Date: 2012-04-16
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Let me thank the gentlelady again for her leadershipI like to call her Dr. CHRISTENSENand for. as my colleague from California indicated. for allowing us to have a vote on a regular basis on behalf of all of America. my constituency. and certainly on behalf of the Congressional Black Caucus. of which Ill never step away from its definition as the conscience of this Congress. but the conscience of America. I want to thank my colleague. the Honorable BARBARA LEE. who knows what justice and fighting for freedom is all about. Im reminded of the very unique history of Oakland. California. and I think of the movement of justice through the Black Panthers of early years. who did many things. but I remember them for their early breakfasts and nutrition programs. and I call that justice. Let me just thank her for her leadership on this and on many other issues. To my colleague from the District of Columbia. the Honorable ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON. let me thank her as well. Let me indicate that this is Emancipation Day. As I understand. theres a big parade. And President Lincoln. just a few steps away from us. signed the freeing of the slaves in Washington. D.C. You dont know the history of the District of Columbia until you hear it from ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON. and I thank her very much. And I know of her friendship and closeness to John Payton. One of my dear friends and former Federal judges that I know ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON knows. Judge Gabrielle McDonald. likewise came to a similar history. We have talked. I was an Earl Warren legal scholar. And so I know the journey that so many have traveled. So this is a personal statement as I rise to salute John Payton and also acknowledge his wife. Gay McDougall. And I want to say this on behalf of my husband. Dr. Elwyn C. Lee. a graduate of Yale Law School and who knew Gay very well. and I knew her. What a perfect match and a family of justice fighters. of human rights fighters. of individuals who could be as eloquent on the question of HIV/AIDS. international plagues and devastation that impacts so many vulnerable communities. here they are discussing the worldwide siege of AIDS upon individuals but. likewise. can come home and march along the road of justice here in the United States of America. I learned in law school that the lawand I know that Congresswoman HOLMES NORTON still teachesI know the law is a jealous mistress. I would say to you that I found that out. Obviously. Im now in the United States Congress. But I love the law. I love the purpose and value of lawyers. And I encourage young lawyers that if they want to read a story of sacrifice and someone who epitomizes that its a jealous mistress. read the history of John Adolphus Payton. born in 1946 and passed this past March 22 in Baltimore. Maryland. He. obviously. is from California. but with a law degree from Harvard Law School. That means that the world was his oyster. and it was open to any manner of choice that he could have made in his lifetime. He was a Federal clerk. but he managed to start his life at WilmerHale. which used to be. I believe. Wilmer Cutler & Pickering. which is where my husband practiced law here in D.C. for a number of years. What I like most of all is that his reach was so far on the Independent Electoral Commission in South Africa. again. looking for justice. President of the District of Columbia Bar. but he found his way to his calling. He found his way to answer the opportunities that he was given. Being a 1977 graduate of Harvard Law School. he stood on the shoulders of Thurgood Marshall. a graduate of Howard Law School. He stood on the shoulders of the giants that graduated from law school in Arkansas and the other giants that graduated from Howard. and I think he found his comfort level at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. becoming the sixth president. My classmate. Elaine Jones. served in that capacity for a very long time. graduating from the University of Virginia Law School. Today. in the wonderful tributes. she was part of that wonderful memorial service that was held here in Washington. D.C.. along with a number of other giants. Let me just say to you that when we think of justice. we have a combination. from the civil rights leaders to the fallen. Dr. King on the balcony in Memphis. Tennessee. But do we know all the lawyers that were part of the matrix of justice. from Thurgood. who held the hand of Dr. King and a number of civil rights leaders. one after another. some of our giant lawyers down in Alabama and Mississippi who were there to bond them out. to petition their case. In the likes of those. John Payton became an unselfish fighter for justice. from his. what I call. victory of Richmond v. Croson. in a 54 decisionit was a victorywhere he attempted to maintain the affirmative action plan that established just a simple process of assisting businesses to receive opportunities. I want you to know today that because of lawsuits like that. we are suffering in cities all around America because there were those who believed that just a smidgeon of opportunity was too much. Right in my own city of Houston. under the General Services Administration that I hope will be cleaned upand I know there are good people therewe have Gilbane. a major company. using stimulus dollars and having no concern about the indepth minority participation of small businessesthe GSA hopeless and helpless at being able to do anythingand having a nondiverse workforce. Gilbane. Let the number go out as an example of what John Payton was fighting against. Then. of course. his valiant fight in 2003 at the University of Michigan. the affirmative action case that is maintained today as he defended the schools use of race as their admission processesagain. not using it destructively. That is. I think. one of the arguments that is not a legal argument. but he found a way to justifythe trial court of appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court defending undergraduate schools use of race in their admissions processes and the loss in the United States Supreme Court by 63but in any event. maintaining the fight and taking cases that were not popular. John. thank you. Thank you. Gay. for sharing him. And then a 2009 case. Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District Number One v. Holder. The municipal district in Austin. my State. challenged the validity of section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. Payton assisted in the arguments. leading to the Supreme Courts 81 decision upholding section 5. He was our firewall. On the question of section 2 and section 5. he was the holder of the truth. the arbiter. the outside partner to the Department of Justice that wanted and needed to do right. Finally. the local attorney for the plaintiff in 2010. Lewis v. City of Chicago. in which a group of African Americans seeking to be firefighters contended that they had properly filed a charge of discrimination. It is my understanding that that case has moved along and that John prevailed so that truth would be the call of the day. It is important to hold him up as the man of armor who is nonviolent. And he held as his victory call the Constitution and the laws that were passed to help the unempowered. Ive always said that the Voting Rights Act is not the black Voting Rights Act or the Hispanic Voting Rights Act. It is the Voting Rights Act to have one vote. one person for every single American. My hat goes off to John Payton. and I salute him as a soldier on the battlefield for justice. for what is right. never wavering with his quiet demeanor. and for his strength in the courthouse. I ask the NAACP Legal Defense Fund to stay the course. I ask you to never whimper and never weaken. And I say to you that your soldier is going on to be a general in the justice cause in a place beyond. I beg of you to carry forward. Let me just read these citations that were in honor of him. just very briefly. from a statement from the LDF. where they spoke about the city of Chicago. the Lewis case. which vindicated the rights of over 6.000 applicants. As I indicated. that case prevailed. They called him fearless. a guiding light. a brilliant advocate. a mentor and a teacher who believed that American democracy thrives when it embraces all of our voices. Thank you to the Legal Defense Fund. And then. from one of the major law firms. partner Walter Dellinger had this to say: John Payton was a towering figure. He was just flatout brilliant and combined that intellectual power with a deep and empathetic commitment to justice. Everyone who knew John will remember forever his infectious good spirit and uninhibited laugh. Every encounter with John was a learning experience. Let me close on this note because I know that John would have been in the midst of discussing this travesty of justice as relates to Trayvon Martin. Trayvon obviously was a symbol of the injustice of this Nation when police and a State prosecutor became judge and jury. I dont want to interfere with the process of justice. Mr. Zimmerman is arrested. But let us not rest on our laurels because we pushed for the arrest that should have been. We know that there will be a rocky road proceeding toward holding Mr. Zimmerman accountable. More importantly. let me make it very clear on the floor of the House that every mode of justice that is needed for a fair trial I support. If it is to remove the judge. as the defense has asked for. let that be considered in an unbiased manner. If by chance the prosecution asks for a change of venue because this jury pool in this region will be tainted. then so be it. But what we must also sayand let me be very clearI. as a Democrat. and I hope my friends on the other side. are not afraid of dealing with gun violence and the overuse of guns in America. as responsible legislators should be. And so to my good friend. Bill Cosby. let me say to you that the call has been answered many times. There are many bills dealing with gun violence. There are many bills to rein in the reckless use of guns. the use of the assault weapons. the issue of individuals not being checked at gun shows and the gun show loophole. It only takes responsible leadership to move it forward. And I salute the Brady Center that will be with us in Washington tomorrow for recognizing that there are people who are willing to take a standnot against your Second Amendment rights. God bless you for those rights. You have those rights. I celebrate those rights. But I cannot celebrate the fact that a man that was on the Neighborhood Watch. which is the eyes and ears. was walking around with a 9millimeter and shot dead an unarmed. helpless 17yearold boy and snuffed his life out because we refused to address the question of everyone being able to carry a gun. whether trained or not. Mr. Zimmerman was not a police officer and should not have acted as if he was the law. the judge. and the jury. So to my good friends on the floor who will come up after me. let me just end my note by saying to John Payton. in instances like Trayvon. I know that your voice would have been heard on the civil rights of the question. but your voice had been heard through places where many of us were not there and did not know. And so I agree. and salute the words that were offered in tribute to you by so many of your colleagues. certainly these last words that indicate that you were. in fact. fearless. you were. in fact. a guiding light. you were. in fact. a brilliant advocate. mentor. and teacher. you were. in fact. an eagle with wings who stood widespread over America. and when there was a doubt about justice. you led the troops of the NAACP in a nonviolent. Constitutional lawsaturated effort to ensure that justice would be done. May God rest your soul for a job well done. good and faithful servant. and may your family and Gay know how much we loved you and appreciated the war that you waged for justice.