Political Quotes

“I thank the gentlewoman from Ohio not only for yielding, but for convening this discussion this evening. I was speaking to a group of young people a couple of days ago, and they wanted to know why did we think this whole question of voter suppression was such a big deal. They said, But doesn't everybody have the right to vote? And of course it was necessary to convey to them some of the experiences that people like Representative Lewis and others have had. All of us recognize, from a historical perspective, the evolution of the development of our country. Of course when we started, there were only a few people who actually had the right to vote, and they were the individuals who made most of the decisions. Ultimately, we fought a war, and after the war we saw the expansion of opportunity; and yet there were millions of individuals who were denied the same opportunities that others had. People often ask about Southern States. And you don't pick up on any State, but I remember reading the history of Mississippi, where in 1890 the State of Mississippi devised a system that effectively disenfranchised most African Americans or blacks who were there and adopted a system that other States picked up. But you've got to remember that at that time African Americans made up 58 percent of the population in the State of Mississippi. They elected delegates, and the delegates who were elected--134--consisted of 133 white men and one black, or one African American.…”