Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, on behalf of the Congressional Black Caucus, I rise today in honor of the memory of Rosa Parks, our Nation's greatest hero.

It has been 66 years, Madam Speaker, since Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat for a White rider, sparking her arrest and the beginning of the civil rights movement.

My Congressional Black Caucus colleague, Congresswoman Representative Sewell, is the original cosponsor of the Rosa Parks Day Act, a bill that would make December 1 a Federal holiday in her honor, along with Congressman Jim Cooper and I.

Many of you may not know, but 17 years ago, through my leadership, Ohio was the first in the Nation to pass Rosa Parks Day legislation. Our district will celebrate this year's Rosa Parks Day on December 13 in a celebration called ``The Power of One: You.''

So please join me and my colleagues in supporting the Rosa Parks Day Act to honor a great American. This is our power. This is our message.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and celebrate the investiture of Dr. Kristina M. Johnson as the 16th president of The Ohio State University. As a former administrator and longtime member of the university community, I know her investiture is a significant milestone in the life of this land-grant university and world-class institution of higher learning.

Each of The Ohio State University's 16 presidents have left a lasting mark during the 151-year history of the institution. Since taking over as President on August 24, 2020, President Johnson has added an immediate impact as an inclusive leader and advanced the university's mission to uplift lives through academic and research excellence.

With Dr. Johnson's more than 30 years of experience and leadership in the academic, business, and public policy sectors, the future of Ohio State is indeed bright. Before joining Ohio State, she served as Chancellor of the State University of New York (SUNY) since 2017. Prior to that, she founded several successful science and technology companies, served as undersecretary of energy at the U.S. Department of Energy, and held academic leadership positions at prestigious institutions, including Johns Hopkins University, Duke University, and the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Dr. Johnson's investiture is very much a homecoming, as she has close family ties to Ohio State and the state of Ohio. Her grandfather graduated from Ohio State in 1896 and played on one of the early football teams. Family lore has it that Dr. Johnson's grandfather met her grandmother on the Columbus campus.

In academic circles, the installation of a new president is a ceremony of dignity with many protocols and traditions. An academic procession takes place that includes delegates from other colleges and universities, trustees, and university faculty and leadership. It is an honor to recognize and celebrate this momentous occasion for the university, which is so near and dear to my heart, and the heart of the central Ohio community.

I wish Dr. Johnson, her spouse Veronica Meinhard, and the entire Buckeye Community well as they embark on this journey together. Go Bucks.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this transformative and once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver for the American public in a way that we have never seen before.

And to my colleagues, it is paid for.

The Build Back Better Act will create more than two million jobs each year over the course of the next decade. It will also ensure universal pre-K and extend the child tax credit to help lift thousands of children out of poverty.

Democrats and Republicans, America, listen to me, we need to make sure that everyone supports this. And for people who do not support Build Back Better, there should be consequences because this is the largest investment to combat the climate crisis in history.

It includes historical investments in HBCUs, it includes $150 billion in our Nation's housing infrastructure.

This bill is a win for all. Do not be fooled. We have worked hard, and this bill is for Democrats and it is for Republicans. People who do not vote for this do not believe in America.

Madam Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to stand here tonight as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. To be here at such a critical point in our country, in our democracy, on the heels of leaving the South Lawn of the White House where hundreds of people gathered in honor of supporting the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure framework needed when we think about our roads and our bridges and our broadband.

Tonight, we are so honored to be here. To our chair of this night's Special Order hour, ``Breaking News,'' I thank Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who is anchoring tonight and yielding to me.

Madam Speaker, let me just take this point of personal privilege to thank her. I thank her for her leadership and say to her and all of her constituents watching: Texas is all the better because of Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee. When I think of someone leading and talking about Build Back Better, talking about how great this is for America, thank you for being part of that leadership.

Now, tonight, let me simply say, Madam Speaker, when I look to build back better, I see the faces of the Congressional Black Caucus, six chairs of major committees. So let me do breaking news.

Breaking news, when we look to build back better housing, we know, across America, that we have a housing problem. We know that we needed more dollars going into housing, vouchers, and affordable housing.

