Historical Injustices

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, and still I rise; and I rise as a liberated Democrat, unbought, unbossed, and unafraid. I rise in the spirit of Shirley Chisholm, who coined the notion of being unbought, unbossed, and unafraid. I rise as a proud scion of the enslaved Africans whose lives were sacrificed for more than 240 years to make America great.

Their lives were sacrificed because America at that time desired to have a caste system, a system wherein persons were born into this caste, would live, die, and be buried as a part of the caste. Not a class. Caste is hereditary. A class is a socioeconomic circumstance.

There was this desire to have persons be a part of the caste, and persons of African ancestry were selected because they were identifiable, and they wanted an identifiable caste. They wanted this caste to be subservient, immediately agreeing to whatever the master said, and they wanted them to be powerless. They were exactly that: A powerless, subservient, identifiable caste for more than 240 years.

Mr. Speaker, I still love my country, notwithstanding its history. I love it because I believe in the ideals that have been expressed in the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Pledge of Allegiance. Those ideals give me hope. I believe that America still has much to achieve, but I believe that America can still dream big and accomplish great things. It is my hope that we will at some point achieve the ideals extolled in the Pledge of Allegiance--liberty and justice for all; the ideal of government by the people for the people; the notion that we can have a country wherein all persons are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights. These are the things that I believe we can achieve.

I believe that we ought to honor the persons who were enslaved. I honor victims of great, horrific tragedies. I honor the victims of the Holocaust. There is nothing to be compared to the Holocaust. There is nothing to be compared to the enslavement of millions of people for 240 years. These are two horrific incidents in history, two circumstances.

I believe that we ought to respect and acknowledge that the Holocaust occurred and that it has had an impact not only on the people of that time but on the people of this time.

I also believe we ought to acknowledge that enslavement occurred. There are people who don't want to acknowledge slavery in this country. They want to say that it was involuntary relocation. This is a fact. Well, it wasn't. It was murder. It was rape. It was robbery. It was kidnapping. It was all of these horrific things, including lynching. It was an horrific, horrible circumstance that was imposed upon people.

I think we should honor both the Holocaust and what we call slavery, the enslavement of persons of African ancestry, because these persons of African ancestry built the Capitol. We know of the great things that they did: built the roads, the bridges, planted the crops, harvested the crops, fed the Nation.

They were the economic foundational mothers and fathers of the country. Why wouldn't we honor them, given the role that they played in making America great? For some reason, we can't find it in our hearts, it seems, to honor them; but we can find it within our hearts, as I have found it within my heart, to honor the victims of the Holocaust.

Some people would ask why. Here is the reason why. I am glad you asked. It is easy to look through the window of life into someone else's horrific circumstances and condemn what happened. However, it is very difficult to look into the mirror of life, into our own circumstances, and acknowledge what happened. It is difficult for people who have suffered to do it.

You would think that people who have suffered would be among the first to say we need to have a Slavery Remembrance Day, ought to be among the first to say, well, to give a Congressional Gold Medal to the enslaved persons, just as we have given a Congressional Gold Medal to the enslavers.

In 1956, this Congress of the United States of America that accorded a Congressional Gold Medal to Confederate soldiers won't do such a thing. This Congress will not honor the victims of slavery the same as we have honored Confederate soldiers who were the enslavers.

Mr. Speaker, it is difficult to look into the mirror of life, but that is why I am here. I am here to help you see what you choose not to see and to do what you choose not to do. You may not do it today, but it will happen. It is just a matter of time. There will be more like me to require you to see what you choose not to see. It is just a matter of time.

So, I am a proud scion. That means that I am a descendant of these people who had the injustice of enslavement perpetrated upon them and perpetuated for some 240 years. I am a descendant, but I like saying that I am a scion because it has more of a regal connotation. It says you are proud to be associated with your ancestors. It says you recognize what your ancestors have accomplished. It recognizes the greatness of your ancestors.

Yes, I am a scion, but I am also the progenitor of August 20 as Slavery Remembrance Day. August 20 is the date that the White Lion docked at a place that we now call Norfolk, Virginia, near there, in Point Comfort. It had 20 persons of African ancestry on board, who were traded to the Colonies.

This was the genesis of slavery in the Colonies. There had been slavery before that, but this was the genesis of slavery in the Colonies, which became a part of America.

