Madam Speaker, a huge thank you to our incredible leader, my neighbor, my friend, my colleague, my leader, the honorable Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who has the pulse of our country firmly in her grip. I have watched this woman go…
Madam Speaker, a huge thank you to our incredible leader, my neighbor, my friend, my colleague, my leader, the honorable Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who has the pulse of our country firmly in her grip.
I have watched this woman go from country to country fighting for justice and what is right and what is pure. We can't thank her enough in recognition of the great work she does.
She stands at this rostrum, and she talks about the atrocities in our country while she continues to fight for atrocities in other countries. I applaud her. I thank her for her incredible leadership. It has been a pleasure to work with her, and America has been a better place because of her.
For decades, the CBC has fought for justice, truth, and equality. From within the halls of government that once permitted our ancestors to be enslaved, Congress after Congress, the CBC is at the center of many negotiations and conversations to better the lives of the American people.
The 117th Congress was an exceptional example of CBC's leadership. The CBC led the fight for a national infrastructure investment, so that instead of bridges on the brink and toxic sludge, Americans will have resilient infrastructure and clean, safe, reliable drinking water.
Today, the CBC leads the fight to reduce child poverty. Through policies like the expanded child tax credit and SNAP, we know that instead of setting kids up to struggle, we are setting them up to succeed.
Through policies like the bipartisan Safer Communities Act, we can improve public safety and help prevent terrible, hate-driven crimes like we saw in Buffalo, Uvalde, or any city in the U.S.A. It seems to happen far, far too often.
In Louisiana, because of the actions of the CBC and great leaders in this body, we have been able to have kids not have to sit outside of a McDonald's to use the internet. Since Katrina, since the hurricanes that have wrecked our community, since COVID that has wrecked our world, we know that things like broadband are no longer a luxury but a necessity.
Yet, in many impoverished communities in my district, people would not have access. Many rural areas would not have access to the internet for telehealth, for education, for business purposes, for everyday life, for shopping. These things would not exist. But I am proud today, because of the efforts of this body and because of the CBC, we are able to deliver and bring those things home to the people of Louisiana and America.
We know that because of the infrastructure bill that is now signed into law, Louisiana is seeing dollars flowing that they have never seen before. Bridges that have been on the brink of disaster are being repaired. The opportunity for us to have transportation between New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lake Charles, and beyond is now a reality.
The ability to invest money in areas in my State that have been plagued with chemical poisoning, have been plagued with disease, because of the placement of these facilities that have historically settled themselves in communities of Black and Brown. No longer will our communities be the path of least resistance. No longer will people have to literally die for their jobs.
We can have coexistence, but coexistence begins with everyone recognizing that the single most important commodity that anyone has is its people. Making sure that we have safe environments and clean environments where our children can be educated, where families can live, where families can earn a good living and enjoy clean air, that is what we fight for at the CBC every day.
Louisiana will be the beneficiaries of such efforts. We will continue to fight to make sure that this caucus and this body understands and no longer looks away and says, ``business as usual.'' No longer can we afford to watch children go without. As my dear colleague and chairman of the Education and Labor Committee said moments ago, more money has been invested in HBCUs under this 117th Congress than ever in the history of our country.
More money has been put into infrastructure, since the very creation of the Interstate Highway System, under this Congress, and this CBC has played a pivotal role in making these things happen.
But it doesn't stop here. We must continue to fight. We must continue to go out and make sure that we tell our story: That we are here, we are working, and we will not let anyone turn the clock back on the efforts that we have fought so valiantly for.
I am so proud to serve with giants in the CBC, people that have worked tirelessly for decades to make a difference in our community.
There is a lot of work yet to be done. With the leadership of Chair Beatty, Whip Clyburn, and many others, the CBC will continue to secure major wins for the American people, because they deserve it.
Madam Speaker, we will continue to fight. Failure is not an option.
Madam Speaker, as a senior member of the Committees on the Judiciary, Homeland Security, and the Budget, as well as the Congressional Black Caucus, I am proud to stand beside my sisters and brothers to explore the achievements of the Congressional Black Caucus throughout the 117th Congress.
I would like to thank Congresswoman Beatty, the Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, for organizing this Special Order today. I would also like to thank Speaker Pelosi for her outstanding leadership throughout this Congress.
Members of the Congressional Black Caucus have been at the forefront of every major legislative achievement this 117th Congress. These achievements have pushed for an increase in equity for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and people from all backgrounds in the United States.
Members of the Congressional Black Caucus strongly supported the President's goal of passing legislation that will significantly reduce healthcare costs for all Americans and address the very real climate crisis we are all facing.
The Inflation Reduction Act will significantly reduce prescription drug costs and expand health insurance coverage for millions of Black Americans, relieving financial strains on individuals and families.
Among adults 65 and older, Black Medicare beneficiaries are 1.5 times more likely than their white counterparts to have trouble affording medications. They are also 2 times as likely to not fill needed prescriptions due to high drug costs.
5.8 million Medicare beneficiaries are African American, which amounts to 10 percent of all beneficiaries.