Breaking news, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, chair of the powerful Financial Services Committee under which housing and insurance falls, she was iconic in her leadership, from the White House to the Speaker, working both sides of the aisle, and, yes, $150 billion.

When I think of Congressman Bobby Scott, I think of education and labor. There has not been a stronger voice in the Congress than Bobby Scott in the Congressional Black Caucus. You heard earlier from Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, Pell grants, HBCUs, historically Black colleges and universities, billions of dollars going into our universities.

Madam Speaker, let me take a point of personal privilege because I am a proud graduate of an HBCU, so I know what this means to young girls and boys and men and women who are matriculating in our HBCUs. We cannot have a democracy in a country without protecting our children. When we talk

about the child tax credit, when we talk about universal childcare, this is so critical.

Breaking news, $400 billion--I want to say that again, $400 billion-- into childcare, taking some 40 percent of our children out of poverty.

We know how important our climate is to us, and if we didn't, if you were out on that South Lawn today, you clearly understood climate change. Madam Speaker, $555 billion is in for climate change.

I am going to have other colleagues come today, and we are going to hear how important it is when we talk about taking lead out of our water, what that does for our children, for our families, for the environment.

Breaking news, $1.7 trillion is in Build Back Better.

Earlier, one of the members of the Congressional Black Caucus said to me, ``Tell our story.'' Well, you see, our fingerprints and footprints are all through this $1.75 trillion, and if you don't claim it, people don't know it. So, I want everyone to know that the Congressional Black Caucus is so proud of Our Power, Our Message because we understand that our diversity is our strength and our unity is our power.

Tonight is so important for us to say: $1.75 trillion, Build Back Better; $1.2 trillion, bipartisan infrastructure framework. It was the Congressional Black Caucus that asked for a seat at the table.

The late Congressman John Lewis always said: If you see something, say something. So, Madam Speaker, the Congressional Black Caucus decided that we were going to say something. We were going to say something to make sure that all of our friends and colleagues came together so we could do what is great for America, and that is what we have done.

Let me say these closing remarks as we then call on our other colleagues. Let me simply say that I am honored to serve in the United States Congress, but I am extremely humbled and privileged and honored to be the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus in our 50th year of existence with the largest membership and the oldest of the caucuses in the Congress.

Madam Speaker, chair of our Special Order hour, Our Power, Our Message, we are the Congressional Black Caucus.

Madam Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to yield to the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. Lawrence). She is the second vice chair of the powerful Congressional Black Caucus. She is also one of the co-chairs of our Women's Caucus.

At this time, I would like to say to my colleague and to my friend: Thank you for your leadership, and thank you for your strong voice.

As a former mayor, we know she is used to leading, guiding, and speaking out.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman so much, Brenda Lawrence, for her leadership--breaking news.

Let me just say, as Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence said so well, we are not going to be quiet. Today, we heard President Joe Biden not be quiet. We

also had the opportunity to hear Vice President Kamala Harris not be quiet.

When we talk about the Congressional Black Caucus, let me say thank you to Vice President Kamala Harris, a former member of the Congressional Black Caucus. I thank Vice President Harris for leading by example, getting out there and fighting for our democracy and making sure that this is good for America.

As we talk about breaking news and not being quiet and women--Black women--taking leadership roles, it gives me great pleasure to introduce and yield to our newest member of the Congressional Black Caucus. She is someone who comes with a lot of leadership, talent, and skills. It is a double honor for me because she represents the great State of Ohio. Madam Speaker, it is always good when you have a partner, so to be able to have a partner in Ohio's 11th District gives me great honor. The gentlewoman is someone who works hard, fights for her community, and understands the value of Build Back Better and what it will do with this once-in-a-generation action, transformational legislation.

Madam Speaker, that person I am talking about, my friend, my colleague, and my partner is none other than Congresswoman Shontel Brown.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Brown).

Madam Speaker, as we bring this hour to a close, let me again thank our newest member of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congresswoman Shontel Brown for her words.