So, I am the progenitor of making Slavery Remembrance Day a day that is commemorated to the same extent that we commemorate the Holocaust-- two separate incidents, two separate circumstances, and two separate horrific occurrences in history. One we commemorate, and I do so proudly. The other, we would like to forget. We would like to just set it aside and not give those enslaved persons the just treatment that we would accord others.

I want to see Slavery Remembrance Day commemorated across the length and breadth of this country, a day set aside to commemorate the more than 10 million lives that were forced into slavery, had it perpetrated upon them and perpetuated for some 240-plus years.

We ought to commemorate their lives; therefore, I contend, we have and must have Slavery Remembrance Day.

Now, President Biden has agreed with me and Senator Elizabeth Warren. The two of us have been working together. We had Slavery Remembrance Day pass in the House of Representatives. It hasn't passed in the Senate, but it passed in the House of Representatives.

I will always say thanks to Mr. Steny Hoyer, who was at that time in a position to make a difference, and he did. Many people are in a position to make a difference, and they don't. Mr. Hoyer made a difference. I imagine he has been criticized for it.

Mr. Hoyer, wherever you are, I assure you that posterity will see the kindness and the understanding that had to envelop you for you to do this, and I commend you for what you did. I know that history is going to be kind to you.

The President acknowledged Slavery Remembrance Day with a communique, a press statement, if you will, and I am proud to know that he would do so. This President is a President whom I have great respect for, and I commend him for many things that he has done.

Today, I want to commend him for his comments about the Palestinians and the suffering--the suffering--that is taking place in Palestine-- Gaza, if you will--but in Palestine to this very second as I am speaking now.

I commend the President for having the courage. It takes courage to do what he did. It takes courage in an environment where Palestinians are not appreciated, not celebrated.

In this House, we have passed resolutions, several of them, that have done things that I think should have been done related to what happened on October 7, what happened to persons who were living in Israel. I commend and appreciate the passage of those resolutions. I voted for resolutions to deal with the circumstances that occurred on October 7 when the dastardly deeds were perpetrated by Hamas.

Hamas is a terrorist organization. Hamas did things that we really don't care to talk about or discuss, but we have to acknowledge that there was murder, that there was rape, and that there were decapitations that took place. We have to acknowledge the truth. It happened by Hamas, so I have no kind things to say about Hamas. I have things to say about Israel, the Palestinians, and the President.

Mr. President, I thank you for what you said. You said you wanted to help with the humanitarian crisis. You said that there would be a pier constructed such that food could be brought in to the Palestinians.

I commend you for this, Mr. President. I think we should do this.

Mr. President and Mr. Speaker, I have introduced a resolution affirming the state of Palestine's right to exist. I filed this resolution because a resolution was filed, H. Res. 888, reaffirming the State of Israel's right to exist. Israel has a right to exist. This is where I stand. I also stand on the solid, firm conviction that the state of Palestine has a right to exist.

Yes, I said ``state.'' I know it is not a state currently by our traditional definition, but I believe that it has a right to exist as a state, and I have introduced a resolution affirming the state of Palestine's right to exist.

I did it because I believe there ought to be some balance in the House of Representatives. I believe that there ought to be some people with the courage to say, ``I support the Palestinians,'' with the courage to say, ``Killing babies, knowingly killing babies, knowingly killing hundreds and thousands of babies, is an injustice.''

You have to have the courage to say committing an injustice in the name of justice is still an injustice.

Sometimes, you have to stand alone, but I have been taught and believe that, on some questions, it is better to stand alone than not stand at all. Hence, we have H. Res. 902, affirming the state of Palestine's right to exist.

Mr. President, I believe a picture is worth a thousand words, and I want people to just see what we have as evidence of the suffering that is taking place in Palestine. This is a picture, an actual representation, of people in Palestine. You have two adults and two children. You see the babies.

If you only see Palestinian babies, I would beg that you would open your eyes a little wider, clear your vision, and assume that these babies are babies from your hometown. Assume that these babies are babies from your neighborhood. Assume that these are Israelis. How would you feel if you saw this circumstance existing for Israelis?

These circumstances are circumstances that are horrific. Babies and innocent people ought not be killed in the numbers that are being killed. It is an injustice. You cannot, in the name of justice, create an injustice. It still becomes and is an injustice.

Here is another example of the horrific circumstances of devastation and destruction that exist. I just don't know that you can see enough of it to completely comprehend what has been destroyed. There are many estimates as to how much of Gaza has been destroyed. The pictures speak louder than the numbers. I called the numbers to our attention before.

