Recognizing Resilience, Resistance, and Relentless Struggle, Lessons of Black History
Floor Speech
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Ms. BROWN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Black History Month.
Black History Month means a lot to me, and it means a lot to my constituents in northeast Ohio.
Just in the last few days, we have been reminded of how the past and present are connected. Last week, in Cleveland, we celebrated the 90th birthday of the Reverend Dr. Otis Moss, Jr., and his wife, Edwina Moss, two local civil rights icons who have fought for justice, fairness, and opportunity for Black people in Cleveland for decades.
Sunday was also the 100th birthday of Congressman Louis Stokes, the first Black American to represent Ohio in Congress. Congressman Stokes was a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus and represented northeast Ohio for 30 years. He also established a legacy of leadership that carried on to Stephanie Tubbs Jones and Marcia Fudge. They are three strong Black leaders who represented the district I now represent.
Black History Month isn't just about trailblazers, icons, and famous names. It is also about Black culture, community, and excellence, and the history and experience that binds us all. It is often a time of joy and celebration.
Black History Month feels a little different this year. President Trump and his MAGA allies have frozen funding for programs that address inequality and support equal opportunity, rolled back decades of civil rights and discrimination protections, and tried to erase Black history in our schools. He jumps at every opportunity he gets to attack Black America, using DEI as a racist dog whistle and pushing false and offensive ideas that Black Americans haven't earned or deserved their success.
Let's call this what it is: Trump's resegregation agenda.
We know what happens when prejudice prevails. Opportunity is obstructed, and red lines are drawn with Federal funds. We have seen this story before.
Yet despite the dark clouds gathering above 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Black Americans have long battled bigotry, broken barriers, and built a brighter future despite the odds.
The fight is familiar. Black history teaches us the power of resilience, resistance, and relentless struggle. That is what I owe my constituents, and that is what we owe each other. elon musk must justify his job
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Ms. BROWN. Mr. Speaker, this weekend, unelected, unaccountable, unvetted, and unconfirmed billionaire, Elon Musk, demanded every Federal worker justify their job. He demanded five reasons they deserve to keep it.
Let's turn that around. Here are five things the world's richest man did just last week:
One, DOGE deleted the five biggest spending cuts it bragged about just last week, because nearly one-half of those savings don't exist. The receipts didn't add up.
Two, more than 20 employees resigned from DOGE, refusing to ``jeopardize Americans' sensitive data, or dismantle critical public services.''
Three, one of Musk's companies secured a lucrative FAA contract, laying bare his blatant conflicts of interest. Somehow, I doubt that one will be canceled.
Number four, he fired 6,000 veterans serving the American people.
Why? Apparently, it is because a disabled vet's salary is wasteful, but $4.5 trillion in billionaire tax breaks are necessary.
Five, he axed bird flu experts, nuclear safety officers, and IRS workers, right in the middle of tax season.
So before Elon Musk demands five justifications from a VA nurse in Cleveland, maybe he should justify his own job. Instead of asking nurses, firefighters, air traffic controllers, and Federal scientists to justify their jobs, let's ask the billionaire to justify his.
Mr. Speaker, I promise you, the American people won't need more than five reasons to fire him.
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