Altogether, 5-to-7 million Medicare beneficiaries will see their prescription drug costs go down because of the provision allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription drug costs.
3.3 million Medicare beneficiaries will have their insulin costs capped at $35 a month.
Seniors will also have their yearly prescription drug costs capped at $2,000.
The Inflation Reduction Act will enable free or low-cost health insurance to remain available, allowing over half a million more Black Americans to have health insurance coverage next year, compared to what the situation would be without the IRA.
The Inflation Reduction Act is also the most aggressive legislation on climate change and clean energy in American history.
This new law will help bring down energy costs for millions of Black Americans, and it includes very strong protections and programs to promote Environmental Justice.
The average American family is estimated to see an annual $1,025 in energy savings, as the Inflation Reduction Act tackles one of the largest drivers of inflation--oil and gas prices--by lowering fuel and electricity costs and improving energy efficiency.
This bill will prevent thousands of premature deaths by improving the air we breathe, with communities most burdened by pollution enjoying disproportionate health benefits.
The Inflation Reduction Act alone will help get America 80 percent of the way to achieving its share of greenhouse gas reductions, and the majority of the way toward President Biden's goal of cutting carbon pollution in half this decade.
The members of the Congressional Black Caucus were also leaders in the passage of the Presidents Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The once-in-a-generation investment into our nation's infrastructure addresses the disparate impacts of pollution on communities of color.
Black, Hispanic, Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native Americans--especially those who reside in urban communities--are more likely to be negatively impacted by pollution. Black people are almost three times more likely to die from asthma related causes than their white counterparts.
My constituents have already seen the magnificent results of this once-in-a-generation piece of legislation.
Houston METRO was granted a $21 million grant to buy battery electric buses and charging infrastructure to replace aging diesel buses that have exceeded their useful life.
The electric buses will improve air quality and health--for riders and residents in Houston's historically disadvantaged communities by eliminating nearly 18,000 tons of greenhouse gases over the next 20 years.
The passage of the law also allowed me to work closely with Secretary Buttigieg to secure $40 million dollars in funding for Bush Intercontinental Airport. IAH's terminal redevelopment program is the largest project in the airport's 53-year-history.
I am very pleased and proud that the CBC's priorities for the 117th Congress included some of my legislation, including the creation of the new Juneteenth federal holiday.
On June 17, 2021, President Biden signed into law the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act, establishing June 19th as an annual national holiday.
Since I had placed the creation of a Juneteenth federal holiday on the national agenda--introducing H.R. 7232, on June 18, 2020 and reintroducing the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act in the 117th Congress--witnessing it become law was a true honor and an exhilarating occasion.
It was the culmination of years--even decades--of efforts to have the nation formally recognize the importance of Juneteenth and inculcate it into the pantheon of landmark national occasions with profound significance for the country and all Americans.
That day at the White House, I celebrated the joyful, yet tearful signing ceremony joined by my congressional colleagues, members of the Congressional Black Caucus, representatives of the numerous organizations who toiled in the vineyards for so long, and the first African American Vice-President.
It spoke volumes that the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act had overwhelming bipartisan support, passing by unanimous consent in the Senate and a 415 to 14 vote in the House the next day.
Although I had introduced resolutions recognizing Juneteenth since 2013, establishing Juneteenth as a national holiday was a quantum leap further. Enacting the holiday into law was much more than commemorating the historic events associated with Juneteenth.
Making Juneteenth a national holiday asserts that the historic occasion is a fundamental part of American history. It elevates Juneteenth into the consciousness of all Americans. It reinforces the point that Black history is American history.
National recognition of Juneteenth creates a channel for teaching and learning the truth about slavery which preceded it and both Reconstruction and the Jim Crow era that followed it. Amid this era of misinformation, having the national imprimatur on Juneteenth will launch discussions and awareness of the Black experience in America that will add to multi-ethnic cohesion and mutual respect.
Since the 1800s, Juneteenth has been as important to African Americans as July 4th is to all Americans. Consider also that, at the end of the Revolutionary War, while patriots were celebrating the end of colonialism and subjugation, 450,000 African-Americans were trapped in chattel slavery: our country's original sin. Black Americans were considered and treated as property, not as people.
Juneteenth is special because, on June 19, 1865, General Gordon Granger, the Commanding Officer of the District of Texas, rode into Galveston, Texas, announcing the end of the Civil War and the freedom of the last Americans enslaved in the Confederate states.
The announcement of freedom belatedly freed 250,000 slaves in Texas months after the end of the Civil War and two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation, signed by President Abraham Lincoln, went into effect.
Texas's newly freed men and women reacted first with shock and then with jubilation when General Granger read these words of General Order No. 3:
``The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection therefore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired laborer.''
Until then, slave owners withheld freedom by not informing those whom they enslaved and who enabled their wealth. It was necessary for the Union Army to take control of an area and announce freedom for it to take effect. Because of Galveston's remote location, it was not until June 19, 1865, that the Union Army arrived.
General Granger's reading of General Order No. 3 ended chattel slavery, the institutionalized system of perpetual servitude that held generations of Africans in bondage in the our country for 248 years.