Let me conclude tonight's Special Order hour by saying to America: The Congressional Black Caucus will continue to lead and to take bold, decisive actions to build back better by passing the Build Back Better Act. We heard that it will create more housing, it will furnish jobs, and it will also finish the job of the Affordable Care Act. It will provide a Medicaid coverage gap, and it will also provide funding, as you have heard, Madam Speaker, for HBCUs and helping families in need, giving them a tax cut, as Congresswoman Brown just highlighted for us, with the child tax credit to help ensure Americans' global competitiveness for the 21st century and unleashing the full potential of America's workers and families to thrive in the communities that we represent, especially those 17 million Americans represented by the Congressional Black Caucus. There are 17 million Black Americans, and then we look at some 80 million Americans.

So with that, tonight we bring to it to a close, but we will not be quiet.

It gives me great pleasure, Madam Speaker, to say thank you for letting us host the first hour on Build Back Better. Our power, our message, the Congressional Black Caucus.

General Leave

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include any extraneous materials on the subject of this Special Order hour.

On behalf of the Congressional Black Caucus and the millions of Black voters, I rise today in support of H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

Today, we step into history as we tread the same path taken 56 years ago when President Lyndon Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law, calling that day ``a triumph for freedom as huge as any victory that has ever been won on any battlefield.''

We have not come this far to turn the clock back, nor shall we let the sacrifices of Fannie Lou Hamer, Martin Luther King, and countless others who marched, fought, disrupted, and lost their lives for the right to vote, be in vain.

Therefore, I ask all of my colleagues to support H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

As our friend and brother, the late John Lewis, said so well: ``The time is right. The time is now.''

Our Power, Our Message.

Madam Speaker, I thank Congressman Torres for yielding.

Madam Speaker, it is indeed my honor to stand in this Chamber tonight to speak up, to speak out about voting rights, voter suppression, fighting back, disenfranchised, section 4, section 5, section 2, all of which you will hear about tonight.

We are here as members of the Congressional Black Caucus because we want to make sure that all of our colleagues hear our story, a story that they, too, should know so well, the story of a lady by the name of Fannie Lou Hamer, a civil rights activist from Mississippi who didn't even know that she could have had the right to vote.

Recently, her granddaughter told that story. As I read that and thought about how she dedicated her life to voting rights, fast- forward, think about our beloved friend, colleague, mentor, the late Congressman John Lewis, who stood on this floor at this microphone and told us his story, told us about that day when he was crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge, what it felt like--dogs, hose, police officers, knocked down, and could have died.

But the story ends with a good message because he would have done it all over again. He told us, if you see something, say something. He reminded us that it is our role to get in good trouble.

So tonight, we want our colleagues, especially those on the other side of the aisle, to know that this is one of our top priorities. We want them to know that four times Republican Presidents reauthorized the Voting Rights Act. We want our colleagues in the Senate to know this should not be something that we are fighting over. This is something that we should be honoring and celebrating.

As we gather here in this sacred Chamber, on the floor of the people's House, to discuss voting rights in America, to amplify Our Power, Our Message, we boldly announce that we are not going to let the clock be turned back.

Let me end by saying on behalf of the members of the Congressional Black Caucus that this is something that we are asking all of our colleagues to join in and help us make sure that we can proudly say that we are reauthorizing the Voting Rights Act.

Madam Speaker, I close by saying the CBC will do everything in our power to defend the right to vote. We are prepared to work overtime. We are prepared to go what I like to call old school: stand up and make some noise, march, protest, and, yes, even get arrested.

I remember that day clearly, fighting, marching, protesting. I thought of Fannie Lou Hamer. I thought of John Lewis and so many other soldiers, pioneers. I stand on their shoulders.

Tonight, I ask us, let's stand together.

Madam Speaker, it gives me great pleasure, as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus to recognize the gentlewoman from Alabama (Ms. Sewell), my colleague and my friend.

I like to call her the current day mother of voting rights, fighting, and telling her story, leading us with John Lewis every year since I have been in Congress, and before, across that Edmund Pettus Bridge.

Listening to her so scholarly debate the lawsuits that we have been confronted with, Shelby v. Holder.

