a more peaceful future.

As I expressed to the families, accountability and justice for the events of Bloody Sunday must be achieved to ensure a long-lasting peace on the island of Ireland. While it has long been acknowledged that British soldiers were directly responsible for the murder of civilians on Bloody Sunday, those who suffered under this unlawful use of force continue to be denied an honest assessment of the events that took place in 1972. To date, not one of the individuals involved has been held accountable for their actions.

I want to state clearly: amnesty proposals by the government of the United Kingdom are disrespectful and deny due process to Bloody Sunday victims and their families. They run counter to the spirit of remarks of then-Prime Minister David Cameron who termed the events as unjustifiable and wrong. The evidence is clear: The individuals responsible for the violence that took place on that fateful day must be brought to justice.

Along with the avoidance of a hard border, these legacy issues remain as threats to and unfinished business of the Good Friday Agreement, an agreement few thought would ever occur. Both sides compromised. Its improbable success of diplomacy over violence inspires us today as Europe and the world face its greatest conflict in 80 years.

On St. Patrick's Day we take pride in the indispensable role the United States has played in forging the Good Friday Agreement. The Clinton Administration and congressional leaders worked tirelessly over two decades ago to implement the Good Friday Agreement and achieve peace through diplomacy. I admire the efforts of American leaders like Tip O'Neill; Ted Kennedy; George Mitchell; and my colleague, Richie Neal, who were all instrumental in negotiating a long-lasting peace.

I firmly believe the agreement accompanied by the efforts of community activists and leaders willing to work for peace and commit to a political framework was and remains essential to creating stability in the region. We must continue to support the ongoing efforts to promote integration and reconciliation and address the impacts of intergenerational trauma.

Leaders like Monica McWilliams and Jane Morrice, as well as countless others working on these issues today, recognize that peace does not begin and end only on Good Friday. The work they do and the work of others healed divided communities and should and must go on.

This resolution not only remembers those who lost their lives during the Troubles but also recognizes challenges and opportunities of maintaining the hard-fought peace that followed. Let Bloody Sunday serve as a reminder of the hard work and pain to achieve harmony.

Madam Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support this resolution, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania for his support and for his bipartisan efforts at healing and moving forward.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Brendan F. Boyle), who is a friend of Ireland and a friend of mine. He is a champion of civil rights causes.

Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Neal), a champion of the Good Friday Agreement, a person who I mentioned in my remarks was there at the time, working to make it successful. Ireland and the Good Friday Agreement have no greater leader and supporter.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), a champion of civil rights here in this country, a civil rights movement in this country that helped inspire the Good Friday Agreement.

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

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume for the purpose of closing.

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague on the Foreign Affairs Committee, Representative Meuser, for his very eloquent remarks and his bipartisan support and leadership on this issue for Ireland.

I want to record and reflect upon the people lost during these tragic events marked by Bloody Sunday. They are John ``Jack'' Duddy, Patrick ``Paddy'' Doherty, Bernard ``Barney'' McGuigan, Hugh Gilmour, Kevin McElhinney, Michael Kelly, John Young, William Nash, Michael McDaid, James Wray, Gerald Donaghy, Gerard McKinney, William McKinney, and John Johnston.

We need to remember and memorialize these people, young and old, who stood peacefully, and in defiance, in their support for their values.

While many, rightfully so, have been commended for their work to bring peace to the island of Ireland, the victims of the Bloody Sunday massacre made the ultimate sacrifice, fighting against repression and demanding peace.

To the victims of Bloody Sunday; all victims of The Troubles, including the disappeared; the families of the victims; and the people of Ireland and Northern Ireland, I say this directly to you: We, in Congress, remember. We, in Congress, stand with you. We, in Congress, know there is much more work still to be done.

I introduced this resolution to demonstrate our solidarity with you, and I urge passage to signal that we will continue to fight for peace and stability on the island of Ireland.

With that spirit, I wish you all a happy St. Patrick's Day, and I urge all of my colleagues to join us by voting in the affirmative on this important resolution.

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

Madam Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentleman from Massachusetts for his leadership.

How honored I am to be on the floor with Richard Neal, who had a major and forceful engagement in bringing about the recognition of those who were murdered in 1972.

