Barbara Lee: “I thank the chairman for yielding and bringing H.R. 4 to this floor. I would like to thank Congresswoman Terri Sewell…”

“I thank the chairman for yielding and bringing H.R. 4 to this floor. I would like to thank Congresswoman Terri Sewell for her very consistent efforts to restore the vote and also our Chairwoman Marcia Fudge of the Subcommittee on Elections for holding hearings throughout the country, which actually established the foundation for this bill. The 1965 Voting Rights Act repaired damage in our communities whose voting rights were denied. Dr. Martin Luther King once said he saw that as a great step forward. However, in 2013, the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act in the Shelby v. Holder decision. As a result, the Nation saw nearly 20 percent fewer polling locations and 17 million voters purged from voting rolls in States with patterns of voter suppression. This is especially true for communities of color, whose votes have been silenced over the years due to this disastrous Court decision. Voting is the backbone of our democracy and something that every American should have the right to access. I was born and raised in El Paso, Texas, and I vividly remember the denial of full citizenship of African Americans. Mr. Speaker, we need a system that is strong, free, and fair. I urge my colleagues to move forward in a bipartisan way and pass H.R. 4.”