kansas war the fight about whether my state would be a free state or a slave state. nebraska was supposed to be a free state and kansas a slave state because iowans would come across nebraska, populate that as a free straight and it would be a free state. missourians would come across and populate can canned appeared be a slave state. it would maintain that balance of power which is something we should apologize for. we just don't want to confront this issue, which slave slavery, john quincy adams called it the original sin of the united states that we're asking for forgiveness today. and in that situation that developed in my part -- my part of eastern kansas was bleeding kansas because while people did come across that were

proslavery, other individuals organized from the nortsdz east, and they came -- northeast and they came out with a tire to fight for free -- with a desire to fight for freedom and there was a battle of warfare and all this back and forth about slavery taking place. just before the battle of oswamatee, john brown was in that fight and one of his sons was killed in it. he said at that time there will not be peace in this land until the issue of slavery was resolved. he was right. less than ten years later the civil war broke out over the issue of slavery. today in the united states senate, we pledge to move beyond this shameful period and we officially acknowledge and apologize for the institution of slavery in this country and what many refer to as the original sin of america, which was once woven into the fabric of our

nation and for the federal laws that we passed in this chamber and upheld by the highest court in our lands -- the supreme court. my colleague has already referred to some of those. i want to refer passingly to several as well. laws such as the fugitive slave law first approved on february 12, 1793, amended in 1850 and 1864, sought to punish those persons who dared to escape the brutalty of slavery and those who helped to free individuals in bondage. not only would a suspected runaway slave be dragged into court but would be unable to say a word on his or her behalf. not one word. they weren't allowed to say a single word. my colleague mentioned the missouri compromise of 1820 was crafted as a solution to the ever increasing and volatile dispute over the question of slavery in the united states. 1891 when missouri sought statehood, the question was whether missouri would be admitted to the union as a slave

or free state. this set off an intense debate between northern and southern legislators. missouri's ratification would upset this delicate balance between slave and free states in the senate. in order to keep the already tenuous balance, henry clay worked out a compromise consisting of three parts. maine would separate from massachusetts. movement would enter the union as a slave state. the remaining territories of the louisiana purchase would be closed off to slavery. unrest around the practice of slavery continued until further compromises came forward. additionally, compromise outlawed the slave trade but not slavery in the district of columbia, where we are today, was enacted. while enacted a stricter fugitive slave law for the retrieval of slaves who had run away to the north, this compromise did little to satisfy

the antislavery movement. it did preserve the union in what many refer to as the calm before the storm. then my state enters. as the united states continued to expand the very fabric of our nation was about to be torn in two regarding the people's right to be free. my great state of kansas on may 30, 1854, the kansas-nebraska act became law. frederick douglass deemed the new law -- quote -- "an open invitation to a fierce and bitter strife." those words proved to be very prophetic. shortly after the kansas-nebraska act became law there was a rush to settle kansas, both slavery and abolitionists alike were determined to settle kansas for their cause. the turmoil continued. we had bloody fights, we had stolen elections taken place until we did finally enter the

union as a free state. there were passions surrounding that that ignited on the u.s. senate floor. passions that abolitionist senator charles sumner delivered a rousing speech on the senate floor called the crime against kansas accusing proslavery senators of siding with slavery and in retaliation congressman brooks attacked and beat charles sumner senseless with a cane, an issue of high memory on this floor, even still today. following on june 2, 1856, and there was retaliation, the battle of blackjack in my state ensued, it is widely believed is the first conflict between free state supporters led by john brown and proslavery supporters as well as one of the first battles of the civil war. these things continued until my state came on into the union. i do want to conclude at this

