Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, let me first thank Representative Clarke and Representative Lawrence for hosting tonight's Special Order hour. These are two dynamic colleagues of mine. Ms. Clarke, as she stated, is right across the river from me and has really been a mentor to me since my arrival here in Congress. There is never anything that I have ever asked her to do that she hasn't done. I just want to acknowledge the great support that she has been for me since I have arrived at this body. She is a true leader from across the river.

Also, Mrs. Lawrence, who is from the great State of Michigan, has joined us in her second term here in Congress. She has demonstrated her leadership day in and day out as well.

Mr. Speaker, of course, every year is the year of the Black woman for me. Just as Black women like the late great Shirley Chisholm and Barbara Jordan paved the way for other Black women to run for office, the work that these gentlewomen do has inspired a new generation of Black women to change the course of our Nation. For that, we are all grateful.

Throughout American history, Black women have been undervalued and undercompensated. Nationally, Black women who work in full-time jobs make only 64 cents for every dollar a White man makes. In New Jersey, Black women only make 58 cents for every dollar a White man makes. Black women both in New Jersey and nationally make persistently less than White women, despite the fact that Black women have the highest labor force participation rate in the United States among women.

Regardless of their educational level, Black women are less likely than other workers to be employed in higher paying careers. They are more likely than other groups to be employed in service-industry jobs with low pay, no benefits, and outside the scope of the labor laws of this country.

Black women are key to building long-term success in our communities, yet they are disproportionately incarcerated. They are more likely to face employment discrimination and housing discrimination. They are more likely to be disciplined at school, and they are still undervalued and underrepresented in our society.

What should we be doing in Congress and in our communities?

First, we should be strengthening Black women's political participation. We need more Black women in office at all levels of government. Each of us should mentor young Black women who want to serve. We should uplift their voices, give them the microphone, and build infrastructure that gets them into office.

Secondly, we must protect the right to vote for Black women and all people of color. Over the past 5 years, the Supreme Court has gutted the Voting Rights Act. Legislators in States like Texas and South Carolina have passed voter ID laws that disproportionately restrict the right to vote for people of color, and Russian social media accounts have targeted the Black community to sow division and discord in our elections.

As Members of Congress, we have the power to restore the Voting Rights Act, protect the right to vote, and ensure our elections are secure from foreign interference.

Third, we need to support increased employment and higher earnings for Black women. That includes raising the Federal minimum wage to make it a liveable wage. That means strengthening collective bargaining.

Mr. Speaker, there are many examples of women in New Jersey who have made great accomplishments. Throughout 2018, the Year of the Black Woman, it is vitally important that we elevate Black women's voices and their experiences. Here are just a few Black women from my district who are making a difference.

Ibtihaj Muhammad, a Black woman from Maplewood, New Jersey, became the first American Olympian to wear a hijab during her event. She was also a model for the first hijab-wearing Barbie doll. Ibtihaj Muhammad is a trailblazer. She fenced in this year's past Summer Olympics.

Sheila Oliver, as Ms. Clarke intimated, a Newark native, just became the first African-American Lieutenant Governor in New Jersey's history. She had already broken the glass ceiling by becoming the first African- American woman to serve as assembly speaker in New Jersey, and only the second African-American woman in the country to lead a State legislature. The first, of course, was our colleague from California, Karen Bass. Sheila Oliver and Karen Bass are trailblazers.

Mattie Holloway from Hillside, New Jersey, has spent nearly 40 years helping young women in her community. For the past three decades, she has led Hope, Inc., a community service organization that helps pregnant teens and young mothers stay on track during and after their pregnancy. Mattie Holloway is a trailblazer.

In Bayonne, New Jersey, there is a young woman named Jae Wilson. She is 9 years old. Jae was at the mall one day when she noticed a homeless man wasn't wearing socks. Jae saw a need and stepped up to fill it. This young woman now spends her spare time collecting socks and shoes to distribute to people in need. Jae Wilson is a trailblazer.

There are countless Black women whose contributions to our collective freedom have gotten us to this point today. Too often, they have been sidelined and, as I stated, undervalued and disrespected. Let's do a better job to celebrate, uplift, and empower our sisters this year and every year.

Madam Speaker, today begins the best time of the year. March Madness is in full effect as of noon today, and I am here to support a team that I have followed for 50 years in college basketball, the Seton Hall Pirates from South Orange, New Jersey.