I thank my friend and colleague on the other side of the aisle for joining in

this bipartisan effort, and I reenforce Chairman Neal's comments about the bipartisan celebration of this great day and the great people of Ireland.

I am happy to be on the floor on St. Patrick's Day, and I wish all of my constituents, and friends across the nation of the great green, a happy St. Patrick's Day. But I come to make sure this day, Bloody Sunday, is certainly not forgotten.

I am so glad Chairman Neal indicated its inspiration came from the toil and the soldiers on the battlefield, Madam Speaker, our beloved friend John Lewis, in the civil rights movement, and those who are willing to sacrifice for their belief and justice.

I am so glad that we ultimately found the truth to recognize John ``Jackie'' Duddy, Patrick ``Paddy'' Doherty, Bernard ``Barney'' McGuigan, Hugh Gilmour, Kevin McElhinney, Michael Kelly, John Young, William Nash, Michael McDaid, James ``Jim'' Wray, Gerald Donaghy, Gerald McKinney, William ``Willie'' McKinney, and John Johnston, who tragically lost their lives.

As this resolution indicates, British soldiers came and shot them down. They did not understand their seeking of dignity and the rights that they had. So Bloody Sunday almost tracked some of the terrible issues that we had, but these people died and were injured, and many families for decades were denied truth.

I think it is very important that we stand on the floor today in a bipartisan way to honor that and to applaud Prime Minister David Cameron, who went to the House of Commons and apologized and said that the events that took place on Bloody Sunday were unjustified, unjustifiable, and wrong.

Madam Speaker, how sad and maybe even criminal it was to ignore this for so many years. How grateful we would be when those who died for their rights, for justice, for equality, the very same tenets we all adhere to here in the United States.

Let me draw in now and conclude my remarks by joining in the resolution that urges the European Union, including the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom, to act in good faith with regard to negotiations around Brexit and the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol. But more importantly, let me emphasize the importance of the relationship between the United Kingdom, the United States, and Ireland. Let me track the fact that we believe in justice, we believe in civil rights, and we believe in the idea of the speech of empowerment and the speech of democracy.

Let us not resort to bloodiness and the killing of those who simply seek to speak for justice for them and their families.

Today, in commemoration of Bloody Sunday, never again.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 888, which expresses the hope for justice for the victims of Bloody Sunday, one of the most tragic of days during the Troubles, on its 50th anniversary, as well as acknowledging the progress made in fostering peace in Northern Ireland and on the island of Ireland in recent decades.

On January 30, 1972, 26 unarmed civilians were shot by British soldiers during a protest that began peacefully in Derry, resulting in the death of 14 individuals in a massacre now known as Bloody Sunday, or the Bogside Massacre.

Bloody Sunday is one of the most significant and deadly injustices to take place during the Troubles--also known as the Northern Ireland conflict--and describes the struggle between Irish Roman Catholics and British who sided with Irish Protestants that lasted from the 1960s until 1998.

None of the 26 unarmed people shot by British Army soldiers posed a threat of causing death or serious injury, or were doing anything that could justify their shooting.

The families of these victims were denied for decades an honest and comprehensive assessment of the events that took place on Bloody Sunday.

In 1998, after campaigns from the families of those injured and killed on Bloody Sunday, a second inquiry was established by the British Government, and it found without doubt that the shootings were the result of wrongful actions taken by British soldiers.

The lack of accountability and justice provided to those who perished and their families from this heinous use of force was unacceptable. They deserved justice.

Accountability and justice for the victims of Bloody Sunday would represent a step toward addressing Northern Ireland's legacy of violence and promoting reconciliation.

This conflict was rooted in suppression, silencing the voices of those who differ from you by taking away their freedoms and their liberties.

As an African American woman in the United States, I know too well the struggles of oppression.

The march led by our Beloved John Lewis from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama that resulted in the brutal beating of marchers by police is known as Bloody Sunday is a turning point in the civil rights struggle.

I stand with the victims of Bloody Sunday, because whenever oppression happens anywhere around the world, and people risk losing their freedoms and their liberty, I will always stand with them.

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

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague, Mr. Keating, and wish him a happy Saint Patrick's Day as well as thank him for bringing this resolution to the floor today.

