Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I am here tonight as a daughter of Alabama, as the Congresswoman representing Georgia's Fifth Congressional District in the seat that was held by Congressman John Lewis for over 30 years.

Mr. Speaker, Congressman John Lewis already laid the blueprint for us. We are here as the Congressional Black Caucus to honor him 56 years after Bloody Sunday. We have an obligation to get in good trouble and continue Congressman Lewis' legacy.

As Congressman Lewis told us, when we see something that is not right, when we see something that is not fair, when we see something that is not just, we have an obligation to speak up, to stand up, to find a way to get in the way. As we continue the work for the people on this floor, we will do that in the legacy of John Robert Lewis. Thus, our power, that is our message.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday marked the 56th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, the day my friend, mentor and predecessor, the late Congressman John Lewis and hundreds of demonstrators nearly lost their lives attempting to peacefully cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in the interest of voting rights.

The images of Black men, women being brutally beaten by police officers wielding billy clubs and tear gas are still haunting. The violence sent many of the activists to the hospital because of the extent of their injuries. Congressman Lewis often remarked that he ``shed a little blood'' on that bridge that day, when his skull was crack by state troopers--people who were supposed to protect and serve. Why? Because, people who look like him, look like me, wanted the right to vote, the right to have a voice in our democracy.

Bloody Sunday is still one of the darkest days in our nation's history, but we commemorate it because the courage and the violence Congressman Lewis and the over 600 marchers endured put the atrocities of this nation centerstage for the world to see and served as a catalyst for the Voting Rights Act being signed into law.

More than five decades later, after that horrific display of intimidation and overt suppression and signing of the VRA, we are still fighting for voting rights for communities of color. It is shameful, that the same frustrations our ancestors felt--being denied at the ballot box for failing a literacy test, having to travel far distances to vote only to be told they were at the wrong polling location, having to pay a poll tax just to vote--are the same frustrations with our democratic process that people of color are experiencing today. These tactics are once again rearing their ugly head and it is disheartening that some of the same forces are trying to impose barriers to the ballot box using old tactics, new tricks.

In Georgia, legislators just passed a bill that restricts access to absentee ballots, restricts ballot dropbox locations and early voting hours. We saw in the 2020 election how poll closures created long lines in Georgia. And, now, to add insult to injury, Georgia lawmakers are proposing making it a crime to give people food and water while they stand hours in line to vote--food and water! It is shameful and inhumane.

There is not a day that goes by that I don't think about Congressman Lewis. We all miss him dearly. This year, the Bloody Sunday Jubilee weekend was not the same without him. However, it is bittersweet that he is not here to witness the country he loved, the country he had such high hopes for still making it harder--not easier--for people to vote.

But as the first Black woman to represent Georgia's 5th District, a seat formally held by Congressman Lewis and Ambassador Andrew Young, I came to Congress to assure my constituents and the American people I will not let the trauma suffered on March 7, 1965 or battles fought for the sake for voting rights since then be in vain. The spirit of Congressman Lewis lives in all of us and we will protect his legacy. With our power, our message.

Madam Speaker, it is our duty to not only do the work of the people, but to ensure that people have a voice in our democracy.

H.R. 1 amplifies the voice of the people, empowers individuals to shape our democracy, and breaks down barriers to voting. It is historymaking by design, as a portion of H.R. 1 was written by my predecessor, Congressman John Lewis. We must honor his legacy and take this necessary step forward because Georgians and all people in this country deserve to retain their right to accessible elections.

Madam Speaker, I have added provisions to this bill that underscore not only the importance of voting, but making it easier for hardworking people to do so. And making it easier, not harder to vote, should always be our main concern.

Madam Speaker, this week, Georgia's legislators moved forward to further restrict Black and Brown communities from voting by enacting new ID laws for absentee ballot applications and limiting the use of ballot drop boxes--old tactics, but the same tricks. We cannot let self-serving politicians stack the deck through voter suppression and discrimination.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the passage of H.R. 1 so that we can make it easier for people to cast their ballots and have their voices be heard.

Madam Speaker, what we saw happen to George Floyd was not an isolated incident. It was a modern-day lynching caught on camera, and it must stop.

Black men, women, and children are done dying. We are done dying at the hands of police.