Thirty years ago, Madam Speaker, they played for the championship in the Final Four against a Michigan team and lost by 1 point. Today we have another team that has the potential of going all the way.

I would just like to acknowledge the Seton Hall Pirates as they start their journey for a national championship against the North Carolina State Wolfpack and ask that we honor seniors Ismael Sanogo, Khadeen Carrington, Angel Delgado, and Desi Rodriguez as they start their trek.

Go, Pirates.

Mr. Speaker, the NRA--the NRA--the NRA stands for ``No Republican Action.''

It has been a month since 17 children and their teachers were gunned down while at school in Parkland, Florida. It has been more than 5 years since 26 children and their teachers were slaughtered in Sandy Hook.

In both of these instances, the same weapon was used: an AR-15 semiautomatic assault rifle.

And Congress still has taken no action to end gun violence.

Mr. Speaker, there have been more than three dozen moments of silence related to gun violence since the Sandy Hook massacre. There have been zero moments of action.

As those of us who are married or have children know, the silent treatment doesn't work at home. Well, it surely isn't working in Congress. There are dozens of reasonable gun safety bills pending in this esteemed legislature, but the majority party is giving the American people the silent treatment.

NRA: No Republican action.

Meanwhile, between the moments of silence, around 7,000 children have been killed by guns since 2012.

NRA: No Republican action.

Let us take action on Mr. Cicilline's assault weapon ban to end the flood of new semiautomatic assault weapons onto the streets.

Let us take action on Mr. Thompson's bill to strengthen the background checks.

What is the problem with making sure that we check each person's background? Does the NRA say that that is wrong, too?

There is no Republican action.

Let us take action on my Safer Neighborhoods Gun Buyback Act to encourage people to safely, freely make the economic decision to self- disarm and dispose of most of their violent weapons.

Mr. Speaker, the NRA spends tens of millions of dollars in our elections. I received a grade of F. It is the first F that I have ever gotten that I was proud of.

What do the American people get?

They get no Republican action. Let us end the silence of inaction.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the country's only African- American owned Christian television network, the IMPACT Christian TV network.

Over the weekend, at Metropolitan Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey, I joined IMPACT for the celebration of their launch onto the Altice family of programming. The launch is a big step for Altice and people across the Nation.

The partnership between IMPACT and Altice means that the country's only African-American owned and operated Christian television network will now reach more than 85 million homes around the world.

As we have seen with the ``Oscars So Black'' movement and spotlight on inequality in film and television, people across the country are demanding increased diversity in programming.

IMPACT's launch on Altice is another step in the right direction. It is a historic pairing that will bring diversity and ministry to millions of homes.

I would like to point out that, in my district, the 10th Congressional District of the State of New Jersey, I want to commend two local heroes for helping move this effort forward.

I want to commend Reverend Dr. David Jefferson of Metropolitan Baptist Church and the IMPACT team, and Marilyn Davis and the Altice team for what they did to make this launch happen.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao testified before the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Secretary Chao acknowledged that President Trump is personally intervening to prevent Federal funding of the Gateway Project, which is the Nation's most critical infrastructure project.

Mr. Speaker, the Gateway Project would rebuild the crumbling rail infrastructure that connects New York and New Jersey, a key point in Amtrak and the Northeast corridor's rail line between New Jersey and New York and, also, 415 trains that go through those tunnels each day. New York and New Jersey have promised billions of dollars towards the project, but President Trump is actively undermining Gateway.

As anyone who had plans to travel by Amtrak or by rail during last week's cyclone knows, the trans-Hudson track

infrastructure connects not just the two States, but the entire region between Boston and Washington, D.C. Because Gateway is so important to everyone in the Northeast, a substantial Federal commitment is necessary to make this project a reality.

The Gateway Project is far too important to be left unfunded. Gateway should not be sacrificed because of President Trump's political animosity.

Mr. Speaker, colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of death for men and women combined. It is a silent killer because the disease often has no signs or symptoms. Each year, more than 50,000 Americans die from colorectal cancer even though it is mostly preventable and treatable if caught early.

Six years ago today, my father, the late Congressman Donald Payne, died from colorectal cancer. Colorectal cancer screening just wasn't something people of his generation did.

Mr. Speaker, my father might have lived had he gotten tested for colorectal cancer. That is why each year I sponsor a resolution to recognize March as National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month, a time to educate the public about the disease and the need for screening.