Listening to her explain preclearance and why we must fight and why we must have hearings. Why we must get it right because there is so much at stake.

Madam Speaker, I am not sure what John Lewis my Republican colleagues are talking about when they say he was their friend and what he would have wanted. He helped write this bill.

Let me just say that, on behalf of millions of Black voters who stood in lines across this country, including in my home State of Ohio, and leaders like our beloved John Lewis, who risked his life as he crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4, the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2021.

On behalf of the Congressional Black Caucus, we say we step into history today as we tread the same path when, 56 years ago, President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law calling the day ``a triumph for freedom as huge as any victory won on any battlefield.''

So to all of my colleagues, I say: Support this bill. Our power, our message, the Congressional Black Caucus.

Madam Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who is coanchor with Congressman Ritchie Torres.

Let me say this: Congresswoman Jackson Lee is at the right place in the right time in history. I thank her for her leadership and her powerful, profound words of talking about not only our late Congressman John Lewis, but talking about why we are here tonight, speaking truth to power, from her own experiences, from her own leadership, from those marches that I have read about and witnessed her in, leading not only individuals from Texas but across this Nation. So I thank her and look forward to hearing her talk about voting rights under attack.

Lastly, let me thank her for quoting from his latest book, ``Carry On.'' Just as it was fitting for her, as a powerful attorney, to talk about justice, in that book he talks about voting rights, and in that book he kept it quite simple. In capital letters, he said: Vote, vote, vote. And stand up for the right of voting, because voting rights belong to all of us and all of our constituents.

Madam Speaker, let me say tonight, I rise and join my colleagues of the Congressional Black Caucus for this Special Order hour on a critically important topic, voting rights.

The Congressional Black Caucus Special Order hour is generally regarded as a solemn moment to give the CBC an opportunity to speak directly to the American people and to reflect on the ideas and policies of critical interest to our constituents.

Well, tonight I speak to the people about the right to vote. We are gathered in this sacred Chamber, the floor of the people's House, to discuss the future of voting rights in America, to amplify our power, our message, and to boldly proclaim that we are not going to let the clock be turned back to a time when the votes of Black people were restricted and limited by those who feared our power.

On behalf of the 57 members of the Congressional Black Caucus, I come today to share some thoughts and join my colleagues on this debate on voting rights.

The right to vote is under attack, and some of those attacks have taken place right here in this Chamber, and in other States across the Nation.

So, Madam Speaker, let me be clear to the American people: The Congressional Black Caucus will not sit idly by as State legislatures, fueled by the support of adversaries intent on limiting our access to the ballot box, voter suppression, changing the rules of engagement after we have been victorious. We have the majority in the House, the Senate, and we are building back better with the Biden-Harris administration. To all of those who believe it does not exist, I have a message for you: We won. We stand for the people, because we were elected by the people.

The civil disobedience displayed by the proud Black women and activists, allies, and others just over a week and a half ago that our coanchor talked about, we were there for a reason, organized by good friend and colleague Melanie Campbell, Clayola Brown, Barbara Skinner, the Reverend Barbara Skinner, and so many other women. Well, yes, I was proud to stand with them.

On that day I did reflect back on how many of my CBC colleagues had been arrested and what they fought for that gave me the privilege to stand on this floor tonight. Did I think about John Lewis and did I think about Fannie Lou Hamer and so many more? Yes. Did I think about Rosa Parks and what she did to give us the Montgomery March of 1955 when she sat down that gave us 1964 civil rights, 1965 voting rights, 1968 jobs and housing act, and so much more?

Well, tonight, that is what we are standing here for. We understand, Madam Speaker, that you can't change the future if you don't acknowledge the past. And that is why you will hear us repeatedly talk about the legal cases. You will hear us talking about our rich history. And as much as we embrace it and we love it, we are not going back to it. And that is why we are standing here.

Madam Speaker, I stand with Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee and coanchor Ritchie Torres. Let me just say tonight, we send a strong message that we are here to pass H.R. 1 and H.R. 4, the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act. We are done waiting. We are done being patient.

