Date: 2014-04-29
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. when I think of most Americans. I know that one of the major components of our work ethic is that we believe in working hard. We are not standing in line for government subsidies or handouts. We simply want to be able to have an opportunity. Last evening. I was on the floor speaking of the unfortunate circumstances of this past week. such as the mischaracterization of what affirmative action really means. which is an opportunity for all of our students to go to institutions of higher learning with a diverse student body that embodies and reflects America. responding to the decrease in numbers of African Americans since the dismantling of affirmative action at schools like the University of Michigan. Berkeley. and others. We then follow that decision with untimely and unfortunate comments. first by an owner of a national basketball team. It baffles me when the owner indicates that he does not want to see Black people at his stadium. It amazes me because if he looks out onto the playing floor. he might see a lot of them. We find that sports is something that brings us all together. from all walks of life. Then we have an individual that represents himself as one of the true traditions of America. a rancherand much of that is done in Texaswho wants to suggest that African Americans would be better off picking cotton and having gardens and chickens. The reason I raise these issues today is because we have parts of our society that reflect those injustices. We have parts of society that ignore the ills that befall those who are more impoverished than others. Many people dont realize that even though slavery ended in the 1800s. the 20th century found itself with individuals or segments of the population being treated unequally for more than half a century. Even when those laws changed. like with the 1964 Civil Rights Act. minds and hearts did not change. And so the inequities followed people of color: language minorities. like Hispanics. and African Americans in particular. I have a document that reflects that inequity right in the city of Houston and the district that I represent. Yesterday. we came out with the Children at Risk research on the level of high schools that were not functioning. They list North Forest High School. Madison High School. Jones High School. Wheatley High School. Sterling High School. Kashmere High School. and Worthing High School at the bottom of the list. Why? They are all in inner city areas. The investment in people is not there. And so this wealth inequality is not about someone who wants to get a handout. it is to reflect what is happening. The highest unemployment is among Latinos and African Americans. which are the red and purple bars. Because of the barriers to access to credit. the lowest number of business ownership in this country is with African Americans. It has the lowest number of business owners. When we faced the recession and mortgage collapse. the highest number of bankruptcy filings were among Latinos and African Americans. No. they are not looking for a handout. We are looking for policies that in fact will invest in education and make sure that when we invest in people. we overcome the barriers that deal with race and racism. When we lost all of the home equity. which was one of the greatest assets of African Americans. the decline in home equity and ownership fell upon many of us in a high number. from Asians to Whites to Latinos and African Americans. And when I say this. I speak of those who are White and equally face obstacles. Many know that one of the major movements of Senator Robert F. Kennedy was his visit to Appalachia and other places. So my question to my colleagues today is how we can come together to look at a way of empowering those impoverished and making sure that the educational system. regardless of your level of income. has the ability to treat you equally so that the school that you attend every dayyour parents pay taxes and send you thereis not giving you the bottom rank in opportunity and that your family is not in the category with no assets or retirement. no ability to help you go to college. Highest number. 62 percent for African Americans. Latinos. 69 percent. which is partly due to the fact that many Latinos live in a "shadow society." many of them because we have not passed comprehensive immigration reform. So. Mr. Speaker. rather than to accuse individuals and call people names and use racist categories. it is time for us to come together and be united to lift the boats of all Americans.