By educating people, increasing research funding, and making Medicare coverage better for seniors, we can save tens of thousands of lives each year.

I would rather not have to make this 1-minute speech every year, to have my father still be a Member of Congress from the 10th Congressional District.

Mr. Speaker, 6 months ago, the White House shamefully rescinded the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program without having legislation in place to protect Dreamers. That is just wrong.

The overwhelming majority of Americans support a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, yet Republican leadership refuses to let Congress vote on a clean Dream Act.

A few months ago, after ending DACA, the President began rolling back immigration from Black and Latino countries he thinks are s---holes. After that, he went on a Twitter rant to attack the Diversity Immigrant Visa program, which helps people from Africa immigrate lawfully to the United States.

Eliminating DACA without a plan for Dreamers is just another antiminority move. Removing the Diversity Immigrant Visa program is more of the same. The administration has shown itself to be hostile to people of color. Mr. Speaker, racism is not a good policy.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from the Keystone State for hosting tonight's Special Order hour. He has demonstrated great leadership during this time, and the issues that we are tackling during these Special Order hours are very important to this country as we move forward.

As has been stated today, it has been 50 years since the Kerner report warned us that the Nation was headed into a separate and unequal future. The Kerner report was supposed to be a wake-up call for the United States to break the cycle that kept African-Americans in poverty. It called for government to invest in job creation programs, to expand public housing, and to guarantee minimum family incomes. The Kerner report understood that such actions were necessary for the United States to confront its legacy of race and inequality.

Unfortunately, 50 years later, the same problems persist. The rate of child poverty in the United States today is greater than it was in 1968. The percent of Americans who live in the depths of poverty has grown as well. Welfare reform has failed. African-American unemployment is still nearly double the rate of our White counterparts. Labor unions, once a great equalizer for workers, have shrunk, and inequality has grown.

Rich people in the United States are healthier than poor people. They live longer. They go to better schools, get better jobs, and generate more wealth. They are also more likely to be White than to be Black.

Our schools are more segregated than they were in the 1980s. Our prisons are darker. The Voting Rights Act, a landmark achievement of the civil rights movement, has been gutted.

These and other barriers to equality threaten our democracy.

The resegregation of our schools means that people of color and those who struggle with poverty are often forced to go to underfunded schools. Their education suffers. They aren't given adequate preparation for college or a trade school, and they ultimately make less money than their White counterparts.

A recent Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco study found that Black men and women earn persistently lower wages compared to their White counterparts, a gap that cannot be fully explained by differences in age, education, job type, or location.

So what can Congress do? We need to invest in housing programs that help desegregate communities once again. We need to make it easier for people of color to get federally backed loans to buy homes and finally do away with red lining.

We need to invest in public schools. We need to expand preschool education. We need to spend money on job training programs and public universities.

We need to increase the minimum wage, and we need to strengthen oversight of mortgage lenders.

We need to restore the Voting Rights Act, because people who cannot vote cannot lead.

Mr. Speaker, I would say that, as we have all stated tonight, it apparently appears that we are going backwards in this country, and so why wouldn't the Voting Rights Act be under attack? It was finally the opportunity for African-American citizens to be full citizens.

The only right you are born with in the United States of America is the right to vote as an American citizen. You are born with that right, and yet it is stripped away through the gutting of the Voting Rights Act.

So what does that say to people who fall under the Voting Rights Act? It says that you are not equal, that you don't deserve the same rights as other Americans, that somehow you are less than a first-class citizen in this country, yet you can go to war for us, you can do other things, contribute to this society, but not be able to vote. The three- fifths compromise, we can go all the way back to that and talk about the inequality.

So we need people of goodwill on both sides of the issue, on both sides of the aisle, to understand how equality is arrived at and come together and do the things that we need to do in order to make this a more perfect Union. I believe in that. I have not always seen it, but I believe that we need to continue to strive to make this a more perfect Union, to live out the mantra of this great Nation.

This is the greatest country in the world, no question about it, absolutely incredible, but let's live up to it. Let's really live up to what this Nation stands for, because you don't need people who are citizens here that don't believe in what you are saying.

Every day, we get up and we pledge allegiance to the flag like every other resident, every other citizen in this country, but every once in a while it fails us. We need to stay vigilant. We at the Congressional Black Caucus will be the voice and be vigilant on this floor in this House for people throughout this country who seem to be on the wrong side of this issue.

