Political Quotes

“Let me just thank my colleagues. Certainly, it has been a high honor to serve as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, and I will express that later on today at our meeting. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address the recent tragedies that have occurred in my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio, but also the positive change that can come out of these tragedies. In November 2012, Malissa Williams and Timothy Russell lost their lives following a high-speed chase involving more than 60 police vehicles. Cleveland police officers fired 137 rounds into their vehicle. The pair were unarmed. I immediately wrote to the Department of Justice seeking an independent review and investigation surrounding the circumstances that led to this use of deadly force by law enforcement. Following the death of Michael Brown and the unrest that followed, I again wrote to the Department of Justice in August 2014 asking for action. While waiting on the results of the Department of Justice investigation, tragedy again struck my district on November 22, 2014, when a 12-year- old boy, Tamir Rice, was shot dead by a Cleveland police officer in a park outside the Cudell Recreation Center. While my heart is still heavy, I believe some good will rise from the ashes of this tragedy.…”