Congressional Black Caucus

Floor Speech

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Ms. FUDGE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. I want to thank my colleagues, Congressman Payne and Congresswoman Kelly, for leading the Congressional Black Caucus Special Order hour tonight.

Mr. Speaker, if you have not noticed, the people of this country are fed up. Quite frankly, so am I. We are at a point in our Nation's history when we can no longer give lip service to equality and opportunities to succeed. We must take action to show we mean what we say; otherwise, it is nothing more than empty rhetoric.

Mr. Speaker, the Confederate flag is more than just a piece of fabric. It is more than just a visual representation of the Confederacy or part of the storied history of the South. If that were true, we would not be having this conversation today. We would not have buried nine Americans murdered because of the color of their skin, and the Confederate battle flag would still be flying in the State of South Carolina.

Let's be honest about the history of the Confederate battle flag. While the majority of this House may want to ignore the facts and rewrite history, we will not be ignored. The Confederate battle flag and any adaptation of it is a painful reminder of intimidation, torture, and murder for all of us in the Black community. It is a flying symbol of hatred and injustice that tells Black and Brown people in this country: Your lives have no value, and you don't matter.

It is an embarrassment to all Americans that the majority of this House introduced a spending amendment which included language allowing the battle flag on Federal properties.

It is just plain shameful that they would go even further and use procedure to stifle a motion to openly discuss a ban of the Confederate battle flag imagery from the Capitol Grounds.

How can the Members of the majority of this House continue to say that they represent all Americans when they refuse to have a real discussion about what is really happening in our country? Have we learned nothing from what has happened in the past few weeks?

In a June Gallup poll, African Americans ranked race relations as the most important issue facing the United States. Will taking down the Confederate battle flag immediately change this perspective? Absolutely not--but it will certainly do more than letting it continue to fly.

Mr. Speaker, it is time we do away with lip service. It is time we listen to our constituents and take real action toward healing the racial wounds of this country. It is time we move forward.

The flag must come down.

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