No longer would human beings be forced into a legalized system of unending, lifelong slavery that was known for gruesome murders, dehumanizing rapes, and tortuous beatings and floggings with leather whips tipped with metal to rip flesh from bone. No longer would the atrocities of slavery be permitted by federal laws.
Juneteenth was first celebrated in 1866 under the direction of the Freedmen's Bureau and was often called ``Jubilee Day''. As freed men and women left Galveston to begin their lives anew in other states, the retelling of their Juneteenth memories led to annual celebrations in many other states.
Recognizing the importance of this date, former slaves coined the word ``Juneteenth'' to mark the joyous occasion.
Yet, in some cases, white officials outwardly resisted the holiday, barring the use of public property for the festivities. So, church grounds were used for the festivities, and, as freed men and women achieved upward economic mobility, some communities purchased land for Juneteenth celebrations.
One of the earliest documented land purchases in the name of Juneteenth was organized by Rev. Jack Yates. This fundraising effort yielded $1,000 and the purchase of Emancipation Park in Houston, Texas.
In the town of Mexia, Texas, the local Juneteenth organization purchased Booker T. Washington Park, which became the Juneteenth celebration site in 1898.
Along with parades, prayer readings, performances and cookouts among finely attired attendees, Juneteenth community-centric activities informed Black Americans about voting, promoted education, and showcased the achievements of African Americans and the community.
Perhaps because the holiday carried the message of empowerment, Juneteenth activities were sometimes interrupted and halted by white landowners demanding that their laborers return to work.
Juneteenth continued to be highly revered in Texas decades later, with many former slaves and their descendants making an annual pilgrimage back to Galveston to celebrate June 19th.
Juneteenth remains the oldest known celebration of slavery's demise, commemorating freedom while acknowledging the sacrifices and contributions made by courageous African Americans towards, in more recent years, making our great nation the more conscious and accepting country that it has become.
Juneteenth was, and is, a living symbol of freedom for people who were denied hope of being free.
It serves as a reminder that, as the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, ``Freedom is never free,'' and as African American labor leader A. Phillip Randolph often said, ``Freedom is never given. It is won.''
Truer words were never spoken.
We should all recognize the power and truth of those guideposts. Juneteenth calls upon us to pause to remember the enormous price paid by all Americans in our country's quest to realize its promise.
Juneteenth honors the end of the 400 years of suffering that African Americans endured under slavery and celebrates the legacy of perseverance that has become the hallmark of the African American experience in the struggle for equality.
As the poet Langston Hughes reminds us in his famous poem, ``Mother to Son,'' that life in America for African Americans ``ain't been no crystal stair.''
The Jim Crow era in America was marked by violence and terrorism against African Americans as our ancestors sought to activate the promises of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
Juneteenth celebrations declined in the 1920s and 1930s partly due to the Great Depression's severe economic difficulties, but mainly because of the resurgence of heinous hate crimes perpetrated by the Ku Klux Klan to derail African Americans from advancing in society politically and economically.
Despite the New Deal's progress and post-WWII economic policies, discrimination and the lingering impact of slavery largely excluded African Americans from the creation of the modern middle class.
However, the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, and its legal framework for equality, led to a resurrection of Juneteenth celebrations that celebrated the achievements of Black Americans, reinforcing our community's sense of identity and pride.
Juneteenth became an opportunity for us to showcase our successes and our contributions to society, while providing the government with a mirror into demographic disparities and a demand to recommit itself to serving all Americans.
Amid this renewed spirit of identity, pride, and equality, Texas state representative Al Edwards introduced a bill, H.R. 1016, to make Juneteenth a state holiday. The bill became law, and on January 1, 1980, Juneteenth officially became a Texas state holiday, making Texas the first state to officially recognize this celebration of emancipation.
Representative Edwards actively sought to spread the observance of Juneteenth across America. In the two decades after Texas acted, only a few other states did so. But in the past twenty years, a wave of states followed Texas's lead. By 2021, 49 states and the District of Columbia had commemorated or recognized Juneteenth.
Nonagenarian activist Opal Lee, affectionately known as the ``Grandmother of Juneteenth,'' also deserves much credit for the federal holiday. Lee pressed for the holiday for years, and in 2016 at age 89, walked from her home in Fort Worth to Washington, DC, to deliver a petition and raise attention to) the holiday's importance.
Today, after decades of rallies, petitions, editorials, and legislation calling for Juneteenth to be a national holiday, we celebrate the 2nd Juneteenth National Independence Day.
The transformative significance of Juneteenth since the first celebration in 1866 is a remarkable tale in American history.
Though it is now recognized at the national level, it does not erase our nation's racist history in straying from its original promise that ``all men (actually, people) are created equal.''
Every Juneteenth, I return to Frederick Douglass' speech best known as ``What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?''
The answer to this question is Juneteenth. In 2022, we can affirm that June 19, 1865, signifies the start of the American Promise that must be fulfilled and made real for all Americans, including the descendants of slaves.
