Political Quotes

“I want to thank the gentleman from North Carolina and the gentleman from Missouri for their courtesies. This is an emotional time for all of us. As we pay tribute to the Montford Point Marines, we must pay tribute to Congresswoman Corrine Brown. We thank you, first of all, for restoring our faith in this country and showing us that we can work together as Members of Congress. To be able to bestow the Congressional Gold Medal on the Montford Point Marines is something that we would want to be the first legislation of this week. It awards the gold medal to the first African American marines at Camp Montford Point in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Then, of course, it acknowledges their personal sacrifice and their service to the country. My father-in-law was a Tuskegee Airman. It took so long to be able to honor them. And as we begin to build this country on a more solid ground, it is important to acknowledge the first African American to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor, Sergeant William Harvey Carney. He received it during the Civil War. Then, of course, at its inception, the Marine Corps refused to recruit African Americans from 1775 until 1942. But immediately after the racial restrictions were lifted, nearly 20,000 African Americans signed up to become marines and began their basic training at the segregated Camp Montford Point during World War II until 1949. Yet they were still faced with segregation and racism.…”