generations and i want to thank all of my colleagues in the congressional prayer caucus to make sure that we remember each and every day as we are here the practice of religious freedom and make sure that we understand our projection of that freedom is what makes us the great nation we are today. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. mr. forbes: mr. wittman, i thank you for your dedication to first amendment rights and the military and one of the deep thinkers we have in this area and all forms of policy, especially as it comes to first amendment liberties is james lankford of oklahoma. we're delighted to have you here tonight, love to hear your thoughts. mr. lankford: thank you. the right to believe. we in america have this unique thing, the right to believe or the right to not have a belief at all. but if you have the belief, you have the right to live what you

believe. it is this unique american freedom that sometimes people around the world stare at with awe. because they're bound to have a certain set of beliefs to be in that country but not so with us in america. you can have a belief, not have a belief. if you have one, you may live your faith. coptic christians in egypt would love to be able to live their faith and not live in fear right now. the behai in iran would love to be able to live out their faith. the christians in syria would love to be able to live out their faith and not be able to live in fear. and the multiple religiouses that try to practice in countries like china and vietnam and other places that constantly live in fear because of their own faith would love to have that. but not so in america. whether you'd be a member of congress, whether you'd be a member in the administration, whether you'd be any person walking down the streets in america, you have the right to live out your faith and it's essential for us. and it's a great value that we

share, but it is essential that we also continue to protect. and in days like today, it is ironic that we're discussing again this unique value to say, can we still live out our faith as americans? let me give you a couple of examples where the challenge has been put to the test recently. it wasn't but a couple of years ago that the obama administration challenged the missouri sin aid church. whether that church could choose their own minister or whether they'd be fought from the outside, that the government could step into the church and say, no, we have to help be a part of selecting what the minister is. and that was argued all the way until it got to the supreme court. where they lost 9-0 in the supreme court reaffirming that a church has a right to select their own minister. as ironic as it is that we're dealing with a great business that employs thousands upon thousands of people around the country called hobby lobby, that the founders of that company are

christians. and they live out their faith and they practice their faith from when they were a craft-framing shop in the garage of the family. and they continue to practice that business the exact same way now. to say, can they live out their faith? they're currently facing a set of fines right now where the administration has stepped in to say, if you provide health care insurance that we choose, you're fine. if you don't provide any insurance at all, i'm going to fine you $2,000. but if you provide insurance that doesn't meet the administration's religious belief, you'll be fined as a $36,500 per employee. let me run that past you again. in a country where you are free to live out your faith, if this particular company chooses to provide insurance that violates their faith, and it doesn't follow up with the administration's policy, they'll e fined $36,500 per employee

per year. and so they changed their insurance to meet the faith of the administration. that's not right. we're a place where we cannot only have a belief and a label, but also choose to live out that label. that's important for us as a nation. two things that i want to be able to encourage as well, one is the students that september 25, just a very few days from now, will stand at flagpoles around this nation and they'll gather early in the morning, before other kids even get up, and stand at a flagpole for an annual celebration called see you at the pole. where students will gather to pray. it's not a demonstration, it's not a declaration, it's just students doing publicly what they do privately every single day and that's pray for our nation. they can do that because of our freedom. oday, i remember three

oklahomans that two years ago ost their life in afghanistan. they're heroes. they're individuals that are protecting the freedom of people they had never met. and protecting our nation. jane horton, one of the widows, not long after her husband, chris, was killed in afghanistan dropped by my office, got a chance to visit with me and we talked for a long time and she handed me a tie that her husband had and i chose to wear it today, two years after he was killed, so that we would not forget them, who stand for our freedom and that we will not forget what they have done for us in our nation. with that i yield back. mr. forbes: thank you, james. and for your great work on this subject and probably no one has defended the rights of our military and their first amendment right and the rights

of our chaplain more than john fleming from louisiana. john, thank you for your efforts in that and for being here tonight and we'd love to hear your thoughts on this very special amendment and right for americans. mr. fleming: i'd like to thank my good friend from virginia for having this special order this evening and the leadership that the gentleman has provided in this area with the prayer caucus and so many other things, both on armed services and outside of armed services, in that realm. mr. speaker, i'm greatly inspired and moved this evening with the speeches that i have heard, talking about religious liberty. and all of the things that we're struggling with right now, with religious liberty. religious freedom is at center of who we are as americans. with foresight and clarity, the founding fathers enshrined religious freedom as as a first amendment right. quote, congress shall make no law respecting an establishment

of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. the first amendment. despite these undisputed facts, time and again we've witnessed a widdling away of this freedom. the passage of president's signature legislation obamacare ushered in a new wave of government oppression for businesses, religious organizations, faith-based schools, charities and hospitals. mr. speaker, i'm very concerned this evening that with obamacare and with many other things that we're seeing on the religious front, on the military front, that washington and this administration is actually substituting its religious beliefs for our own. a very dangerous precedent. obamacare?talk about we discuss obamacare and all the