To say 1776 marks the beginning of our free nation begs the question, ``What does freedom mean if we are not all free?''
Juneteenth remains a pivotal moment, signifying the starting point in the emergence from racial oppression that was endured by generations with perseverance, resilience, and determination.
This vision is shared by millions of Americans who have held fast to the promise of freedom in our nation while fighting for basic human rights. We know that the struggle which began in 1619 did not end with the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.
The fight did not end two years later in 1865, nor 100 years after that with the passage of the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts.
The fight for our freedom continues as a common thread in the fabric of this country. But we also recognize the lack of freedom that persists for many, as well as the injustices, abuse, and discrimination that continue in today's America.
The true power of Juneteenth lies both in the commemoration of the past and the possibilities of the future.
When VAWA first became law in 1994, it represented a historic shift in the federal government's role in combating violent crimes committed against women.
Due to the importance of the legislation and resulting success, VAWA was reauthorized on an overwhelming bipartisan basis in 2000, 2005, and 2013.
Recognizing the importance of the law and knowing that the law was set to expire at the end of the year, I introduced the ``Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2018'' in September of 2018.
The reauthorization strengthened and enhanced the vital services provided under the law to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.
Despite our best efforts, the bill was not brought to the floor, and VAWA was allowed to expire at the end of 2018.
I continued to work, along with other members, victims, survivors, experts, and advocates, to ensure not only that VAWA would be reauthorized but that we enhanced the law and made it better, more effective, and more responsive to the needs of those seeking to heal after suffering trauma.
Therefore, I introduced the bill, HR 1620, the ``Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2021''.
This version of the reauthorization represented countless hours of discussions to ensure that we refined and improved upon the earlier iteration of the bill.
H.R. 1620 passed in the House and served as foundation for the bill that was introduced in the Senate and was eventually included in H.R. 2471, the ``Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022'' (the Omnibus) and signed by the President.
Thankfully, after many hard-fought battles, we were finally able to get the VAWA Reauthorization across the finish line this year.
Many of the provisions I included in my bills in 2018 and 2021 carried over to the Senate version of VAWA as well as the Omnibus, such as:
The reauthorization of vital grant programs like the Services Training Offices Prosecutors, or STOP grants, administered by the Department of Justice, which allows the use of STOP grants to develop the most effective law enforcement tools and protocols for preventing domestic violence homicides and requires state, territorial, local, and tribal governments to certify that they have established and implemented such programs to be eligible for grants.
Creating Hope through Outreach Options, Services, and Education, or the CHOOSE program, which clarifies that funding under the CHOOSE program for children and youth is being provided for the core areas of VAWA--domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking--and that services that target youth should also incorporate youth in underserved communities and sex trafficking and bullying as elements when part of a comprehensive youth violence response program.
The preservation of funding for sexual assault services programs, transitional housing grants for victims, grants to states territories, and Indian tribes in rural communities, and grants to support families in the justice system with a history of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking.
Just today, the House passed my bipartisan bill, H.R. 7566, the ``No Trafficking Zones Act.'' The bill would ensure that schools across the country, including institutions of higher education, are safe spaces for learning and academic exploration--free from the menace of sex trafficking.
As predators often prey on communities of color, this bill is a strong measure to fight against sex trafficking that often targets young African Americans and other people of color.
H.R. 7566 would establish a sentencing enhancement of up to five years in several instances:
First, in the case of any person who commits the offense of sex trafficking within a primary or secondary school zone or on or within 1,000 feet of the premises of a school-sponsored activity or premises owned by an institution of higher education;
Second, for any person who commits the offense of coercion and enticement of a minor enrolled in a primary or secondary school or a person enrolled in an institution of higher education--to travel in interstate or foreign commerce and engage in criminal sexual activity-- while the minor is in a school zone, or on, or within 1,000 feet of, premises where a school-sponsored activity is taking place or while the person is on, or within 1,000 feet of, premises owned by the institution of higher education;
And, third, for any person who commits the offense of coercion and enticement of a minor using the mail or facilities of interstate or foreign commerce--such as text and instant messaging or social media platforms--while the minor who is enrolled in school or an institution of higher education, is in a school zone, or on, or within 1,000 feet of, premises where a school-sponsored activity is taking place or premises owned by an the institution of higher education.
Human trafficking is one of the greatest threats to human rights in the United States. In 2020, 11,193 instances of potential human trafficking were reported to the United States National Human Trafficking Hotline with at least 70 percent of those instances involving sex trafficking, while an estimated 25 percent of all human trafficking victims in the country are in my home state of Texas at any given time--many of whom are minors.
At least 5,359 of trafficking victims and survivors identified through the hotline in 2019 were under the age of 18, and in 2021, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received more than 17,200 reports of suspected child sex trafficking.
Many of these young victims of sex trafficking are students in school systems, colleges, trade schools, and universities across the country.
A 2018 survey reported that in Texas--where No Trafficking Zone legislation passed with bipartisan support earlier this year--55 percent of young sex trafficking survivors were trafficked while at school or school activities and 60 percent of trafficked adults said they were first groomed and solicited for trafficking while on school campuses.
