madam speaker, i rise with a heavy heart to support this resolution. when i came to washington in 1961 to go on the freedom rise, we chose that day when we came here on august 28th, 1963 for the march on washington. it was drawers full. we met with a young president, president john fitzgerald kennedy. we came here on august 6th, 1965 for the signing of the voting rights act. we were excited, hoped for and we met the president lyndon johnson but today we didn t ask for this. this is a sad day. it is not a day of joy. our nation is founded on the principle that we do not have kings, we have presidents.
yielding. madam speaker, i rise with a heavy heart to support this resolution. when we came to washington in 1961 we chose that day. when we came here in august 28th, 1963 for the march on washington, ed was choice full. we met with a young president, president john fitzgerald kennedy. when we came here in august 6th 1965 with the signing of the voting rights act, we were excited, hopeful, weep met president johnson. this day, we didn t ask for this. this was a fairy day. it is not a day of joy. our nation is founded on the principle that we do not have kings, we have presidents.
teacher s salary, we have more reseg gra gaftion schools. right here in alabama we have low teacher funding. alabama does not have a minimum wage, they have living wages. 400,000 people have been denied medicaid expansion in alabama in selma we have over 400,000 white people in poverty and over 300,000 black people in poverty. now, joy, this is in the same state where 35% of eligible people of color are being blocked because of voter suppression law that had been put in place since the shelby decision that gutted secretaries five. we have less voting rights today than we had august 6th, 1965. we cannot continue to be able to celebrate what people did yesterday, we need movements like what s happening in west virginia, like what s happening with the women s march and stoud den students and the poor people s campaign. we re going to announce on the
but the congress responded, president lyndon johnson responded, in the congress passed the voting rights act, and it was signed into law on august 6th, 1965. we have come a distance. we have made progress, but we are not there yet. there are forces that want to take us back to another place. we don t want to go back. we want to go forward. as the late randolph who was the dean of the march on washington in 1963 said often, maybe our forefathers and our foremothers all came to this great land in different ships, but we are all in the same boat now. it doesn t matter how senator sessions mate smile, how friendly he may be, how he may speak to you, but we need someoe
verse is long but it bending towards justice. how long? not long. and it wasn t long after that speech that president lyndon johnson signed the voting rights act on august 6th, 1965. 50 years later, the voting rights act is under attack since conservatives on the supreme court gutted the law in 2013, states have rushed to pass new voting restrictions. now republicans in congress are holding up a bill that would restore the strength to the law. we need action because, as dr. king wrote in his letter from a birmingham jail, justice too long delayed is justice denied. joining me now is civil rights activist martin luther king iii. thank you for being here tonight. thank you, rev. martin, 50 years since the voting rights act was signed