Madam Speaker, happy St. Patrick's Day.

This January marked the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday when British troops in Derry, Northern Ireland, shot at a crowd of innocent protesters, killing 14 people. This unjustified act of violence marks a low point in the difficult history of Ireland in the 20th century. In fact, Bloody Sunday was just one of many tragic episodes during the Troubles which lasted 33 years and resulted in as many as 3,000 deaths.

This bipartisan resolution we are considering today commemorates this solemn anniversary. It also serves to remind the world that there is still work to be done to achieve full reconciliation and safeguard a lasting peace for all Irish people.

With the support of the United States, the 1998 Good Friday Agreement brought an end to the violence that characterized the Troubles and began a process to establish peace in Northern Ireland. Stories about atrocities, violence, and repression began to recede from the headlines. Today, Northern Ireland's story is one of prosperity, freedom, and peace.

Issues remain, however, and the United States and the U.S. Congress must continue to engage strongly in the pursuit of an enduring peaceful future for Northern Ireland.

The Good Friday Agreement signed in 1998 is the best framework to achieve this noble end. While post-Brexit arrangements for Northern Ireland have posed challenges to this historic agreement, both sides have worked in good faith to resolve them. This resolution also encourages both the European Union and Great Britain to continue acting in good faith negotiations to implement Brexit's Northern Ireland protocol.

I support our transatlantic allies' efforts to find a more workable solution for trade not only at the north-south Irish land border, but also at the Irish Sea border between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to continue the U.S. legacy of supporting a lasting peace in Northern

Ireland by joining me in supporting this resolution, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Madam Speaker, I do thank my colleagues for their articulate, eloquent, and important words: Chairman Neal, my friend Representative Boyle, Chairman Keating, and Representative Jackson Lee.

Madam Speaker, in closing, I again thank Chairman Keating for his work on this bipartisan resolution to commemorate the anniversary of a tragic time in Northern Ireland.

It is fitting we are considering this resolution on St. Patrick's Day, a day when many Americans proudly display their Irish heritage, including my own family. My mother, formerly Maeve McMenomy; her father, my grandfather, Philip McMenomy, who descended directly from Ireland. As a matter of fact, my mother's mother was from Ukraine.

As you can imagine, we know how to get our Irish up in our family and enjoy St. Patrick's Day and also reflect on the important history in Ireland as well as the very unwarranted and deadly and destructive events taking place in Ukraine currently.

Today, we can also say that we are at peace, perhaps proud. The scenes of violence from the past years in Ireland have subsided that have reigned for more than 20 years.

I was sorry to hear that the Irish Prime Minister tested positive for COVID yesterday, so we all wish him a speedy recovery.

I do look forward to the United States and Ireland continuing to build on our strong relationship and advance our shared interests.

This resolution is important right now, because we have had, Madam Speaker, far too many Bloody Sundays, including in the United States. March 7, 1965, was a terrible Bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama. The last several Sundays in Ukraine have been as well, with unnecessary bloodshed without justification.

In the words of a good Irishman, Bono of the band U2: ``No more.''

I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution. It is critical that the U.S. Congress speaks with one voice toward promoting lasting peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland.

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

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Massachusetts and the gentleman from Pennsylvania, both friends of ours, for their words.

On this very important day, St. Patrick's Day, we are acknowledging a very important anniversary. Anybody who knows much about Irish history knows that anniversaries are very important. The acknowledgment of certain events that occurred throughout the sometimes perilous history of this small country of 6 million people, north and south, are reminded of just how grim Bloody Sunday was.

I knew those families. I recall when the former Prime Minister of the U.K., David Cameron, acknowledged years after in a public statement, in a speech that he made on the floor of the House of Commons, the then- Prime Minister acknowledged that Bloody Sunday had victimized innocent bystanders.

For a long time, the argument had been made that these were paramilitaries on both sides. It was only the test of history that fully acknowledged the truth of what happened on that day.

Their civil rights movement in the north was modeled, in some measure, upon the civil rights movement here in America. I knew John Hume very well. He was a great man at a great moment. I have known Gerry Adams and others who participated in these very difficult events. But out of this tumultuous time came something else, and that was the Good Friday Agreement.