Here is a baby. This baby is a victim of the war in Gaza. This baby cannot be blamed for anything that Hamas has done. You can't allege that this baby is somehow associated with Hamas.

Killing innocent babies is unacceptable. I refuse to allow people to convince me that you can kill babies and somehow conclude that it is okay because the babies were in the way. I refuse to accept it. Those who do, I would hope that you would understand that there are some of us who can't.

Another picture is a depiction of Palestinians having to move out of harm's way and having to do so with what appears to be their belongings. There are children and a donkey-drawn, if you will, cart of some sort. There is no car, and they have to move from one end to another.

Those living conditions are horrible. We have to do something about it, and I will tell you why in just a moment.

Another picture, the final picture, is of a baby, another child. This child, hopefully, will grow up and, hopefully, will get the necessary help in terms of physical aid as well as mental aid. This child is going to need help, and I would hope that this child will get help.

I would hope that this child doesn't become the next generation of persons who will find themselves at odds with the State of Israel. My hope is that there can be peace and two countries living together. That is my hope, and that is my prayer.

To this end, I have written a letter to the President. It is a letter that I will share with you now that I sent to the President some time ago, on February 29.

This is a letter to the President of the United States. The reference in the letter is: ``Justice and Mercy for Palestinians.''

This letter is a letter that I put my thoughts into. I say this because I write my speeches. I write my letters of this magnitude. I don't want people blaming my staff for the things that I do. My staff are great people, and they assist, but these are my ideas and my thoughts.

This is the letter:

``Justice and Mercy for Palestinians.''

``Dear President Biden, I pen this communique driven by the dictates of conscience and with a heavy heart--saddened by the deaths in Palestine and Israel, compounded by Prime Minister Netanyahu's recent indications that Israel will continue to oppose the unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state and continue maintaining control over stateless Palestinians in lands intended for a Palestinian state. He further indicated that the recognition of a Palestinian state will be reached only through direct negotiations between the parties.''

Mr. Netanyahu, Prime Minister--I rarely say Netanyahu--I respect the position that he holds. He is a Prime Minister, a person with great authority, and his position seems to be that there has to be a negotiated recognition of a Palestinian state, that Israel and the Palestinians will have to negotiate and, once they come to a conclusion that there should be a Palestinian state, then we can recognize it.

Then he goes on to say that the parties have to negotiate this, and it cannot be done unilaterally.

Well, here is what I say to the President:

``Mr. President, on May 14, 1948, President Harry Truman became the first world leader to recognize Israel as a state within Palestine. . . . `'

Some things bear repeating, phraseology that I use quite regularly because many things bear repeating:

``Mr. President, on May 14, 1948, President Harry Truman became the first world leader to recognize Israel as a state within Palestine, effectuating an imbalance of political influence for Israel.''

Again, some things bear repeating:

`` . . . effectuating an imbalance of political influence for Israel. This was done unilaterally. . . . `' That is what is in my letter. ``This was done unilaterally without the consent of defiantly disapproving Palestinians. . . . `'

The Palestinians did not approve of Israel becoming a state. It was done over their disapproval, many of whom were forcefully relocated.

I go on to say:

``Mr. President, just as the Palestinians of 1948 were not allowed to thwart Israeli statehood, in the name of justice we should not allow Israel to thwart Palestinian statehood.''

Sometimes silence can help us to collect our thoughts.

Just as Palestinians of 1948 were not allowed to thwart Israeli statehood, in the name of justice, Mr. President, we should not allow Israel to thwart Palestinian statehood.

Now we get to some very substantive commentary:

This is particularly salient given that Prime Minister Netanyahu obliquely opposed a two-state solution long before October 7, 2023, long before the killing of innocent Israeli men, women, and especially children.

It is not in the letter, but as an aside, which was a horrific event, a day that will live in infamy along with other days that live in infamy.

I go on to say:

``For years, Prime Minister Netanyahu has condoned Hamas' control of Gaza to maintain a foil for a lack of a negotiating partner. . . . `'

By the way, this is no--this is not news. It has been reported on major networks that this occurred.

``For years, Prime Minister Netanyahu has condoned Hamas' control of Gaza to maintain a foil for a lack of a negotiating partner who recognized Israel's right to exist.''

