Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, we should look upon the day of remembrance in the very same way that we look upon Martin Luther King's birthday. We need to remember, because if we forget, we cannot be sure that sacrifices that were made will not have to be made again. I went to school in segregated schools of the District of Columbia. It was not until I had the opportunity to go away to college that I actually learned that 6 million Jews had been murdered in World War II. I knew all about World War II, why did I not know about this sacrifice? That is what segregation and isolation from one another will do to you. Mr. Speaker, I remember the day there in the dormitory when sitting around in an integrated group that I first learned, and it stuck me like a bolt of lightning. I could not believe it, well, believe it. Believe that anti-Semitism is still alive. Believe that it exists in all communities and in all races and in this country, and that there are still incidences every year reported in the North and the South and the East and the West, believe it. So as we go to the day of remembrance in this great building, let us understand that we are not only remembering. We remember so that we will not forget for a reason, because these issues of racial and religious hatred do not die forever, and they need, each generation, to vivify what they can mean.”