We are now coming upon the 25th anniversary of that agreement. America is a guarantor of the Good Friday Agreement. Successive Presidents of the United States, Democrat and Republican, have all embraced the Good Friday Agreement as the way forward, the path, understanding as well that the success of the Good Friday Agreement came about because everybody had to give up something.

The Republic of Ireland gave up Articles 2 and 3 of its Constitution, which laid claim to the six counties of the north, and the United Kingdom gave up the border, which was a huge issue. Strand 2 of the Good Friday Agreement reinforced the idea of a growing relationship between Dublin and Belfast.

Let me lay this out in perspective, in the time I have remaining.

Thirty years ago, in the north of Ireland, there were 30,000 British soldiers in an area geographically the size of the State of Connecticut. You couldn't go anyplace. It was a militarized zone. The Friends of Ireland, which is 40 years old--always Democrat and Republican, we made sure of it--the success of the Good Friday Agreement came about because of the goodwill of the men and women who live on that island.

We should be celebrating the outcome of the Good Friday Agreement. But part of it is also acknowledging these perilous moments in Irish history. I suspect that we will be discussing for years to come Americans' dimension to bringing about the Good Friday Agreement.

Just think of it: Two generations of children have now grown up in this small, six-county area not knowing anything about the violence.

It was the reach and the role of the United States, an honest broker, that helped bring about that agreement, which, even with bumps, people have fully acknowledged it has worked. So the template is there.

As we celebrate the ancient culture of St. Patrick's Day, there is something else for people of subjugation, occupation, An Gorta Mor, as the Great Famine is known, or civil wars, risings, and revolutions, that indomitable spirit on that tiny island, which we just celebrated, Republican and Democrat, with the President of the United States, last evening with the Taoiseach, the Prime Minister of Ireland, talking about the lasting bond between the two countries.

I hope that people will use the example of what the gentleman from Massachusetts and the gentleman from Pennsylvania have done today, because they have acknowledged this very important moment.

What happened on Bloody Sunday, the world had a chance to witness, and it helped shape world opinion. Thank you both for doing this today. There is not a better way to honor St. Patrick than what you two have laid out today.

Madam Speaker, I thank my good friend from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as well as my fellow Pennsylvanian, another great Commonwealth. You know which one I am partial toward.

Madam Speaker, I not only thank Chairman Keating for his leadership in pushing this resolution but also thank him for the eloquent words that he just spoke. He laid out the situation quite clearly. I would like to just briefly elaborate.

Former British Prime Minister David Cameron, to his great credit, said these words about a decade ago: ``There is no doubt, there is nothing equivocal, there are no ambiguities. What happened on Bloody Sunday was both unjustified and unjustifiable. It was wrong.'' He further went on to say: ``I am deeply sorry on behalf of the British Government.''

Now, despite those truly admirable words and despite the findings and acknowledgment made by successive British Governments, shamefully, none of the individuals involved in the murder of 14 innocent civilians on Bloody Sunday have ever been held accountable.

This resolution says: ``The lack of accountability and justice provided to those who perished from the unlawful use of force on Bloody Sunday is both shameful and dangerous.''

Madam Speaker, we remember those who perished. We also recognize the family members of those who were harmed and killed on Bloody Sunday who fought for decades and decades to finally get justice.

But we must go further than that. A few weeks ago, I led a bipartisan letter--and, again, this whole effort has been bipartisan, which is always the case when it comes to the issue of peace in Ireland here in the United States. I led a bipartisan letter to object to the British Government's latest plan to institute an amnesty, a blanket amnesty. I quote from this resolution, which is similar to the letter that we sent.

``We oppose any attempt by the British Government to implement amnesty or statute of limitation laws that would end or inhibit investigations and prosecutions of crimes committed during the Troubles, including on Bloody Sunday.''

The resolution further goes on to talk about today and: ``Calls upon the involved parties to fully implement the Northern Ireland Protocol as agreed upon in the interest of maintaining peace and stability on the island of Ireland.''

Madam Speaker, today, in the United States and around the world, as we celebrate St. Patrick's Day, all of us, whether like me of Irish descent or not, let us also make sure that we don't lose sight of this important civil rights issue.