Mr. Netanyahu, Prime Minister Netanyahu, is a person that I respect in the sense that he is the leader of a nation. Prime Minister Netanyahu benefited from having Hamas in control of Gaza because he didn't have to negotiate a two-state solution. It was a means by which he could say the words two-state solution, but he didn't mean it. He didn't.

The evidence is there for those who would see. However, there is a notion that there are some who are so blind, not because they cannot see, but because they choose not to see.

Therefore, if you choose not to see, no one can make you see. You can remain in your state of darkness, but this is the truth. It has been widely reported.

``With Hamas,'' I go on to say, ``as a foil, Prime Minister Netanyahu feigned support for a two-state solution while enabling Israeli settlers to lay claim to land intended for a Palestinian state.''

My God.

Feigning, pretending to want to support a two-state solution while all along the way allowing, enabling settlers to lay claim to land intended for a Palestinian state.

``Mr. President, what President Truman did for Israel unilaterally in 1948--'' I emphasize unilaterally because, remember, President Netanyahu says it can't be unilateral. Israel has to agree for the Palestinians to have a state. Israel has a state and has had a state since 1948. Palestinians are stateless.

``Mr. President, what President Truman--'' that first Mr. President is President Biden, if I may just substitute.

President Biden, what President Truman did for Israel unilaterally in 1948, we can do unilaterally for Palestinians.

Now, I am an avant-garde personality. I am usually out ahead of the rest of the pack. This is going to come to fruition. It is just a matter of time.

When it does, the memory of this message will be clouded because there will be people chosen to bring the message when it is thought to be safe to bring the message. They will wait to see how safe it is for us to say these words and to come forth publicly and proclaim that there can be unilateral recognition.

They have to wait, so I am the canary in the coal mine, and they will be waiting to see how I am reacted to, and that is being kind.

I continue by saying:

``We should not allow a party feigning,'' pretending--that is parenthetically said.

``We should not allow a party feigning to negotiate in good faith to prevent our good faith, unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state.''

If we are acting in good faith, if we know that the Palestinians deserve a state, yes, there will be an interregnum. While we are in that interregnum, there ought to be negotiations between people of good will who believe that there ought to be a Palestinian state, that the genesis of it is, to a certain extent, now, but that, when the full- blown interregnum occurs, then we ought to make sure that we are on the right side, not just of history.

It is a wonderful thing to be on the right side of history, but it is a better thing to be on the right side of righteousness, on the right side of saying: You don't kill babies in the tens of thousands and think you are doing the right thing.

The right side of righteousness, you don't just decimate the homes and schools and churches, synagogues, and/or properties of people, mosques, if you will. You don't just decimate those things and say: We did it because it was a just thing to do.

An injustice in the name of justice is still an injustice, so be on the right side of righteousness. Act in good faith, and let's develop a Palestinian state.

Additionally, we don't have to do it with the consent of Prime Minister Netanyahu. We don't have to do it with his consent. President Truman didn't have anybody's consent. He was the President of the United States of America.

Mr. President, I don't have to remind you who you are. You know. However, as the President of the United States of America, you don't need anybody's permission to recognize a Palestinian state, and you sure should not rely on the permission of Prime Minister Netanyahu, who has been feigning, pretending to want a two-state solution while enabling Hamas. There is a lot more to be said about that, and I will get to that in another message.

I indicate in my letter to the President, lastly, in the name of mercy--mercy--I believe we must send tens of billions, not millions, of dollars in humanitarian aid to Palestine, to Gaza, to the West Bank. I believe we ought to send tens of billions, and I believe we have to be proud to say we are sending the money in humanitarian aid to people who need tens of billions in humanitarian aid.

Now, pay particular attention to the words I am about to say--to people who need tens of billions of dollars in humanitarian aid because our fingerprints are all over what you have seen in these pictures. Our fingerprints are all over this. Our money has made this possible.

We have a debt to righteousness. We ought to pay our debt to righteousness. Send tens of billions and be proud. It doesn't have to be hidden in some bill. You don't have to announce: Well, we are going to send money to Ukraine, which I supported; we are going to send money to Taiwan and the people in that area, Pacific Islanders, which I supported, but never say: We are going to send money to the Palestinians. We are going to send money to Israel, which I have supported.

As a matter of fact, the number exceeds $50 billion that I have supported to Israel.

Therefore, if we are going to say: We are going to send money to Ukraine and to Taiwan and to Israel, why can't we say: We want to send money to the people who are suffering this injustice, perpetrated by the Prime Minister of Israel, with dollars, tax dollars--tax dollars from American citizens and other persons in this country who pay taxes--sales taxes, gasoline taxes.

