Emmett Till Antilynching Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. GARCIA of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the Emmett Till Antilynching Act. Sadly, more than 6,500 Black Americans were lynched between 1865 and 1950. My home State of Texas sadly-- sadly--has the third highest number of lynchings in history. There were 468 documented deaths by lynching in Texas between 1885 and 1942. However, many historians believe that closer to 5,000 Mexicans and Mexican Americans died by lynching around this time.

Few actions are crueler, more heinous, and more inhumane than someone being lynched. Yet to this day--and shamefully so--lynching does not have a Federal hate crime legislation. Since 1900 there have been more than 200 attempts to codify lynching as a Federal crime, but each attempt was unsuccessful.

Today we can correct this historical injustice. By passing this bill, we can begin the closing of this terrible and shameful chapter in America's history.

Madam Speaker, I am proud to cosponsor this bill, and I urge all my colleagues to support it here today. I am pleased to hear the other side of the aisle talk about a unanimous vote. What we need is a unanimous vote to support this bill. It is time. It is time.

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