If it means we have to speak out, if it means we have to stand up and march and protest, then that is what we will do. The example set by Democrats across the United States, and specifically those members who came here from Texas, we stand with them, because they were forced to come here. Are they making a bold statement? Yes.

But think about it. It has only taken one action, one person to get the attention of the Nation to change things and make it right. And that is what we are doing. When people ask why, why do we stand here and stand up for freedom and justice and our equal rights and to protect our voting rights? Because we know if we don't stand up for ourselves, what will our future be like? What will the future of our children, our grandchildren, and those yet unborn be like? Well, we want to stand up today for H.R. 1, for H.R. 4, so we leave them with a better future.

Madam Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee for giving me the opportunity to speak tonight.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include any extraneous materials on the subject of this Special Order hour.

Madam Speaker, I rise tonight for the Congressional Black Caucus' Special Order hour on this critically important topic, infrastructure. Tonight, we will share with you our positions, our plans, and the state of what we think about infrastructure.

I am so honored to be here tonight as a coanchor and as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. Traditionally, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee would be here as our lead anchor. I thank her for allowing me, as chair, to stand in for her.

I am so honored that her coanchor will now be my coanchor tonight. It gives me great pleasure to talk about all of our members, Madam Speaker, but we are joined by someone who is not only a freshman but a freshman who is a leader, a freshman who is strong, a freshman from New York's 15th District, someone who came to Congress with a plan, someone who came to Congress saying that he wants to be here and be able to be a part not only of the Congressional Black Caucus but to be able to stand up and stand out and make a difference for his constituents. Madam Speaker, he has done far more than that.

Congressman Ritchie Torres serves on the powerful Financial Services Committee as a freshman. He is a leader when we talk about housing and infrastructure. Tonight, I get to dialogue with him. I get to listen to him, and we get to talk about other members of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Tonight, we want to speak directly to the American people and reflect on

the ideas and the critical interests of our constituents. Tonight, we gather in the sacred Chamber on the floor of the people's House to discuss America's infrastructure and to amplify Our Power, Our Message. You will hear this throughout the evening because we realize that it is about our power and our message, 57 members strong of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Tonight, we will educate our constituents. We will educate Americans about the importance of the investment in infrastructure in our neighborhoods and our communities.

Tonight, we will stand strong in support of infrastructure because we know roads and schools in our districts are crumbling and need urgent repair.

We also tackle this with bold Federal investments in our country's roads and bridges and access to broadband and transit and water systems and housing and human care. The investment in infrastructure, Madam Speaker, would support workers and create millions of good-paying jobs in urban and rural populations, the types of jobs that support workers, engineers, steelworkers, bus drivers, childcare workers, and rail workers, and their families.

Isn't that what this is about? Isn't that why we stand up for the people, to make them able to have good-paying jobs to take care of their families?

The Congressional Black Caucus understands this because we have lived this. I know this all too well when we talk about roads and bridges, when we talk about waterways and broadband.

What good is it to say let's educate our children, let's give them the technology that they need, and so we give them a laptop, a computer and all the software, but in many of our rural and urban communities, there is no broadband?

What good is it to have roads and bridges that people can travel, but where are they traveling to? They are traveling home. But what happens when there is no home, when there is no housing?

That is one of the reasons that we are here tonight, so that we can talk about this investment in our Nation's future that includes extending key tax credits, tax cuts that were included in the American Rescue Plan, which the Congressional Black Caucus stood tall to help pass, that will benefit lower- and middle-income workers and families.

We even created a domestic policy transportation team within the Congressional Black Caucus to talk about infrastructure, and I will use their language. In their recent meeting, they said that we need a modern American infrastructure plan. That, too, is what tonight is about.

You will hear facts. You will hear data. You will hear stories. You will hear the strong testimony of why we are saying to all of our colleagues, Democrats and Republicans, that we need an infrastructure plan that works for the American people.

Madam Speaker, the majority whip, Congressman James Clyburn, needs no real introduction. Mr. Clyburn hails from South Carolina. He has stood on this floor repeatedly and talked about the American way. He has been a leader, a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, someone who has mentored most of us.