These tax dollars--these tax dollars--I know it makes you uncomfortable, and you ought to be uncomfortable. These tax dollars have created this circumstance.

Someone will say: Well, no, those tax dollars weren't used for that. They were used for other purposes. However, as my colleagues across the aisle like to remind me, there is something called fungibility.

These dollars are fungible. They make it possible if you have these dollars for one thing, then you can use your own dollars for other things.

Hamas was wrong. They shouldn't have done what they did. They ought to be punished for what they did. They are being punished for what they did, but it is wrong for Mr. Netanyahu to kill tens of thousands-- babies, innocent men, women, and children, an injustice of horrific proportions.

Some would say: Well, why wouldn't you expect Israel to do what it is doing? After all, Hamas did a dastardly thing.

Well, I am one of those people who believes that Israel is special. I don't expect people who have suffered the Holocaust to impose this. I don't expect it. I expect them to understand that you don't do this. That is my expectation.

I believe that we have a duty to ourselves to speak truth not only to power but about power. It is easy to speak truth to power.

You say: Power, there is a problem. We need to solve it. It is difficult to say to power when you are speaking truth about it: Power, there is a problem, and you are it.

Mr. Netanyahu, Prime Minister, there is a problem, and you are it. You have got to stop killing these babies. Silence can help you collect your thoughts. Stop it. Now.

Lastly, I say in the name of mercy, I believe we must send tens of billions--not millions--of dollars in humanitarian aid to Palestine as our largesse to Israel has enabled the decimation of Gaza, as well as the estimated deaths of tens of thousands of innocent Palestinian men, women, and especially children.

Now, if you can live with yourself and the knowledge that tens of thousands of innocent people are being killed, allow me to live with myself believing that it is an injustice. It is an injustice to do what is being done in the name of justice.

I go on to close by saying in closing, I respectfully and kindly make this appeal in the name of justice and mercy for the thousands of innocent Palestinian men, women, and especially children who have been injured, killed, or had their homes destroyed with munitions bearing our fingerprints.

This is my letter that I have sent to the President of the United States. I signed it as a Member of Congress, as the progenitor of August 20 as Slavery Remembrance Day, as a scion of the enslaved Africans sacrificed to make America great.

I believe that the greatness of America will not be measured by the number of battleships that we have, the number of bombers, high-flying stealth technology.

It won't be measured by the number of billionaires we produce. The greatness of America won't be measured by how we treat people who live in the suites of life and places where all is well.

Dr. King mentioned to us--and I am paraphrasing--the truest measure of a person, and I would now add truest measure of a country, Dr. King, but he said: The truest measure of a person is not where you stand in times of comfort and convenience.

He didn't say what I am about to say now. When all is well with you, when you are the leading country in the world, when you have billionaires and persons of great opulence doing well, it won't be measured by where you stand in times of comfort.

The question that Dr. King mentions in his statement is: Where do you stand in times of challenge and controversy?

His statement was: The truest measure of a person is not where do you stand in times of comfort and convenience, but where do you stand in times of challenge and controversy?

In these times of challenge and controversy, the United States of America ought to stand for justice for all. That would include this baby.

The United States of America ought to stand for liberty for all-- liberty and justice for all. That would include the Palestinian people.

The truest measure of a Nation is not about the height of our buildings, not about the billionaires, but about where we stand when we have the opportunity to stand for righteousness--not just justice by righteousness.

Here is our righteous call to the United States of America. This is it. Do not, do not, do not allow yourselves to succumb to the notion that the killing of these babies is a form of justice.

It was my honor to be present last night when the President delivered his State of the Union Address. He said many things, but I have spoken to you about the thing that was important today.

It doesn't mean that all of the other things that he said were not important. It does mean that I singled out something to talk about today, and I thank the President for what he said and for his belief that a two-state solution is the means by which we can achieve the ultimate peace that we seek in the area that we call Palestine wherein Israel now exists. By the way, I have said Israel has the right to exist.

Mr. Speaker, I thank you for the time. I want to do what I customarily do when finish this, for those who are new to hearing Al Green speak and noticing.

I always go over and shake the Speaker's hand. There is something to be said when you express your appreciation. I shall do so.

I thank all of you for allowing me to share my thoughts with you. An injustice in the name of justice is still an injustice.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source