Welcoming the Honorable Erica Lee Carter to the House of Representatives

Floor Speech

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Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Speaker, I rise to welcome to the House a new addition from Texas, Erica Lee Carter. This is a somewhat bittersweet moment for all of us because it was only a few months ago that we gathered here to commemorate the life and legacy of her mother, Sheila Jackson Lee. There is more than physical resemblance between the two.

When I was elected in 1994 in the same small class of 13 that Sheila was a Member of, Erica was a teenager. She has been here a number of times over the three decades that Sheila served. Sheila was a fierce advocate for justice who fought relentlessly for her community. Erica, I know, has her mother's tenacity and her compassion.

She carries on a legacy of helping those with the least. She has led initiatives on economic equality and voting rights in Harris County. She spearheaded a funding drive for after-school programs. She has also worked to end discriminatory practices in the workplace and uplift minority- and women-owned businesses.

She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She earned a master's degree at Duke University's Terry Sanford School of Public Policy. She began her career as an elementary schoolteacher in Houston. Her expertise in the classroom and in making education more accessible for every child, regardless of ZIP Code, is a great example of why her strong voice will be valuable.

While cancer cruelly cut Sheila's term short and Erica will be with us for a short time, I believe that we can count on her to continue carrying the torch for social justice in whatever role she may play, and we welcome her tonight.

Mrs. LEE CARTER. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Doggett, my fellow colleagues in the Texas delegation, and Mr. Jeffries for welcoming me to the House.

I, Congresswoman Erica Lee Carter, rise on behalf of the 18th Congressional District of Texas to return their voice and their vote to this esteemed body, the United States House of Representatives, to finish the 118th Congress with dignity, honor, and service.

I thank God, the author and finisher of my faith, for this awesome privilege, which I do not take lightly.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my husband, Dr. Roy L. Carter, Jr., for his unwavering support and sense of humor that keeps me going. To my twin children, Roy Lee Carter, III, and Ellison Bennett Carter, I love you with all of my heart.

To my father, Dr. Elwyn C. Lee, your unconditional love and guidance has continued to lift me.

To my brother, Jason Lee, and cousin Whitney, thank you for being my biggest supporters.

To the Jacksons, Lees, Carters, Cannons, and other extended family, thank you for being with me throughout this enormously challenging time and serving as a source of strength and support.

Mr. Speaker, I am honored to be the fifth person to serve the 18th Congressional District of Texas, a line of service which began with the Honorable Barbara Jordan, who was the first Black woman from the South to be elected to Congress. She was followed by the Honorable Mickey Leland, a global humanitarian who brought attention to the suffering of many around the world, particularly on the continent of Africa.

After Mickey came the Honorable Craig Washington, who was an astute jurist. Then came my mother, the Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee, a prolific legislator who served as a bridge from the civil rights era till now, and a dedicated public servant who was committed to making America better for her children.

I rise in the memory of my mother, the late, great Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, who served this Chamber for nearly three decades. Her legacy of fierce advocacy, a voice for the voiceless, her unwavering commitment to speak truth to power shaped the lives of countless Americans. Her eloquence and mastery in the art of legislation brought forth reforms that echoed from Houston to the entire Nation.

She was a social justice leader who advocated tirelessly for women, survivors of violence, and the wrongfully accused. As a senior member of the Judiciary Committee, she always fought to ensure that the United States Constitution was a living, breathing document that lived up to its promise for all people. She held it close and knew it could create a more perfect Union that we all desire.

This is why she was proud to be the lead sponsor of the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act to recognize when freedom reached all America's shores. As an early member of the Homeland Security Committee, she worked to keep Americans safe at home and abroad and supported creating the Transportation Security Administration.

She was known to work across the aisle through all Presidential administrations and congressional terms, doing what was necessary to make progress, bring resources back to Houston, and bend the moral arc of the universe toward justice.

On behalf of my family, friends, and the 18th Congressional District, I offer my heartfelt thanks to her colleagues, now mine, who offered their support during her illness and beyond. Your kindness was a great comfort to her, and it reassured her that her work would endure.

As for this moment tonight, while joyful, it is bittersweet because I wish she were standing at this podium to finish the 118th Congress on her own terms. Nevertheless, there is much work to do, and it is my honor to finish what she started alongside each of you.

Mr. Speaker, I will stand for justice, freedom, economic opportunity, and the dignity for all Americans. I am so proud to serve all the people of the 18th Congressional District of Texas that starts near the bottoms of Third Ward, travels through Freedmen's Town where the newly emancipated slaves settled and began to celebrate Juneteenth, steps into the Fifth Ward, the birthplace of Barbara and Mickey, travels toward the resilient Independence Heights, moves to North Forest then Humble, and then west toward Acres Homes.

Mr. Speaker, I pledge every day to work hard for my constituents because every day they work hard to reach their American Dream. I am grateful for this moment in time to do this work and be a small part of my mother's tremendous legacy in this body. May God bless our work and may God bless the United States of America.

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