Emanuel Cleaver: “Let me first thank the gentlewoman from Alabama for her vision in speaking of one of America's great men. Shortly after…”

“Let me first thank the gentlewoman from Alabama for her vision in speaking of one of America's great men. Shortly after Martin Luther King was killed in Memphis, Tennessee, I, just leaving college, became very active with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. At that time, Ralph Abernathy had taken over leadership of the organization, and Joe Lowery had become the chair of the board. And a short time after that, Walter Fauntroy, who served as the delegate for the District of Columbia, became the chair of the board. And prior to that he was the SCLC Washington Bureau Chief. So I became actively involved. I considered Fred Shuttlesworth as a mentor. Fred Shuttlesworth had a remarkable life in that he was a great preacher. But as people who knew him will tell you, he was not afraid of anything, and sometimes that did not work to his benefit. Fred Shuttlesworth was in his home when the Klan blew it up. Reverend Shuttlesworth ended up down in the basement, but if the Klan had believed that blowing up his home would get him to back away from a movement to bring dignity and civil rights to people in this country, they were wrong. And Fred Shuttlesworth was so tough that it was often said that when God allowed Bull Connor to be born, that he also made Fred Shuttlesworth to serve as his even change. Fred Shuttlesworth was in many confrontations with the legendary and infamous Bull Connor.…”