I was one of a handful of minority Members of Congress in 1965 when we passed this landmark legislation 1965. The civil rights era was in full bloom, with sit-ins and marches across the South in response to the massive resistance to the call for equal rights. Brave Americans of different races, ethnicities, and religions risked their lives to stand up for political equality.
The pursuit of equal voting rights was most dramatically displayed on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama on March 7, 1965, a day that would come to be known as "Bloody Sunday." On this day, nonviolent civil rights marchers, like our colleague John Lewis, were beaten, spit on, and brutalized.
The news media brought home to all Americans the horror and violence that propped the system of segregation, forcing us to a decision point about our nation's democratic ideals. Without sacrifice by countless individuals in Selma and across the South, the struggle for equality could not have been won nor this legislation passed by Congress.
Against this historical backdrop, the reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act provided an opportunity to take stock of the progress made in protecting voting rights. While there is much to celebrate over the last 40 years, efforts to suppress or dilute minority votes are still all too common. Our record indicates that we have not yet reached the point where the special provisions of the Act should be allowed to lapse, as some might have you believe. Substantial native-born populations and other citizens still need language assistance to cast an effective ballot.
I am very pleased that the House has taken this step and passed this crucial bill while rejecting all efforts to weaken the Voting Rights Act.
http://www.conyersblog.us/YouTube has some clips from the debate. (
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=67882E527B3C41AB)
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