Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, and Coretta Scott King Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 2006
FANNIE LOU HAMER, ROSA PARKS, AND CORETTA SCOTT KING VOTING RIGHTS ACT REAUTHORIZATION AND AMENDMENTS ACT OF 2006 -- (House of Representatives - July 13, 2006)
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Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Chairman, after much delay and hankering by the Republican leadership about bringing this bill to the floor for a vote, I am proud to rise in strong support of reauthorizing the Voting Rights Act. As a cosponsor of H.R. 9, the Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, and Coretta Scott King Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 2006, I urge my colleagues to join me in rejecting any poison pill amendments meant to dismantle the broad agreement on this crucial piece of civil right's legislation.
No congressional duty is more profound than ensuring and protecting the voting rights of all Americans. As Members of this House, we cannot, we must not, be divided or indifferent in reaffirming America's promise that everyone is created equal. The vote is sacred in this country. Throughout our history, Americans have given their lives for freedom and the right to elect their leaders, from Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts, to Seneca Falls in New York, to Selma and Montgomery in Alabama, Americans demand the highest standards; the highest confidence; the highest protection in their right to participate in the democratic process.
The fact remains that not too long ago many Americans were denied the right to vote based on their sex or their skin color and in all honesty, many still battle the remnants of this discrimination today. It has been more than 40 years since President Lyndon Johnson called upon Congress to ``extend the rights of citizenship to every citizen of this land'' and pass the Voting Rights Act eliminating illegal barriers to the right to vote. Since that time, the face and even the language of the American voter may have changed, but our government's commitment to protect the integrity of every vote has not.
So today, I ask my Republican colleagues to put aside their partisanship and petty political gamesmanship and join me in protecting the most fundamental right of the American people, who are the rightful owners of this American government. I urge the Members of this House to reaffirm our commitment to protect democracy and support the clean final passage of H.R. 9.
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