Political Quotes

“I thank my friend from Alabama (Mr. Bachus). Mr. Speaker, I rise also to urge passage in support of the bill as we commemorate the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing in Birmingham. It was a Sunday morning. It was September 15, 1963. And I think it's appropriate that we mention their names again: Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Denise McNair. They were entering their church before the 11 a.m. service when a bomb detonated on the church's east side, and the explosion killed all four young girls and maimed dozens of the parishioners there. The bombing of that church gave further momentum in the struggle to end segregation and helped to spur support for the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act right here in this Chamber. Last month, many of us were honored to commemorate that event and another event that served as a catalyst for action in the civil rights movement. I also joined Members of Congress in the annual pilgrimage across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, the event that marked the beating of peaceful voting civil rights marchers, known as Bloody Sunday, on March 7, 1965. And the pilgrimage was meaningful, as other Members of Congress and I reflected together on how far we've come as a country. Bloody Sunday and the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing remind us of the long and difficult struggle to end segregation; and it is immensely important, Mr.…”