On the recordJune 24, 2021
When I arrived here in Congress in 2005, there was a necessary facility, also known as the men's room, right across diagonally from me outside of this Chamber. There was no such facility for women. In fact, it was the Parliamentarian's office to my left, just outside of this facility. Madam Speaker, it was under the leadership of the Honorable Nancy Pelosi that we now have equal facilities for men and women just off the floor of the House. Things change, but they don't change on their own volition. The arc of the universe, the moral universe, bends because of the hands of women and men. Today, we have an opportunity to again treat women with the same level of dignity and respect who are in the military as we do those who are without the military, and, to a certain extent, the same way we were treating men when I arrived in this Congress. Things change. This is an opportunity to be a part of an historic change. It may seem small to you, but to the people who have to bear the burden of this invidious discrimination, it is not the same. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