Mr. Speaker, I was not present for the following Roll Call votes. I would like to reflect how I would have voted, had I been present.

Had I been present, I would have voted the following: ``YEA'' on Roll Call No. 81; ``YEA'' on Roll Call No. 82; ``NAY'' on Roll Call No. 83; ``NAY'' on Roll Call No. 84; ``NAY'' on Roll Call No. 85; ``NAY'' on Roll Call No. 86; ``NAY'' on Roll Call No. 87; ``YEA'' on Roll Call No. 88; ``NAY'' on Roll Call No. 89; ``NAY'' on Roll Call No. 90; and ``YEA'' on Roll Call No. 91.

There was a time when moments of silence, and thoughts and prayers meant something. That time has long passed.

The Columbine High School massacre was nearly two decades ago. Sandy Hook was over five years ago. The Sutherland Springs and Las Vegas shootings were last year. Yet Congress did nothing to end gun violence in the United States.

How many lives must be sacrificed at the altar of the gun lobby before Congress says enough is enough?

Mass shootings have become all too common, and ordinary acts of violence are perpetrated on the streets every day. In fact, more Americans have died from guns in the United States since Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated than in all the wars this country has fought--starting with the American Revolution.

Each day in this country, ninety-six Americans are killed with guns. Seven of those people are children and teenagers. And Black men are thirteen times more likely than a white man to be shot and killed with a gun.

Gun safety is a civil rights issue. It is a human rights issue.

Congress needs to take immediate action on the dozens of reasonable gun-safety bills pending in this legislative body. We must ban semiautomatic assault weapons. We must stop the online sale of bulk ammunition. And we need to strengthen and mandate universal background checks.

But there's something else Congress can and must do. Congress must find creative ways to encourage people in the United States to voluntarily disarm. Research has shown that greater numbers of firearms result in higher numbers of firearm-related deaths.

Over the past two weeks, reports and viral videos have shown many law-abiding gun owners expressing buyers' remorse and destroying their firearms. There is a movement underway in this country among gun owners to purge their firearms--particularly semiautomatic assault weapons-- before they can be used to harm people.

That's why I introduced the Safer Neighborhoods Gun Buyback Act of 2017 (H.R. 3613) last year--to encourage people to voluntarily disarm. Gun buyback programs have proven their worth in communities across the United States. Law enforcement supports safe gun buyback programs. And research has shown that fewer guns means fewer gun deaths. By providing grants to fund gun buyback programs, Congress can incentivize Americans to do the right thing and safely dispose of their semiautomatic assault weapons.

There are dozens of gun safety bills active in this body that would make our streets, our schools, and our homes safer. It's time for us to declare never again. Congress cannot continue to do nothing. People are dying. We must do better by our children.

Mr. Speaker, what will it take? What will it take for this body to finally grapple with this issue?

Columbine wasn't enough. West Virginia wasn't enough. Colorado, in a movie theater, wasn't enough. A nightclub in Orlando wasn't enough. Newtown wasn't enough.

Mr. Speaker, this has become a national disgrace. Ninety-five percent of the American people say that they believe in sensible gun reform, gun laws that make sense. Ninety-five percent. The minority party does not represent 95 percent of this Nation.

You are in that number as well, yet you still turn your back on the American people. The NRA stands for ``no Republican action.''

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor America's health and wellness coaches. Health and wellness coaches help people change their unhealthy lifestyles and manage chronic illnesses.

Mr. Speaker, I am a diabetic. I also suffer from macular degeneration and heart disease. I know firsthand how difficult it is for people to change their behaviors and make healthier life choices, but I also know that changing behavior can improve overall health and reduce the amount of costly medical care people need.

The American Medical Association recently found that having a health and wellness coach involved in a person's wellness journey not only increases patient satisfaction and engagement, but also reduces physician stress and burnout by freeing up their time.

Last week, I introduced H. Res. 733 to express support for health and wellness coaches and to designate this week as National Health and Wellness Coach Recognition Weak.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating our Nation's health and wellness coaches.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Kelechi Ibezim, a high school senior from Glen Ridge, New Jersey, for becoming the first African-American Eagle Scout in Troop 55 of the Northern New Jersey Boy Scouts Council.