Members of this body know all too well that children are sexually exploited in many ways. Some young people are trafficked by their schoolmates or people they once considered friends.
While traffickers seek out young people who have noticeable vulnerabilities--including problems at school, conflicts at home, or even the need to fill in a tuition gap caused by the loss of a scholarship--no child or young person is truly safe from the schemes of charismatic traffickers bent on exploiting and destroying young lives.
With the proliferation of social media and the myriad ways in which we communicate with one another, traffickers have put these same means of communication to their own use--to find, target, lure, groom, victimize, and exert control over their victims. While buyers are using technology to find and purchase sex anonymously.
Traffickers have infiltrated every known form of communication-- especially the sites, messaging apps, and social media platforms our children use most frequently--leaving young people more vulnerable to manipulation.
Access to the internet, cell phones, and smartphones makes it easier for traffickers and buyers to communicate with children and youth--even when they are at school, in class, or attending school-sponsored activities.
As a result, trafficking has reached the halls, lunchrooms, gyms, dormitories, and classrooms of schools, colleges, and universities in every corner of this nation.
These staggering facts and statistics led me to introduce this bipartisan legislation which the House passed today to protect young Americans from predators.
Last week, the House passed H.R. 8326, the Ensuring a Fair and Accurate Census Act. By reforming the operations of the Census Bureau, this bill--which includes my amendment--would ensure that racial and ethnic equity in the decennial count will be a priority in future Census counts.
My amendment would enhance the bill's operational impact by specifying that the deputy director appoint an official with responsibility to optimize racial and ethnic equity in the Census count. To ensure that equity be a priority, this official would report directly to the director and deputy director.
In light of the decennial count's extremely consequential impact in terms of funding allocation formulas, political district apportionment, and other uses, it is imperative that the Census Bureau elevate racial and ethnic equity to a top priority in its counting strategies and procedures.
My amendment directs the equity official to engage and collaborate with organizations that have influence with racial and ethnic groups, develop strategies and tactics to maximize participation of these populations, and rectify the undercount that has been typical of recent Census counts, especially among immigrants and homeless people.
The status of the efforts to optimize racial and ethnic equity will also be included in the Census Bureau's biannual reports to Congress, to ensure accountability and bolster the likelihood of progress.
Optimization of racial and ethnic equity in the Census count requires designation of a high-ranking official with direct responsibility for achieving this goal and reports directly to the Census leadership.
My amendment establishes that role, makes racial and ethnic equity in the decennial count a priority, specifies key strategies that must be applied, and ensures that Congress receives regular reports about the progress toward the goal.
H.R. 8326 is an excellent bill with vital reforms that uses this opportunity to advance
equity in the Census count. My amendment creates a framework for achieving this objective.
In May of this year, the House passed HR 7309, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2022.
This bill would ensure that more institutions will be able to provide education and job training services; a wider range of curricula will be available that enables learners to become job-ready; and more Americans will be equipped with skills that will jump-start long-term careers.
It would extend the reach of job skills training and employment preparation to all corners of the country and all segments of society. It does so by creating vital national programs and instituting accountability systems that will monitor program operations and success.
One of my two amendments to this bill would ensure that this legislation helps all Americans, specifically communities of color that historically did not benefit equally from workforce development and job skills training programs.
My amendment ensures that HBCUs and other minority-serving educational institutions are eligible and encouraged to apply for maximal benefits under the bill's programs.
My amendment clarifies that, beyond equality, the job training and workforce development programs at HBCUs and minority-serving institutions should be given priority in order to promote equity for students whose ancestors were denied that right. It can be the impetus for a fresh start.
By including and prioritizing HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions, the institutionalized barriers which 1 impeded generational prosperity will be eroded, even if only incrementally and over time. By leveling the playing field, the imbalance of generational wealth will also be rectified.
Diversity and inclusion must always be a priority particularly in future high-growth industries that are essential to our nation's long- term economic growth, success, and job creation strategy.
The Transportation, Housing & Urban Development, Agriculture Appropriations Act passed the House in July of this year with many amendments that I offered.
One of my amendments to this bill specifically benefits HBCUs. It supports the work of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) by increasing its funding by $2,000,000 for use in agriculture research programs at 1890s Institutions, which are land grant colleges at 28 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), as well as Hispanic-serving institutions, and other educational institutions that benefit underrepresented communities.
This amendment promotes NIFA's work at HBCUs with agricultural experiment stations, cooperative forestry, and other innovations to improve our nation's food production through agricultural research, economic analysis, extension, and higher education.
One of ways NIFA achieves its mission is by providing research grants to education institutions, which include 1890s institutions created by the Morrill Act of 1890.