Law enforcement should protect and serve. But in communities of color, we don't have the luxury of making that assumption. Many Black people get the talk, instructions on how to act when encountering police to increase the likelihood of returning home alive. These are survival tactics that my husband and I don't want to have to pass on to my young Black son, but we must.

For Black and Brown people everywhere, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. Let's affirm our commitment to root out police brutality and ensure accountability in policing.

Madam Speaker, today I proudly rise in support of the Equality Act.

Today, I am the voice of so many people, like my constituent, Chanel; my friend, James; my sister, Danielle and her fiance, Marlena; my staffer, Kristina and her partner, Vivian; and all of my friends back home on the front lines with Georgia Equality.

For far too long, the inherent rights of LGBTQ people have hung in the balance. I am in Congress to ensure that everyone can share in the promise of America, no matter who they love or how they identify.

LGBTQ people have lived in fear of punishment and retaliation for far too long. The right to exist in this country is not a privilege, but an inalienable right.

I have the great honor of representing Atlanta, a city vibrant with a long history of LGBTQ-plus pride. To my LGBTQ-plus constituents, know that it is my honor to represent you. I hear you. I see you. I stand with you. The promise of America excludes no one.

Madam Speaker, today my Congressional Black Caucus colleagues and I observe Black History Month and celebrate 50 years of Our Power, Our Message.

For 50 years, the Congressional Black Caucus has uplifted the voices of Black people and other marginalized communities so that they can share in the promise of America for all.

For the 117th Congress, the Congressional Black Caucus marks a new milestone with 58 members, the largest membership in CBC history. The next 50 years of Our Power, Our Message is strong.

We are here in D.C. witnessing more Black history being made with the first Black woman, HBCU grad, our soror, and a member of our Congressional Black Caucus serving as Vice President of the United States. Indeed, our power and our message are strong.

While we continue to make great strides, it is not lost on me that 2020 was a difficult year for Black people across this country. Collectively, we battled a pandemic that continues to infect and kill Black people at disproportionate rates.

In my home State of Georgia, Black people are also experiencing some of the highest levels of unemployment in decades. By November 2020, Black Georgians had filed 71 percent more unemployment claims than White, Hispanic, Latinx, and Asian-American workers combined.

Being Black in Georgia, we fight daily for what so many take for granted in this country, the right to vote, the right to the fair and equal treatment that George Floyd didn't get, the right to be, the right to exist.

Today, in particular, we reflect on how far we have to go. One year ago, Ahmaud Arbery was hunted down and murdered, simply because he was a Black man going for a jog in Brunswick, Georgia.

His murder by white supremacists and the subsequent delays in realizing justice may seem new, but Black people have dealt with systemic racism for centuries in America, and we are here to break these structures and dismantle these systems using our power and our message as the Congressional Black Caucus.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the resolution to remove Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene from her committee assignments.

Her words and actions tout dangerous and deadly QAnon conspiracy theories, threaten our national security, and put the lives of every person at risk.

On January 6, we witnessed what can happen when our leaders spread baseless conspiracy theories and spew violent rhetoric that echoes the same call to violence that resulted in a domestic terrorist attack on the United States Capitol.

We can't control what Representative Greene does and says, but we can control how we operate as a governing body that holds its officials accountable.

I am particularly concerned about her appointment to the Education and Labor Committee, which not only has oversight of the education of our children, but also has the responsibility to ensure students have safe environments to learn.

I watched in horror at the footage of Representative Greene berating a Parkland shooting survivor, a teenager who came to Capitol Hill seeking help from lawmakers to put an end to mass shootings and prevent other high school students from having to witness the senseless murder of their classmates and teachers.

This is personal for me. As a mom of my Carter, who just started kindergarten, and as a survivor of a school shooting my senior year of high school that claimed the life of a classmate, I still live with that trauma today.

My colleagues on the other side of the aisle say they disapprove of Representative Greene's actions. However, disapproval without action means nothing.

This is about doing what is right. As Dr. King stated, it is never the wrong time to do the right thing.

Madam Speaker, in the words of the late Congressman John Lewis, ``When you see something that is not right, not just, not fair, you have a moral obligation to say something, to do something.''

Today we must do something and vote to impeach President Donald J. Trump.