point in time with noting just the importance of apologies. as i mentioned at the outset, they are difficult and they are important and they are hard to do, and they are significant. today we right that wrong of not offering an apology previously. today we move forward in the spirit of unity. today we move towards a true cleansing of our nation's past sins rooted in racism. there may be those who may consider an apology insignificant or purely for symbolic means, and i completely disagree. in 1988 congress apologized for the internment of japanese americans held during world war ii. when asked in an interview 20 years after the apology was signed to give thoughts on this matter, yamamoto, who at the time of the interview was 72 said -- quote -- "it was the apology that mattered." norman mineta, u.s. secretary of commerce and kr-pgs was also

interned during world war ii and said "the apology will always mean more to me than i can ever adequately express." the cleansing effects of apology are not limited to those who are owed the apology but those who give the apology. it is the acknowledgement terrible wrongs were committed, never to be committed again, and through the process of reconciliation work towards a brighter future for all people unburdened by the difficulties of the past but uplifted by the promises of the future, a future where destinies are inextricably linked together. the negro national anthem not only rings true for the african-american community but for all america. god of our weary years, god of our silent tears thou who has brought us thus far on the way.

thou who has by thy might led us into the light. keep us forever in the path we pray. lest feet stray from the places, our god where we meet be, lest our hearts with the wine of the world, we forget thee. shadowed beneath thy hand, may we forever stand true to our god. true to our native land. may we with this apology move forward into the light of unity, united with a common purpose, linked together in a singular humanity. i'm delighted that we're doing this today. madam president, i would yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from michigan. mr. levin: madam president, first i want to thank senators harkin and brownback for the initiative that they have taken, for their leadership in bringing

before the senate this healing resolution, this formal apology for slavery and racial segregation. the resolution before us presents us with the opportunity to address face-to-face the unconscionable, the object horpbt acts of slave -- abhorrent acts of slavery and its aftermath. the apology resolution describes some of the gravest injustices of slavery. families enslaved and torn further apart after family members were sold separately, stripped of their names and heritage, a system of forced labor that persisted for 250 years, brutal and unspeakable acts of violence against slaves. the injustices continued well after the 13th amendment to the constitution ended slavery in our nation because jim-crow laws disenfranchised former slaves and subjugated them as second-class citizens. after presenting detailed

findings regarding slavery in the system of the jury segregation known as jim crow, the resolution reads in part as follows: that the senate -- quote -- "acknowledges the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality and inhumanity of slavery and jim-crow laws, apologizes to african-americans on behalf of the people of the united states for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors who suffered under slavery and jim-crow laws and expresses its recommitment to the principle that all people are created equal and endowed with inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness and calls on all people of the united states to work towards eliminating racial prejudices, injustices and discrimination from our society." madam president, in 2005 the u.s. senate passed a resolution formally apologizing for another tragic legacy of historic racial inequalities in our nation:

lynching. from 1880 to as recently as the 196's an estimated 5,000 americans, predominantly african-americans were killed by public hangings, burnings and mutilations. members of the armed forces were lynched in the country they had defended following both world war i and world war ii, returning soldiers were lynched, many while still wearing their military uniforms. there would be no new respect for these brave african-americans who had fought for our country. only the old order of injustice. the senate passed the resolution apologizing for lynching in an attempt to acknowledge the senate's past failure to address the prevalence of those despicable acts and to allow for some national healing. it is my hope that the slavery apology resolution before us can serve a similar purpose. we're fortunate to live in a time that is not blighted by slavery in this country or segregation under the law. but we live with the legacy of

the practice of slavery, and it is our responsibility and our duty to continue to examine that history in order to improve the present and the future. this apology is part of carrying out that responsibility. and doing so in the presence of visitors who are descendants of slaves adds to the meaning of our action. i yield the floor and again thank the cosponsors of the resolution. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call:

the presiding officer: the senator from iowa. mr. harkin: i ask further proceedings under the quorum call be dispensed with. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. harkin: madam president, i know other speakers are coming down to speak on this resolution

