Donald M. Payne: “Well, first, I thank the gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands, Congresswoman Plaskett, and the gentleman from Texas, Marc…”

“Well, first, I thank the gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands, Congresswoman Plaskett, and the gentleman from Texas, Marc Veasey, for hosting tonight's Special Order hour on such an important topic: racism and discrimination. Before I begin, I want to take a moment to mark the 1-year anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub shooting and to remember the 49 lives that were cut short in the deadliest mass shooting in our Nation's history. As we grieve for the victims and their families, we must continue to stand in solidarity with the survivors and with the LGBTQ community against hate, intolerance, for love, in support of our Nation's values of equality and dignity for all. The kind of intolerance, hate, and violence on display that day in Orlando has become an alarming trend in this country, a trend that has disturbingly been fueled by President Trump. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, 37 percent of the 1,094 bias-related incidents in just the first month after the election referenced the President, his campaign slogans, or his remarks about sexual assault. As he did throughout his campaign, President Trump continues to speak the language of racial and cultural grievance, pitting Americans against one another and perpetuating the viciousness he pretends to despise. The result is what you would expect: a spike in hate crimes and hate speech. I have seen in my district in New Jersey where anti-Semitic graffiti was plastered on a pedestrian bridge.…”