Today, land-grant colleges and universities can be found in 18 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The list includes:
Alabama A&M University
Alcorn State University
Delaware State University
Florida A&M University
Fort Valley State University
Kentucky State University
Langston University
Lincoln University
North Carolina A&T State University
Prairie View A&M University in Texas
South Carolina State University
Southern University System
Tennessee State University
Tuskegee University
University of Arkansas Pine Bluff
University of Maryland Eastern Shore
University of the District of Columbia*
University of the Virgin Islands
Virginia State University
West Virginia State University
HBCUs annually enroll 40 percent of all African American students in 4-year colleges and universities. HBCUs are prominent among research institutions in fields such as:
animal sciences
sustainable agriculture and agriculture economics
toxicology and waste management
conservation and environmental management
business and industrial development
biomedical science
food and nutrition
plant and social sciences
international development
Agricultural research programs at HCBUs help people living in densely populated areas learn ways to eliminate food deserts, increase public education about farming, bolster appreciation for our nation's farmers, and provide new avenues to careers for graduates with degrees in agriculture who seek to enter cutting-edge agricultural research.
This amendment promotes NIFA's work with HBCUs on agricultural experiment stations, cooperative forestry, and other innovations to improve our nation's food production through agricultural research, economic analysis, extension, and higher education.
The funds provided by my amendment supports research and education for helping urban and suburban communities maximize their green space by turning it into productive farming resources to support access to affordable foods.
Since 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the country, wreaking its most bitter toll on communities of color.
Early in the pandemic, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control found that Black Americans were infected with COVID-19 at a rate nearly one and a half times higher than that of whites, were hospitalized at a rate nearly four times higher, and were three times as likely to die from the disease.
On February 8, 2021, I introduced H.R. 936, the ``COVID-19 Delivery Act,'' which strengthens FEMA's role in vaccine distribution.
Specifically, this legislation: (1) authorized FEMA as the National Coordinator of vaccine transport and delivery; (2) supported the safe and effective supply chain transport, delivery, and site use of vaccines; (3) implemented the Center for Disease Control and prevention COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations.
To date I have opened 96 COVID-19 testing sites and 88 vaccination sites in some of the most underserved communities in my district and Houston as a whole.
As an original cosponsor of H.R. 1652 the ``VOCA Fix to Sustain the Crime Victims Fund Act, I helped lead the passage of the bill in the House and on June 22, 2021, President Biden signed the bill into law.
VOCA grants are the primary source of federal funding for thousands of victim service providers around the country, including programs serving victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, trafficking, and drunk driving.
This critical piece of legislation supports vital victim service programs by preventing future cuts to already diminished federal victim service grants.
H.R. 1652 requires the Department of Justice DOJ to deposit all monetary penalties, including from deferred prosecution and non- prosecution agreements, into the Crime Victims Fund. This simple fix prevents future funding cuts that jeopardize programs' ability to serve their communities.
Although the Congressional Black Caucus has had many legendary achievements this Congress, our work is far from done. We will continue to fight for equality and justice by pushing legislation that will better the lives of African Americans, and indeed all Americans around the nation.
Now more than ever, the facts and circumstances facing our nation demonstrate the importance of H.R. 40, which I introduced, and the necessity of placing our nation on the path to reparative justice, as well as providing accountability for injuries inflicted.
H.R. 40 establishes a national commission to examine slavery and discrimination in the colonies and the United States from 1619 to the present and recommend appropriate remedies.
H.R. 40 was first introduced by Congressman John Conyers in 1989. Though many thought it a lost cause, Conyers believed that a day would come when our nation would need to account for the brutal abuse of African Americans during slavery, Jim Crow segregation and the enduring structural racism endemic to our society.
With the rise and normalization of white supremacism during the Trump administration, the discussion of H.R. 40 and the concept of restorative justice gained urgency, garnered attention from mainstream media, and illustrated the need for a national reckoning.
Eradication of structural institutionalized racism requires it. Full empowerment, enfranchisement, and inclusion require it. Genuine equality and equity to overcome injustices require it.
A vital step is an official acknowledgment that Black history IS American history and the Juneteenth holiday has achieved that.
Another key step for reconciliation is the development of a factual, historical record that illuminates the truth about the African American experience amid slavery, Reconstruction, Jim Crow, legalized violence, exclusion, and inequality.
The factual, truthful record will expose the fallacies of revisionism and misinformation which, in recent years, have become the favorite tools of those with racist motives and agendas. Vilification of the collegiate study of critical race theory is a typical example.
The role of federal, state, and local governments at each stage in the nefarious chapters of history must be revealed and recognized.
The next step must be a national apology for governmental actions that legalized oppression, violence, inequality, and exclusion
from the means toward socioeconomic mobility and generational wealth.
Reconciliation requires an apology--an acknowledgment of government collusion in past ignominious eras--for three reasons: to provide accountability for past wrongs, to heal the national soul, and to confer official validation of the plights of its victims. Without an apology, there can be no closure; there can be no justice for our ancestors who suffered hideous torment.
With those steps addressed, the focus turns to what can be done to right the wrong. Reparations in various forms are needed to instill equity and create a level playing field for African Americans who are still disadvantaged by the aftershocks of previous eras.
The commission created by H.R. 40 would start by identifying (1) the role of federal and state governments in supporting the institution of slavery; (2) forms of discrimination in the public and private sectors against freed slaves and their descendants; and (3) lingering negative effects of slavery that impact today's African-Americans and society.
