Honoring the Life and Accomplishments of James Cameron

HONORING THE LIFE AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF JAMES CAMERON

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Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of House Resolution 867, a resolution honoring the great late Dr. James Cameron, the only known survivor of a lynching and founder of America's only black holocaust museum located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with my 92 cosponsors, including the entire delegation from Wisconsin, in remembrance and to honor one of our Nation's true civil rights pioneers, a man who experienced the most horrific acts of violence in this country's history and who used that experience to promote social justice and racial healing. This resolution honors a man who at the tender age of 16 witnessed the lynching of his two friends. And although the lynch mob had looped a rope around his neck, his life was miraculously spared.

This resolution honors a man who spent most of his life after that point dedicated to the eradication of racism, the preservation of African American history, and the advancement of civil rights for all of us. Dr. James Cameron embraced the call of civil rights and social justice work despite several death threats, Mr. Speaker. He went on to found three NAACP chapters in Indiana and played a role in protests to end segregated housing in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

In 1988, Mr. Cameron founded the Black Holocaust Museum after an inspirational journey to Israel in order to preserve the history of lynching in the United States and to use this knowledge to promote understanding and combat racism, fear, and violence.

Dr. James Cameron left us and passed away on Sunday, June 11 at the age of 92. This was almost one year to the day that the United States Senate honored Cameron as the only lynching survivor and passed its historic resolution formally apologizing for not passing anti-lynching legislation throughout much of the 20th century. Just yesterday we laid Dr. Cameron to rest on the symbolic day, Juneteenth Day, in commemoration for the ending of slavery in this country; also Juneteenth Day commemorating the 18th anniversary of the founding of America's Black Holocaust Museum.

Mr. Speaker, this is a significant week in civil rights and in black history. In addition to yesterday being Juneteenth, the House plans to consider the reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act this week. Dr. Cameron's life exemplifies the imperative of the civil rights struggle, the call to listen to our humanity over and above our fear. Dr. Cameron taught us to be better, not bitter.

Years ago, Dr. Cameron placed me on his board of directors of America's Black Holocaust Museum, a relationship that I sought for personal resurrection, restoration, reconciliation, renewal, and regeneration as an heir of the shameful experience of slavery. However, Mr. Speaker, all, all of whom encountered Dr. Cameron throughout the world, including the family of the young victim on that August night, all who experienced Dr. Cameron experienced reconciliation, the reconciling and redemptive power of forgiveness.

I strongly urge my colleagues to continue to add to the historic significance of this week by supporting this resolution honoring the life and accomplishments of a man who had a life worth living, Dr. James Cameron.

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