before the time runs out, and since no one is here right now to speak, i want to acknowledge several people who have been very instrumental in getting us to this point. first i want to thank the leadership conference on civil rights and for all that they have done to not only bring us to this point for this apology, but for all they have done to enhance and promote civil rights for americans. i would also recognize the longtime president, wade henderson, who has devoted his entire life to the cause of racial justice and ensuring this nation lives up to its founding ideals. i want to acknowledge and thank the naacp. february marked its 100th birthday, founded on the 100th birthday of president abraham lincoln. for 100 years the naacp has fought for justice for all

americans. and i want to thank their president, and through him all the members of the naacp. i want to acknowledge several staff members who made this resolution possible. senator brownback already recognized rochelle young. i want to thank her for getting us to this point. jackie parker, a senior advisor to senator levin and cofounder of the senate black legislative staff caucus, has been instrumental in planning the upcoming ceremony with civil rights leaders and other luminaries to recognize the injustices of slavery and jim crow. finally, i would like to recognize the tireless work that mike house daniel goldberg has dedicated to seeing this resolution become a reality, the countless hours that he has committed to make this occasion

happen is almost uncountable, the number of hours he's pullete is a put into this. i had like to add senators leahy, dodd, murray and kerry as cosponsors of the resolution. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the senator from kansas. mr. brownback: i, too, want to acknowledge some individuals that have really helped to make this historic day take place. one for me is congressman john lewis, that i've been woshing with for some period of time to get the african-american museum of history and culture to be a reality on the mall. the design is s. has now been picked. the location lab picked. it will be at the base area of the washington monument what i like about it is it is going to show the difficulty and tragedy and also going to show the promise and the future.

so it moves through the whole piece of it. this resolution will be a part of it, of how a nation deals with such enormous problem as this. and john has been a very courageous, long-standing advocate in the mode of what john quincy adams was for years in fighting against slavery. he has been dedicated to this. i remember first going over to his office and him showing me a book of pictures that were on lynchings that had taken place. it was just such a tragic set of pictures that you look at that happened in the early part of the 19th -- the 1900's in my state and many other states around the country. and i am very appreciative of him. and then people that recently passed away like rosa parks that gave us these defining moments of ending segregation. or in my state, like sheryl brown henderson of the brown

family of the brown v. education, the landmark desegregating case inquir whered that even if a school is equal, segregation is inherently wrong. and that they've stood for it and stood tall to bring us to a better point in time. you know, it hasn't been all that long ago -- i started out in a professional career in broadcasting and one of the guys next to me was a sports broadcaster. and he would tell the story about -- and this is even in the big-8 where senator harkin and i share some territory -- they talk about people, african-americans coming on the basketball court being cheered wildly by everybody at the school but then not able to eat at the lunch counter in the community. well, everybody is cheering for them on the basketball court but they can't eat at the lunch counter. and the sportscaster was talking to me about that. or my old friend jack kemp who

recently passed away, who was a strong advocate for african-americans and senator doing -- and for doing things like this and what he saw in the sportesports field for years. and at the negro havel fame, they've got a wonderful museum showing what it took to break through the racial barriers in sports and how positive that was but also how difficult that was during that period of time. all of these i'm mentioning simply because it's part of how difficult it is to get to the point we get to today as a society. these things are -- they do take time and they are difficult and there's a lot of pain and suffering that goes along the way. what senator harkin and i and all the sponsors of this that will be unanimously approved on this senate floor hope that this will be is to all those people and individuals that have had these sort of personal experiences themselves and have felt it themselves, that they will be able to see in this some

acknowledgment of what happened to them and, an acknowledgment that it was wrong. and it doesn't fix it but hopefully it does address it and starts to dig out the wound. there is a great book on this, "healing america's wounds." the last name of the author is "dawson." it points out that these are very significant for society to be able to pull around and that they have to be done for a society to move forward. and there's no way around t you have to address the problem and the top iefnlgt so for those reasons and for the many, many millions of people who have suffered the legacies of slavely and segregation or suffered personally themselves under segregation in this country, we apologize as a united states senate. and i read the finals of this