The goal of the historical investigations that H.R. 40 mandates is to bring American society to a new reckoning with how our past affects the current conditions of African Americans and to make America a ``more perfect union'' by helping the truly disadvantaged.
Consequently, the reparations movement does not focus on payments to individuals, but rather, on remedies that can be created in as many forms as necessary to equitably address the many kinds of injuries sustained from chattel slavery and its ongoing vestiges.
To merely focus on finance is an empty gesture and betrays a lack of understanding of the depth of the unaddressed moral issues that continue to haunt this nation.
Reparations can have wide-ranging positive effects, for example, a recent peer-reviewed study from Harvard Medical School suggests that reparations for African Americans that narrowed the wealth gap could have cut COVID-19 transmission and infection rates both among Blacks and the population at large.
While it might be convenient to assume that we can address the current divisive racial and political climate in our nation through race neutral means, experience shows that we have not escaped our history.
Though the Civil Rights Movement challenged many of the most racist practices and structures that subjugated the African American community, it was not followed by a commitment to truth and reconciliation.
For that reason, the legacy of racial inequality has persisted, leaving the nation vulnerable to a range of problems that continue to generate division, racial disparities, and injustice.
By passing H.R. 40, Congress can start a movement toward the national reckoning that we need to bridge racial divides.
Reparations are ultimately about respect and reconciliation--and the hope that one day, all Americans can walk together toward a more just future.
In his famous Second Inaugural Address, President Lincoln spoke of the profound moral debt owed for ``all the wealth piled by the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil.'' He asserted that the Civil War was the judgment of the Lord, which was ``true and righteous altogether.''
That debt remains to be paid, which is why African Americans always peacefully petitioned the government for the redress of grievances.
As the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King said at the 1963 March on Washington:
``In a sense, we have come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir.
``This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
``It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked `insufficient funds.' But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So, we have come to cash this check--a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.''
Official slavery ended with the Civil War and the ratification of the Thirteenth Amendment.
But unofficial slavery continued by: (a) newly instituted share-crop farming; (b) a criminal justice system that pressed convicts into work that was once done by slaves; and (c) labor policies that dictated income for work done based upon skin color.
This, of course, was reinforced by the systematic disenfranchisement of black Americans, the ``discrete and insular minority'' excluded from ``those political processes ordinarily to be relied upon to protect'' them, to quote Chief Justice Hughes' famous Footnote 4 in United States v. Carolene Products Company, 304 U.S. 144 (1938).
These are just some of the many reasons that the history of the U.S. is intertwined with the history of enslaved Africans in the Americas.
But to reach redemption and reconciliation, we must have the complete truth and lay our history bare. It is the light that sheds the way to the more perfect union all Americans desire.
The Commission that would be created and empowered by H.R. 40 is a vital first step in the effort to attain truth and reconciliation about the Original Sin of American Slavery that is necessary to light the way to the beloved community we all seek.
We witnessed nightly peaceful civil disobedience in the streets of America in solidarity with countless victims of injustice and cruelty. Young African American men and women no longer with us in body but forever with us in memory.
We demanded justice and equity that starts with policing reform yet extends far beyond. It's not just about police conduct toward us. It starts with the predisposition of police about us, before interaction occurs. Police biases, implicit and explicit, can forecast a propensity for violence toward us and the denial of our civil rights.
In addition to criminal justice reform, we demanded the full eradication of structural and systemic institutionalized racism. Since then, confederate statues were removed, newly developed factual curriculum has begun to educate all students about the actual truth of Black history, and millions of Americans learned about the Juneteenth holiday.
Once again, I would like to thank Chairwoman Beatty for giving me and my CBC colleagues the opportunity to shine a light on all our accomplishments this Congress.
I am so proud to be a part of such a dedicated and hardworking group of people. I look forward to continuing to work with all of you on legislation that will make America a more equal and just place.
Madam Speaker, I include in the Record an ABC News article entitled: ``Congress passes legislation to make Juneteenth a federal holiday.''
[From ABC News, June 16, 2021]
Congress Passes Legislation To Make Juneteenth a Federal Holiday
(By Libby Cathey)
For the first time in nearly 40 years, Congress has moved
to establish a new national holiday, this time for
Juneteenth, and just in time for Saturday's 156th anniversary
of the day that marks the last African American slaves being
freed in Texas in the wake of the Civil War.
The House voted Wednesday night to pass the legislation. It
heads next to President Joe Biden's desk for a signature.
When Biden signs it, as he's expected to at 3:30 p.m. ET
Thursday, according to the White House, Juneteenth will
officially become a federal holiday--the first since Martin
Luther King Jr. Day was signed into law in 1983.
Democratic Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas, a fierce
advocate for the Black community who sponsored the
legislation in the House, proudly announced from the podium
the ``bill is passed'' before bringing the gavel down.
One Republican, Rep. Matt Rosendale of Montana, said in a
charged statement ahead of the evening vote that he opposed
the legislation that was ``an effort by the Left to create a
day out of whole cloth to celebrate identity politics.'' Sen.