problems, the cost, the rationing board and all of these things. but what's left out of that discussion is some very, very important points. obamacare's h.h.s. mandate requires that all insurance plans cover various items and services that even they are in direct conflict with deeply held religious beliefs or moral convictions. and three groups are singled out for this. number one is health care providers themselves. who in many cases will be forced to participate in certain techniques, certain types of treatment that is against their deeply held rnls beliefs. such as -- deeply held religious beliefs. such as abortion. abortion pills. sterilization procedures and such as that. another important group is religious institutions. the catholic church has for many

decades, really centuries, have gone about the work of the lord to provide health care to individuals. but will be required under the h.h. mandates to actually provide certain procedures such as sterilization, birth control pills that are against their deeply held beliefs. regardless of whether you agree with that or not is besight the point. according to the first amendment , the church and its institutions should be allowed to do what is right by their own personal religious beliefs. and the third group is private businesses. you've already heard about hobby lobby and many others who because of the h.h. mandate will have to provide coverage through insurance for certain things which may include abortions. and yet that's against their own deeply held religious beliefs. and suffering fines of tens of thousands of dollars for having done so.

that is not right under the first amendment. there are 67 cases and over 200 plaintiffs that have filed suit against the administration to protect the first amendment right to religious freedom. they're working their way through the courts. a christian publishing company well known for their production of the bible as well as family-owned and operated business fresh unlimited inc., a fresh produce processing and packing company in ohio. and beckwith electric, a florida-based electric company are among the 37 for-profit companies seeking relief from the h.h.s. mandate. hospitals, charities, catholic diocese and religious colleges, including louisiana college in my own state are at various stages of defending their first freedom against administration's constitutional h.h.s. mandate. instead of supporting blishers, groceries,

electricians, doctors, nurses, teachers and professors, obamacare strips away the ability for these individuals to live their lives in a manner consistent with their religious beliefs. this administration is relentlessly lambasted the religious freedom of hardworking americans, threatening ruinous fines for noncompliance. and again companies such as hobby lobby, a well-known arts and crafts store that started out just as one single store, face crippling fines for their religious beliefs. congressman for theberry, congress lady black and myself have put together a continuum of conscious protections through legislation and we've attempted many times to get this up for a vote and passed through the house and through the senate that would block many of these h.h.s. mandates that come down from obamacare. so far we have not gotten the

support from the other side of the aisle to get this done. but we will continue until this is completed. and then finally military religious freedom. you know, we know that the military often times is a micros could much of what happens -- microcosm of what happens in the demographs across america and today religious freedom is under tremendous pressure. we have situations where military members can no longer put a bible out on their desk. that somehow that's offending someone. you heard the recent case of master sergeant monk who because he wouldn't champion something that was against his religious beliefs closely held and taught by his own church is now facing court -- court marshall for speaking out against that. the list goes on and on, mr. speaker, of what's happening and it's very recent.

this is not injure father's military -- this is not your father's military. this is not really the military you were in even five years ago. this is a new military in which religious freedom is being pushed away in substitute of washington's morality, washington's faith. this administration's faith instead. so with that i do want to thank my colleagues who are here tonight talking about the important thing, what could be more important than religious freedoms? i think many would say that's the foundation, the basic foundation upon which this nation was created and why many people have immigrated over the centuries here and many people even today continue to immigrate to the united states, because of its religious freedom. let's hold this dear. let's not let go of the first amendment. the ability to not only believe what you choose to believe in religion, but also to speak out and express as well. even to take action.

all of these fundamental and very important. and so with that i would like to yield back to mr. forbes and thank you again for the opportunity. mr. forbes: dr. fleming, we thank you for your expertise in both the health care area and the military and thanks for fighting this fight so well. one of the truly great champions on religious freedom issues has been the chairman of the judiciary subcommittee on the constitution. he was actually selected as christian statesman of the year because he truly practices what he preaches and we're delighted to have with us trent franks from arizona. mr. franks, it's good to have you here and love to hear your comments. mr. franks: thank you, mr. speaker. tonight, mr. speaker, as we talk about religious freedom, it is especially appropriate that this group is led by one congressman randy fornse. -- forbes. mr. speaker, i came into congress approximately 11 years ago and mr. forbes has been a

press yent and noble voice among us during that time and i truly believe that as long as there are men like randy forbes in congress, that america will continue to be a great and hopeful nation. mr. forbes understands the importance of religious freedom. he understands that religious freedom is truly the cornerstone of all other freedoms. want to make a sort of lehman's analysis of a quote sometime back from a great english statesman. said, out of deep, dark bondage arises great faith. and that faith leads to great courage. and freedom leads to abundance and abundance leads to apathy

