Jon S. Corzine: “I rise to in support of the End Racial Profiling Act a bill being introduced today by Senators Feingold, Obama and…”

“I rise to in support of the End Racial Profiling Act a bill being introduced today by Senators Feingold, Obama and myself. This bill addresses an issue that is critical to the people of my home State of New Jersey and to all Americans. I start by recognizing two of my colleagues with whom I have been working to address the problem of racial profiling. Senator Russ Feingold has been a tremendous leader on this issue he held the first Senate hearings on racial profiling in 2001, and he and his staff have worked tirelessly to elevate the importance of this issue as a matter of civil rights. I also want to recognize Senator Obama he has been a constant champion of efforts to combat racial profiling. Senator Obama took the lead in writing one of the Nation's most innovative pieces of legislation on the collection of racial profiling data when he was in the Illinois State Senate, and he has been equally committed to the issue since joining the U.S. Senate. Both Senators Feingold and Obama have worked tirelessly to make the bill we are introducing today a reality. Racial profiling is anathema to the principles on which our Nation was founded, sowing division within our communities and striking at the heart of our democratic values. Stopping people on our highways, our streets, and at our borders because of the color of their skin is simply wrong, and it is incompatible with the fundamental American belief in fairness, justice, and equal protection under the law.…”