He has repeatedly said to us, which we must remember as members of the Congressional Black Caucus: We must exercise our power and our message. We must speak truth to power. And we must understand that on days that are bad and days that are weak, we are the strength. We are the Members that the American people who look like me look for. We are leaders.

Often, people will say: What is it that the Congressional Black Caucus stands for? What is it that the Congressional Black Caucus does?

Well, let me just tell you, the third most powerful man in the United States Congress is a part of the Congressional Black Caucus. We have six members of the Congressional Black Caucus that make up full chairs of committees and more than 22 that represent subcommittee chairs.

Tonight, as we talk about infrastructure--roads, bridges, broadband, waterways--we also talk about care, human care, human infrastructure.

Madam Speaker, it gives me great honor to yield to Congressman James Clyburn.

Madam Speaker, I thank the majority whip for setting the stage for us tonight to talk about traditional and nontraditional infrastructure, especially broadband. I think we all learned a message about the value of going beyond what the tradition is, and certainly broadband does that for us.

Earlier, Madam Speaker, I had the distinct pleasure of saying how honored I would be to be joined by our coanchor tonight, Congressman Ritchie Torres from New York.

I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Torres) for him to make an opening statement as we coanchor tonight.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for those eye- opening remarks.

Madam Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to yield the floor to Congressman Bobby Scott. Congressman Scott hails from Virginia's Third Congressional District. A proud member of the Congressional Black Caucus, he is also one of those six chairs who I referenced earlier. He is chair of the Committee on Education and Labor. He is a scholar. He is a lawyer. He also takes the lead role when we talk about the Congressional Black Caucus and how we plan for the future not only for education and childcare, but also how we plan for the Congressional Black Caucus' budget.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Scott), my colleague and friend.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his remarks. Congressman Bobby Scott is right. Tonight is about building back better. Tonight is about the Congressional Black Caucus demonstrating our power, our message.

Madam Speaker, as I talk about our power and our message, it gives me great pleasure to yield the floor to Congressman Andre Carson, who hails from Indiana's Seventh Congressional District. He is the grandson of a legend, someone who served in this House, someone who I had the opportunity to know and to witness her work in Congresswoman Julia Carson.

Tonight, my friend, my colleague, a leader when we talk about intelligence or counterterrorism, when we talk about looking at the future and how we stand up for infrastructure. He serves on the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, so he comes to us this evening to share his thoughts on how the Congressional Black Caucus can help with this infrastructure plan.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Carson).

Madam Speaker, I thank Congressman Carson. I thank him for reminding us that America's infrastructure is in desperate need of investment. That is what this is about.

Talking about investment, Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. Lawrence), the second vice chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, the chair of the Women's Caucus, someone who understands infrastructure probably more than most of us. You see, when she started as a postal worker before she worked her way up, she was in the community and on those roads. She was traveling across those bridges, and she was listening to people. That is why her constituents voted her to be mayor. As mayor, we certainly understand the things that you are hit with the most, our infrastructure, our roads, our bridges, our care for human infrastructure.

Madam Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence. She is absolutely right; this is a public issue. This is a racial justice issue because we know our roads, our bridges, and our water systems are crumbling. We know our electric grid is at risk of catastrophic outages. We know many schools are crumbling from lack of attention and neglect. Too many lack access to affordable housing, and too many lack access to childcare and education.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Adams). We call her our HBCU czar. She is the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus' HBCU caucus, historically Black colleges and universities. She is also more than that. She has spent a lifetime educating children and college students.

She serves on the powerful Financial Services Committee, and she has a strong voice on the Education and Labor Committee and Agriculture Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Alma Adams for her comments.

It is always a pleasure when we have the opportunity to work together. And I say to Congressman Torres that that is what we are going to do tonight.

I could not think of a better segue than to pitch it to Representative Torres. We have two members of the Congressional Black Caucus from the great State of New York. I am so used to saying the great State of Ohio, but tonight we have two freshman members of the Congressional Black Caucus who have been great supporters to our message, our power, who have been fearless leaders.

So at this time, I say to Congressman Torres, my coanchor, that I think it would be best for him to yield the floor to and make some remarks about Congressman Jamaal Bowman who will speak next.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Torres.)

