Another Blight on American History
Floor Speech
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Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Virginia for yielding. I do have to note that she comes from the heart of the Confederacy originally, and I was really proud when Virginia voters voted to redistrict to align their votes with the current detriment of votes that the Republican Party seeks.
Ms. McClellan, I was just recently reading the book by Jim Clyburn, our colleague. What that book tells us is this is just not new. People have talked about it. It has been 13 days since the Supreme Court acted in the Callais decision, but it is a long history since the 19th century of trying to disenfranchise formerly enslaved people. This is just another day. This is part of American history to try to deny African Americans not only the vote, but their humanity.
Now, Ms. McClellan, you are from the heart of the Confederacy, but I want you to know that this is not just a southern thing. I am from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was called the Selma of the North because of the discriminatory practices that our voters face. As a matter of fact, when I was in the State legislature, I fought our then-Governor over seemingly innocent requirements for voter ID because I knew that that was the camel's nose under the tent to disenfranchise people. In fact, when that law went into place in 2016, that is when Donald Trump won the Presidency in Wisconsin.
You have heard from many speakers today, and I won't consume all the time by talking and going on and on. I am just going to say this: I am encouraged. And while I am heartbroken by what the Supreme Court did 13 days ago, this ain't new. We have been here before, and we have the script of how to fix it because we have went through this. We saw the rise of the Ku Klux Klan. We saw Supreme Court decisions. We saw Presidencies. Guess what: Black people and Americans have always risen to the occasion.
We stand on the shoulders of giants like Ezekiel Gillespie from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, who sued the State of Wisconsin in 1865 for the right to vote. We stand on the shoulders of giants like John Lewis, John Robert Lewis. We know, Mr. Speaker, that a new day will surface again, and this will not be the end. Why? Because we are undeterred.
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