Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3847, which would designate a Virginia Postal Service facility as the ``Reverend Curtis West Harris Post Office Building''. Reverend Harris was a native Virginian who attended the Carter G. Woodson High School and Virginia Union University. After college, Reverend Harris began to work at the Allied Chemical Plant in Hopewell, Virginia. He successfully sued Allied Chemical after an executive order that prohibited discrimination at companies that received government contracts. This began Reverend Harris' lifelong fight for social justice. In 1960, he was sentenced to 60 days in jail for staging a sit-in at a segregated drugstore. He also protested the segregation of Hopewell's cemetery and swimming pool. He joined the Southern Christian Leadership Conference's national board and would eventually head up the Virginia chapter. During this time at SCLC, Reverend Harris became close to Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King and joined him on the 54-mile march from Selma to Montgomery. Reverend Harris was an influential and well-respected member of the community. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.”