Madam Speaker, I thank Congressman Bowman for reminding us of our history, as well as the need.

I am sure if Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee was at this microphone tonight, Congressman Torres, she would look to you and she would say, let's get this done. She would look to you and she would remind us that part of this bold action means we must use all of our available resources.

She would remind us, in 2017, that the Republicans used the reconciliation process twice. Oh, how I remember how they used it against the Affordable Care Act. And how I remember that they used it not only for taking away American's healthcare, but a second time to pass the GOP tax scam of 2017, in giving more money to those in the top 1 percent.

But, tonight, we have heard from the top of our leadership. We have heard from Members from across the United States.

Now it gives me great pleasure to bring our last speaker to the podium. He is also our newest Member to Congress. He hails from the great State of Louisiana. He is someone who is no stranger to being an elected official. He is someone who has dedicated his life to serving the people. He has been successful. He is here in his own right, serving on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, as well as the Small Business Committee.

Madam Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to yield to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Carter), my colleague and friend.

Madam Speaker, how much time do we have left, please?

Then let me close by saying thank you to all of the Members of the Congressional Black Caucus. It was clear tonight that infrastructure is not only a big word, but it is a big deal, which encompasses many concepts, which comprises modern American infrastructure.

For some Members we have heard tonight, it is through traditional roads and bridges and waterways. For others, it is broadband and it is housing, it is human care.

Regardless of definition, the Congressional Black Caucus is ready to stand in the gap to support legislation and policies that will help infrastructure invest in America's future so we can build back better.

Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Torres) to say thank you to our Members.

Strong. Congressional Black Caucus, our power, our message.

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

Madam Speaker, we cannot change the future if we can't acknowledge the past. Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated and commemorated ending of slavery in the United States. Emancipation did not free all slaves, only those in the Confederate States. Independence is freedom for all people.

I rise today in strong support of S. 475, a top priority of the Congressional Black Caucus, to enshrine Juneteenth as a legal public holiday and a bill with tremendous historical implications for our Nation.

Madam Speaker, I thank you, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, for your work.

I thank Speaker Nancy Pelosi for speaking truth to power on this floor.

Lastly, as the chair of the powerful Congressional Black Caucus, I stand here leading our 58 members saying to you: We are the conscience of the Congress.

And today, I ask all of my Members to join us. Let us unite and pass this bill.

Madam Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Waters for managing this time.

To the gentleman from New York, what an honor it is for me to stand on this House floor as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, as a Black woman, to urge my colleagues to support the Harlem Hellfighters Congressional Gold Medal Act.

We have heard so much about them, and I am proud to join them, giving them the recognition that they deserve. These men of this segregated unit fought bravely in the First World War and distinguished themselves in battle across France. The men of the 369th Infantry Regiment, the Harlem Hellfighters, are an important chapter in the long history of Black Americans serving our country.

So often we talk about Black history, but it is important to know that Black history is American history. And, today, we stand here united as Americans, Democrats, Republicans, asking our colleagues to make sure that we recognize the Harlem Hellfighters for the great work, the great bravery, for what they did for this country.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include any extraneous materials on the subject of this Special Order.

Madam Speaker, I rise this evening for the Congressional Black Caucus' Special Order hour, the CBC's Celebration of Life of Congressman Alcee L. Hastings, and to echo: Our Power, Our Message.

The Special Order hour is generally regarded as a solemn moment and gives the yCBC an opportunity to speak directly to the American people and to reflect on ideas and policies critical to our constituents.

I can't think of a better way to share the life and legacy of our friend and colleague. To his family, to Patricia, to his son, Alcee--or ``Jody,'' as we called him--to his daughter, granddaughters, and all watching, we say: Thank you for sharing Alcee with us.

Lastly, on behalf of the 56 members of the Congressional Black Caucus, we say: Thank you, Alcee, for a job well done.

Because it is without a doubt I can tell you that Alcee left this place, the people's House, better than he found it. All of us were enriched by his dapper style, his keen intellect, and his larger-than- life presence. You never had to guess what Alcee thought or believed. He made it clear, whether you liked it or not. But he was the same man on the United States House floor; in the powerful Rules Committee; or in greeting foreign dignitaries under the auspices of the Helsinki Commission as he was on the streets of Florida, where he served his constituents so well.

