Congressional Black Caucus

Floor Speech

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Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I certainly want to thank the outstanding gentlewoman from California for yielding.

I am pleased to join with my colleagues to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the war on poverty declared by President Lyndon Johnson, a historic moment in our Nation's history when he affirmed a national priority to support those in need.

One of the reasons that I got involved and ran for public office was because of the war on poverty and the programs it created. The war on poverty called for citizen involvement and participation to strengthen America. As I got more involved and more engaged, the more aware I became of the difficulties faced by individuals, families, and communities. Ultimately, I decided I would run for public office.

The war on poverty has improved the lives of millions of low-income Americans through the creation of critical safety net programs such as the ESE Act assistance, Medicare, Medicaid, increased Social Security benefits, Head Start, legal assistance, investment in K-12 education, Federal college aid and loans, a permanent food stamp program, expanded housing assistance for low-income people, community health centers, mental health programs, and we could go on and on to talk about the programs.

But the real reality is that we still have not fulfilled the dream of seriously reducing and eradicating poverty. So we must not only remember, we must not only talk, but we must act. And one of the best ways to start is to provide right now--right now--resources for individuals who are unemployed.

I thank the gentlewoman.

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