This young man is a resident of my district. Along with others in his troop, Kelechi led the effort to build an outdoor classroom at the Montclair Child Development Center. The center serves underprivileged children and focuses on teaching them social skills.

Kelechi has spent time painting schools, volunteering for nonprofits, and serving as treasurer of the youth branch of the Montclair NAACP. He plans to pursue a career in business or law once he graduates from college.

Mr. Speaker, Kelechi is just one of the many examples of young people in my district making Black history every day. I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating Kelechi on receiving his Eagle Scout ranking.

Mr. Speaker, it is a real honor and privilege to join both of my colleagues here for what is a very important discussion to have.

I commend Congressman Garamendi for always being passionate, considerate, and diligent on these efforts around the issues that are germane and important to this country moving forward and being successful. So I thank him for being a role model for me here in the House of Representatives.

Also, I thank Mr. Price, who has been a leader. I worked with him on several occasions in North Carolina on different issues. It is good to be in both of their company on this important issue.

We are here tonight on this Special Order talking about the President's infrastructure plan. It is not really much of a transportation plan at all. What President Trump has proposed is another massive giveaway to big corporations.

The Trump infrastructure plan would privatize much of the Nation's infrastructure. It would replace interstate highways with tollways. It would roll back environmental protection regulations and workers' rights. It would award infrastructure grants based on how much revenue is raised locally, instead of awarding Federal grants based on the project's quality.

Mr. Speaker, President Trump promised America a trillion-dollar investment in our Nation's crumbling infrastructure. But, like always, the President has not delivered.

This is becoming a theme with him as we move through different issues that this Nation faces. There is a pattern developing here. My father always used to mention that type of thing. When he saw issues or something that were going awry, he would notice the pattern in the way these things are addressed. There is definitely a pattern in the way the President has handled being Commander in Chief, and has not necessarily been in the best interest of the entire country, but to a select few.

The Trump infrastructure plan is cut from the same cloth as the tax scam my Republican colleagues passed in December. It is cut from the same cloth as the budget President Trump proposed this week.

The tax scam was a massive giveaway to the billionaires and big corporations, to golf course owners and to owners of LLCs. Now, I don't know much about big business and golf courses--I am a miniature golf man myself--but, once again, there is that pattern.

What would be so important in the tax scam that you carve out something for golf course owners?

Well, anyway. Can you say Mar-a-Lago?

Also, in that same vein, if I am not mistaken, all of the Trump businesses that are still being enriched as he sits in the White House, which is totally contrary to what this Nation was built on, are all LLCs.

So in the tax scam, there was a carve-out for LLCs. Oh my goodness. There seems to be a pattern here.

Trump proposed a budget that slashes more than $168 billion--$168 billion from Federal highway, transit, Amtrak, and water infrastructure funding. He also proposed that we privatize the Nation's air traffic control, which would add another $57 billion to the Federal deficit. So much for deficit hawks.

So, before even proposing his infrastructure plan, the President proposed a $225 billion cut to infrastructure spending, all so he can pay for his tax giveaways to the rich.

Mr. Speaker, Democrats and Republicans want to work together to rebuild America's crumbling infrastructure, but the President's plan doesn't get us there at all. It is a partisan proposal that benefits the President's corporate friends at the expense of the American people.

This infrastructure plan is a major blow to my constituents and everyone who travels along Amtrak's Northeast corridor. It proposes an Infrastructure Incentives Program that would award grants based on how much revenue is raised locally, instead of how badly needed the project is.

Now, that seems not to make too much sense from where I am standing, and my constituents understand, and Congressman Garamendi's constituents, and the majority of people in this House, if you really pulled them aside and asked them honestly. But that is for another day.

Take, for instance, the Gateway project. The Gateway project is a multiyear, multibillion-dollar project that will repair, replace, and expand the railroad infrastructure connecting New Jersey and New York, but Boston to Washington, D.C., as well. It is the Nation's most critical infrastructure project.

The Gateway project will make commutes safe and more reliable for hundreds of thousands of people, and the economic activity it generates could create upwards of 100,000 new jobs in the region.

This multiyear project, Mr. Speaker, is vital to this Nation's health and infrastructure. The Northeast corridor is the only line that is profitable for Amtrak in the entire Nation; and we want to cripple that. We don't want to strengthen that. We would like to cripple that more. It doesn't make sense.