Madam Speaker, to all gathered here today, I say to our brother: You will be sorely missed.

We will miss his smile. We will miss his wise counsel. And as I look to my left, in that chair, where he sat faithfully, we salute and honor him. Alcee did it his way.

Madam Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to yield tonight's anchor of the Special Order hour paying tribute to a legend, to a friend, to a colleague, to the gentlewoman from Texas, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee.

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee got to know Congressman Alcee Hastings in a very special way. Both scholars, both liking to debate, both being very clear in their message, both members of the Congressional Black Caucus. Oh, how great it was to watch Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee and Congressman Alcee Hastings take on an issue and mentor someone like me.

Madam Speaker, with great pleasure I turn the microphone over to Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who will manage the rest of the hour, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great honor to thank our co- chair, the gentlewoman from Texas, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, the CBC's parliamentarian, a true constitutional scholar, and someone who is fighting for us every day to reauthorize the Voting Rights Act, and her co-anchor, Congressman Ritchie Torres, from New York, but he would say the Bronx. Tonight, he is in the Speaker's chair.

I am very honored to have as our guest co-anchor today Congresswoman Terri Sewell, another scholar, another lawyer, a person who has led us every year across that bridge. She is known as a daughter of Selma.

Tonight is about Our Power, Our Message. As we also celebrate Women's History Month and International Women's Day, it is fitting that our anchors tonight are women.

I rise this evening for the Congressional Black Caucus' Special Order hour, the first-annual John Lewis Special Order hour, on the 56th anniversary of the Bloody Sunday march, and to echo Our Power, Our Message. You will hear that a lot tonight.

This is a solemn moment and gives us the opportunity to speak directly, Mr. Speaker, to the American people and reflect on the critical importance of voting and voting rights in our country and on why we must do everything in our power to fight attempts to curb voting participation and continue to promote and advance voting rights.

Fifty-six years ago, our late colleague Congressman John Lewis, a true

American hero, alongside hundreds of others, marched and risked his life to protect the voice of the many. His courage, and that of so many others, brought us the Voting Rights Act of 1965, a law passed by a bipartisan Congress whose conscience had been shocked awake.

These Members of the Congress, Republicans and Democrats, could no longer turn their eyes from the brutality that they witnessed on television at the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. They knew it was time in history to come together for justice against all the injustices.

Without the Voting Rights Act, Mr. Speaker, our democracy would be in name only.

We are here tonight at another inflection point in this country, where we shall decide to follow the forces of partisanship, divisiveness, and anger, or we will do the right thing. I am so pleased to be here today for that right thing. That right thing is for us to do good and to make good trouble because history will judge all of us on our good trouble.

Let me end by saying, tonight, the Congressional Black Caucus stands here to remind you, as our late great brother, friend, and colleague John Lewis said:

I say to the people here today, we must be prepared because

if you believe in something, if you believe in something, you

have to go for it. As individuals, we may not live to see the

end.

Tonight, through our message, the Congressional Black Caucus will continue his fight in his name and the names of all others who laid the foundation for the work we do. I call on all Members to do the right thing because it is always the right time to do what is right.

Let's pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and H.R. 1 for the people.

Madam Speaker, 8 minutes, 46 seconds on George Floyd's neck. ``I can't breathe.''

Say their names, Madam Speaker.

Breonna Taylor, Casey Goodson, Jr., Andre Hill, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and so many more.

While we can never bring them back and we cannot undo the pain their families, friends, and communities have felt, we can do everything in our power if we unite and pass this bill.

As the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, I urge all of my colleagues, Democrats and Republicans, to join us.

Our power, our message, is to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.

The right should read the bill. The right should quote from the bill. Show me those words in the bill to defund the police.

I will show you accountability. I will show you transparency. I will show you justice.

The American people are calling on Congress to act. Yes, Black Lives Matter.

Let's meet the moment and turn agony into action. Let's pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.