Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
HONORING DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. -- (House of Representatives - January 12, 2007)
Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the Speaker of the House, Speaker Nancy Pelosi; our leader, STENY HOYER; our whip, JIM CLYBURN; our chair, Rahm Emanuel; and our vice chair, JOHN LARSON, for allowing us this time to commemorate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King.
Mr. Speaker, like Dr. King, I love America. I love the ideals expressed in the Declaration of Independence, all persons are created equal; and the Pledge of Allegiance, liberty and justice for all; and the Constitution, government of the people, by the people, for the people.
So today, Mr. Speaker, I stand here in the well of the United States House of Representatives as a proud American, and I pay tribute to a great and noble American, Dr. Martin Luther King.
Dr. King was born in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1929, at a time when some Americans could buy a hat but they couldn't try it on; at a time when some Americans had to step off the sidewalk so that other Americans might pass; at a time when of the people, by the people, for the people did not include all of the people; at a time when liberty and justice for all did not include all; at a time when all persons are created equal, but some people were more equal than others.
So I thank God for Dr. Martin Luther King, because he refused to use the back door. He refused to sit in the balcony. He refused to drink from a colored water fountain. He refused to allow his name to be ``Boy.' He was a man among men.
He stood up for the least, the last and the lost. He stood for the least, those who were born into a legacy of poverty; the last, those who were the last hired and the first fired; the lost, those who were lost in poverty in a land of plenty.
I owe a debt of gratitude to Dr. King and the many others who made it possible for me to be here. Because, you see, they fought for and secured the Voting Rights Act. Before the passage of the Voting Rights Act, we had five African Americans in Congress. This includes the House and the Senate. Now we have 43. We had four Hispanic Members of Congress. Now we have 30. We had three Asian Americans in Congress. Now we have nine.
Because of Dr. King and others, Congressman CHARLIE RANGEL has Ways and Means; he is the Chair of Ways and Means. Because of Dr. King and so many other countless faces, Homeland Security is securely in the hands of Congressman BENNIE THOMPSON. Because of Dr. King and those who fought for civil rights, Intelligence is intelligently chaired by Congressman SILVESTRE REYES, and the Judiciary Committee is in the hands of Congressman JOHN CONYERS.
Because of Dr. King and the great sacrifices that were made by the civil rights workers, women have made great strides, because the House is not only a woman's place, it is a place where a woman can be speaker. Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi is the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.
So I thank God for Dr. King. I thank God that he was born, and I understand that had he been born in Europe, he could have been Pope. Had he been born Muslim in the Middle East, he could have been a prophet. In another time, he could have been President. I thank God that he was born when he was, however, because had he not been born when he was, I would not be in the United States House of Representatives.
Thank God for Dr. Martin Luther King.
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