John Cornyn, R-Texas, a lead sponsor of the Senate bill,
called the statement ``kooky'' in a tweet.
Other House Republicans who voted no on the legislation
include Reps. Thomas Massie, Scott DesJarlais, Mo Brooks,
Andy Biggs, Tom Tiffany, Doug LaMalfa, Tom McClintock, Mike
Rogers, Andrew Clyde, Ralph Norman, Chip Roy, Paul Gosar and
Ronny Jackson of Texas.
The House vote came after the Senate--in a surprise move
Tuesday--passed the measure by unanimous consent following a
single Republican senator dropping his opposition.
Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, who opposed the
legislation last year, said in a statement that he would no
longer raise his objections on the floor, though, as of last
week, the bill already had the support of 60 cosponsors to
overcome a filibuster.
``Although I strongly support celebrating Emancipation, I
objected to the cost and lack of debate,'' Johnson said,
referring to his previous stance. ``While it still seems
strange that having taxpayers provide federal employees paid
time off is now required to celebrate the end of slavery, it
is clear that there is no appetite in Congress to further
discuss the matter.''
Biden will be accompanied for the signing by Vice President
Kamala Harris, who was one of the Democrats to introduce the
legislation in the Senate last year alongside Cornyn.
Steve Williams, the president of the National Juneteenth
Observance Foundation, thanked lawmakers in a press
conference on Capitol Hill earlier for, he said, ``put(ting)
that exclamation mark on the fabulous work.''
``The Juneteenth nation is ecstatic,'' he said.
What is Juneteenth?
Juneteenth--also known as Freedom Day, Liberation Day and
Emancipation Day--marks the day when federal troops arrived
in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, to ensure that African
Americans still enslaved were freed following both the
signing of the Emancipation Proclamation and end of the Civil
War.
The advance by Union Army Gen. Gordon Granger came 30
months and 19 days after President Abraham Lincoln signed the
Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863, which had
declared, ``all persons held as slaves within any States, or
designated part of the State, the people whereof shall be in
rebellion against the United States, shall be then,
thenceforward, and forever free.''
But with the seven Confederate states operating under their
own president, slaves in the South weren't exactly free to
go. It would take another two months after Robert E. Lee
surrendered at Appomattox Court House in April 1865 that
troops would arrive in Galveston to free the final 250,000
people enslaved there. Most left the area despite a message
from Union troops that they could stay and work for their
owners as employees.
A few months later, in December 1865, the 13th Amendment to
the Constitution was ratified and abolished slavery.
Where is it celebrated?
Like most holidays, Juneteenth is recognized in gatherings
across the country, predominantly in the Black community.
With the help of social media to spread awareness on a
holiday not always taught in school, it has become more
mainstream in recent years.
Celebrations can include reflections, parades, food and
drink, music--and even advocacy.
For instance, in 2016, Opal Lee of Texas, a now 94-year-old
activist, walked from her home in Fort Worth to the nation's
capital in an effort to get Juneteenth named a national
holiday.
It was in 1979 that Texas became the first state to
officially establish Juneteenth as an official holiday. Now,
49 states and the district separately recognize the day, with
South Dakota as the only outlier, despite legislative
attempts earlier this year.
What's next?
The legislation has passed just in time for the holiday
Saturday. Biden is scheduled to sign the bill into law
Thursday afternoon.
Despite the bipartisan victory, advocates said they are
still far from repairing the wounds from American slavery.
Some point to HR 40, which specifically calls for the
creation of a commission to study ``and consider a national
apology and proposal for reparations for the institution of
slavery, its subsequent de jure and de facto racial and
economic discrimination against African Americans, and the
impact of these forces on living African Americans, to make
recommendations to the Congress on appropriate remedies, and
for other purposes.''
A version has been introduced in every legislative session
since 1989, but passed out of a House committee for the first
time this year.
``We're giving America the opportunity for redemption, for
repair, for restoration, for also understanding the new
America, which is so multicultural,'' said lead sponsor,
Jackson Lee, in April after it passed.
That legislation is still awaiting a full House vote and is
expected to face an uphill battle in the Senate.
Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey, another lead Democrat to
sponsor the legislation making Juneteenth a federal holiday
also highlighted in a tweet Wednesday that even with its
passage, Republicans still attack critical race theory which
would allow students to study the roots of events, such as
Juneteenth, in school.
``Even today, as conservatives try to erase history with
their attacks on critical race theory and understanding the
impacts of systemic racism, we stand here acknowledging the
truth. We will make #Juneteenth a federal holiday,'' Markey
said in the tweet.
Speaking at a press conference earlier Wednesday in front
of the Capitol, a group of lawmakers including Jackson Lee
and other Democrats supportive of the Juneteenth legislation
said there is still work to be done.
``Of course today is not enough, there's so much more work
left to be done, but this is an important day because it is a
piece of pavement on that path towards justice,'' said Sen.
Tina Smith, D-Minn. ``This is not a moment for complacency,
this is a moment to rededicate ourselves to that work.''