because i think it just expresses it so well, that there is a sense of congress as the following: apology apology foe enslaifnlt and segregation of african-americans, that congress acknowledges the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality, and inhumanity of slavery in jim-crow laws, apologizes to african-americans on behalf of the people of the united states for the wrongs committed against them and their an ssess terse, who suffered under slavery and jim-crow laws, and expresses its recommitment to the principle that all people are created equal and endowed with inalienable rights from their creator, to life, liberty, and the purr cyst happiness, and calls on all people of the united states to work towards eliminating racial prejudices, injustices, and discrimination from our society. and specifically does the apology but deals with nothing else. nothing in this resolution

authorizes or supports any claim against the united states or serves aes a settlement of any claim against the united states. to leave that issue aside. i'm very aappreciative that a number of states have led the way on moving forward with the apology. the states of virginia, alabama, florida, maryland, north carolina led in adopting resolutions officially expressing that remorse for slavery and for jim-crow laws. madam president, i look forward to this unanimous consent request. i am glad we're doing it now. we will have recognition of this and a rotunda ceremony. i think that will be important. i hope many members will join us on that. i think it will be an historic point in time. madam president, with that, i would -- we have -- i believe we're ready to call for the passage of the resolution or -- i'd yield to the senator from iowa. harass if the senator would just yield again, i just want 0 -- mr. harkin: if the senator would just yield again, i want

to thank my colleague for the wonderful statement. i would just close by say, madam president, again say that a fitting ceremony is being planned for sometime early in july that will take place in the main rotunda of the capitol to markrk this occasion. as i understand, we don't have a firm date yet, but that date will be coming about shortly in consultation with the speaker and the minority leader in the house and the majority leader and the minority leader here in the senate. but we're looking forward to that occasion again, and i think it's one that will be poignant and one that will, again, i think bring home all of us and to the american people the

enormity of what we've done here in terms of fin finally acknowledging the official role of the united states government in promoting, sanctioning slavery and jim-crow laws. so i say to my friend from kansas, we look forward that ceremony and i'm sure the american people are looking forward to it also. if there is -- i might ask the clerk, how much time is remaining? the presiding officer: on the majority side, almost 8 minutes. and on the republican side, just over 9 minutes.

mr. brownback: madam president, i'd note the absence of a quorum. the presiding officer: the clerk will call the roll. quorum call: harass madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from iowa. mr. harkin: on behalf of the majority, we yield back the balance of our time. mr. brownback: on behalf of the republican party, we yield back the balance of our time. the presiding officer: we are still in a quorum call. mr. harkin: i ask that further proceedings b of the quorum call

be dispensed with. the presiding officer: twowks. mr. harkin: i ask that senators feingold and bennett and menendez be added as cosponsors. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. harkin: i yield back our time. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. brownback: an behalf of the republicans, i yield back our time. the presiding officer: without objection. question is on adoption of the resolution. all those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the yeas appear to have it. the ayes have it. the resolution is agreed to. mr. harkin: madam president, i ask that the -- i ask unanimous consent that the senate proceed to a period of morning business with senators permitted to speak for up to 10 minutes each. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. harkin: thank you, madam president. madam president, i have 10 unanimous consent requests for committees to meet during today's session of the senate. theft apriewl of the majority and minority leaders. i ask unanimous consent that these requests be agreed to and that these requests be printed in the record. the presiding officer: without

objection. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senate agrees to the preamble of the resolution, without objection. mr. cornyn: madam president. the presiding officer: the senator from texas. mr. cornyn: madam president, i'd like to turn to another important topic, and that is the pending confirmation of judge sonia sotomayor to be associate justice of the united states supreme court. like many senators, i've had the opportunity to visit with judge sotomayor in my office and, of course, congratulated her on this great honor. and i further pledged to her that she would receive a fair and dignified confirmation proceeding. unfortunately, that has not always been the case in the united states senate. but i did tell her that as far as i was concerned, i would do everything i could to make sure she was