Political Quotes

“I rise today as an original co-sponsor of Senator Levin's resolution celebrating the 148th anniversary of Juneteenth, the oldest commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States. On June 19, 1865, Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, TX, to inform the slaves that they were free. Although the Emancipation Proclamation had taken effect on January 1, 1863, nearly 2\1/2\ years passed before the message reached slaves in Texas and the Union troops enforced the President's order. Nearly 90 years after America's Independence Day, Africans in America finally obtained their independence from slavery. Juneteenth is a day when all Americans can celebrate Black Americans' freedom and heritage. The House of Representatives and Senate passed resolutions by voice vote in 2008 and 2009, respectively, apologizing for the injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of slavery and Jim Crow laws. The resolutions acknowledged that African-Americans continue to suffer from the complex interplay between slavery and Jim Crow long after both systems were formally abolished. This suffering is both tangible and intangible, including the loss of human dignity, the frustration of careers and professional lives, and the long-term loss of income and opportunity. On this day, it is fitting to remember our Nation's painful history. Millions of Africans were torn from their homeland and brought to the Americas as chattel.…”