The Gateway project is something that is needed. It will put Americans to work. It will create a greater infrastructure and allow the two tunnels going into New York City now to be repaired. They took a terrible beating from Superstorm Sandy, and the corrosive saltwater got into a lot of those tunnels, damaged the electrical work in those tunnels; and I am glad my constituents and people going back and forth between New York and New Jersey don't get to see the shape that these hundred-year-old tunnels are in.

So once we create this new tunnel, it would allow us to repair the other two, which is desperately needed--desperately needed.

So it is the Nation's most critical infrastructure project that we see. The Gateway project will make commuters safe. It could generate, as I said, more than 100,000 new jobs in the region.

The Gateway project is necessary to modernize Amtrak's Northeast corridor, which runs between Boston and D.C. It is a project that benefits people from States up and down the Atlantic seaboard. That is why the Federal Government agreed to cover half of the cost of the Gateway project, with New York and New Jersey splitting the other half.

And if my colleague would--who has greater knowledge of these issues over the years--to have a State come along and be willing--you know, we think that 70/30 splits are good with States, but New Jersey and New York has said: We will do 50/50. Now, if we can't understand how that is a positive, and that the States are willing to do their part, then we don't understand these issues.

I am new to this, so I would--will the gentleman elaborate on the--I have heard that 80/20 splits are good and 70/30 are great. And here is a 50/50 split, yet, and still, we cannot get the Federal Government to buy in, which, when Amtrak said they would take over the Northeast corridor, the Federal Government was supposed to fund them to the levels they needed in order to maintain it. And Amtrak has never received the dollars that was promised since the inception of taking over the Northeast corridor.

Tri-State.

I think the gentleman is on the right track. We are willing to work with the President. And this, unfortunately, is another incident or an example of where his lack of knowledge of government operation is hampering what we need to do in this Nation.

It is very difficult to learn on the job, especially when you have the job of Commander in Chief and you have had no experience with the government, understanding the Senate, understanding how the House--how it operates.

We are willing to help him. We want him to be successful, because if he is successful, the Nation can be successful--not on his own, not his own personal success, but success for the Nation.

I will come to a conclusion, as I see one of my colleagues who is on the Northeast corridor has joined us as well, but just to your point about water infrastructure.

So the Congressional Black Caucus went to Flint to meet with the residents there, and Ms. Pelosi was on the trip and sat and met different people and what they were going through at that time. It was just sad, heartbreaking.

So me, traveling back to Newark, New Jersey, which is the third oldest city in the United States of America, understanding if they were having those issues in Flint, which is nowhere near as old as Newark, New Jersey, what were the conditions in my community?

And lo and behold, I spoke to several mayors in my district, and I said: You need to start looking at your water system. Based on what I saw in Flint, I am very concerned.

And don't you know, that Tuesday, they found lead in 30 schools in Newark, New Jersey, in the water system.

Mr. Speaker, I would just like to thank both of my colleagues and Mr. Price for really showing a youngster at this how to engage the American people.

And these issues, Mr. Speaker, are critical to Americans across the Nation. And, yes, there is a swath that does not have these issues to worry about, but there are people every single day who need to have us address these issues in the manner in which we are speaking.

Everyone is not well off. Everyone is not able to buy for themselves. Everyone is not the owner of a golf course. Everyone is not the President of an LLC.

There are hardworking people. There are people who need jobs. Reinvesting in infrastructure will put Americans to work, will give all Americans the quality of life that they deserve in this Nation if they are willing to work for it, and we understand that. But give them the opportunity to work for it.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the lives lost in January 1990 when interethnic violence broke out in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. Dozens of people died. The flailing Soviet government ultimately sent troops into the city, killing more than a hundred people. Less than two years later, Azerbaijan would declare its independence, then the Soviet Union fell in December of 1991.

Sadly, independence would not bring peace in former Soviet Republics. Violence and war broke out in Eastern Europe. Men and women died alongside soldiers in places like Khojaly. But when the dust settled, democracy emerged victorious in many countries.

Mr. Speaker, Congress must not forget the cost of freedom. Across the planet, countless people died in fights for freedom. The men and women who died in post-Soviet wars should be memorialized. They paid the ultimate price for peace.

As we enter a new era when it seems as if democracy is on the slide, the United States Congress must stand for freedom here at home and everywhere across our planet. The people who died in Azerbaijan, in Armenia, in the Balkans, and throughout the region should be honored and memorialized. Let us not forget that peace is preferable to war