Condemning the Attack on the Nigerian town of Baga

Floor Speech

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Ms. KELLY of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Chairman Royce and Ranking Member Engel for their bipartisan leadership in helping bring the attention of Congress to the vile acts of the terror group Boko Haram.

This weekend, the international community received the sickening news that a mass grave with beheaded remains was uncovered in formerly Boko Haram-held territory in northern Nigeria.

It still stands that America will never tolerate terrorism, and this Congress will never abide terrorists. Despite their beliefs, a few things about Boko Haram are quite clear to the world.

Abubakar Shekau's acts are cowardly. He remains a man who fears the power of the people of Nigeria, a man afraid of the promise and potential of girls who are educated and whose minds will change the world.

History will not celebrate Boko Haram because they are on the wrong side of it. They have mistaken cowardice for courage, and their crimes against innocent men, women, and children cannot be forgiven.

It has been 10 months since the world demanded that Boko Haram bring back the 200 school girls they kidnapped because they wanted to be educated. They defied these calls.

Boko Haram has murdered scores of innocent Nigerians--an estimated 17,000 since 2011. And this month, we received the news that they have sworn allegiance to ISIS.

I, like so many across the world, was outraged at the brutality and senselessness of Boko Haram's crimes. Victimizing innocent men, women, and children for perverse ideological gain will never be tolerated or treated as just by the international community.

With our vote today, this committee and this Congress can affirm that we stand for the human rights, dignity, and security of the Nigerian people; that we will not tolerate a world in which Boko Haram, or any terrorist organization, can slaughter innocent civilians; that we respect the right of women to be educated without the threat of violence; and that we support free and fair elections free of suppression and intimidation.

We say this positively on this House floor, and we stand today with the force and confidence that is much stronger than groups of the likes of Boko Haram.

I thank Chairman Royce and Ranking Member Engel, Congresswoman Frederica Wilson for her constant leadership on this issue, Congressman Will Hurd of Texas for being the first to come across the aisle and lend his name to this resolution, and I thank all of the other Members who stood up and spoke out against the cowardly acts of Boko Haram and ISIS. I urge my colleagues to pass this important resolution.

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