age.dependence to bond and down through the ages, mr. speaker, and i would suggest to you, mr. speaker, there is a solution to blaking that pattern and to hold to the great founges of religious freedom as we so this is the at precursor and we protect it and on do it is a problem. a united states citizen, who has been in prison in iran for exercising his faith that is

protected under international law. branchays ago, the 36 tf onfirmed his sentence and is serving the sentence. the following statement is from his wife and a resident of idaho in reaction to the news that iran upheld her husband's prison's septemberens. when i learned that i heard they upheld the prison sentence,, the crush with the hope of this news with the children prayed for their daddy's safe return. few discouraged after a

news, i was doipted that the leader of my country that has been seal ent when an american citizen is wasting away. for an entire year my husband was faced threlingts for refusing to denny his christian nathan president obama has never spoken a word about him. i'm grateful for pressure we realize if we don't speak out against injustice, all of our children will have to face what my children are facing today, unquote. mr. speaker, the american people would be jut raged to know that administration has

known that was throne h thrown into a regime for having the nerve to practice hist christian faith sm the sfration should be ashamed of its failure to speak out against the precious family. they hold the obama administration as it proceeds to weapons. i hope the american people will hold the administration will hold it in injustice forced upon this pastor and so many others. on september 26, he will have served in iran's prison for an entire year.

it was his last hope of being released under a heartless judicial system that he seve his eight-year system. now his wife is faced with crushing his child like hope of her two young children who have prayed in hope and expectation for their daddy's safe return to tell them that it will be a long time before they see their daddy again. when i hear the words, roll them over in my behind and i think of my children atlanta home, i'm heart broken for the family and enraged at the attitude and sealens of president obama. iran has demonstrated in utter disregard for religious freedom

hold the pastor an american citizen in a hellish iranian prib. to stifle the freedom, have been again exposed to the world after the impribment of this pastor who at the time was working to build an are fanage. sking once said, this is a threat to justice and it has shown the implications of a single instins of stance. acknowledge, we re upholding the religious freedom as a first freedom that

humanity. o all of mr. forbes: we thank you out. the pastor who did not have parents and loved his faith and god. our next speaker is someone who mab recognized for a lot of tores and here to sfand up al guse freedom, louis gourment. ormentegormente -- gormentegormente i know it is attack and under when we look at what the constitution says and it has been ride that we forget the first word, we blow the first word of the first amendment and that is that congress shall make

no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise throve. why is it they singled out congress and the 10th amendment and anything that is not prohibited to the states, that power is reserved to the statutes and the pep. why is it? this was intended for congress and not for the states. because the people that voted for these amendments knew that every one of the tu states had some laws that dealt with the in s tanity or a belief jeesyuss -- jesus crist. and if you wanted to be part of this, you had to believe this

way. it was supposed to be a reindustries on congress and we have gotten so far afield. and we aren't a loud to bring up a hymn here in congress whereas forbes, the dy hall, the separation of church and state, thomas jefferson came to church every sunday and on some occasions he brought the marine band. right down the hall in what was the house chamber and now looks what has happened. we seen these incursions and christians are forced to epdure he slams and the arrows that

should never be endured. like 1706, those members that ere part in harm's way and after sale team 6 was outed after the once that took out osama bin laden and you can see recordic of the ceremony and do a muslim prayer, caskets and we know some of they rice -- guys and condemn to hell they will never defeat. it turns out today we see persecution after persecution of christians when you look at the underpinnings of this nation, it

ordained ians where christian ministers. lynn ok at what drove conch. t was -- lynn conch. and it include the second inaugural address of lincoln. adams and n quincy get back involved to alem nature slavery. and then loob, the next big step toward true sisterhood came from martin luther king junior and now within the 50 years it has become only acceptable to persecute christians and if you

look, this administration and so many have taken a stand yes, it is an out rage that poisonous gas was used in the middle east. you don't help hear the administration talking about the persecution about christians. by article says, wurnarlt bob monroe and he talks about the report, he ut they are talk about your dries 257bity or die. and that was written in. -- village has stormed. conversion or death. as they screamed. well, there is too much

persecution of christianity. that was never supposed to be the case. that was what so many said would be the salvation of our sperment in democracy. it's time to stand for freedom of religion, not freedom to christian tans. >> the wall street journal talked about how how hard and steve pearce from new mexico. pars pearce thank the gentleman from new mexico. congress should make no law making an establishment or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. no what would be in the minds of the minds that wrote those

words. it would do well to look at where they came from. kings ruled. the kings could tell you what churp church you had to be in and what you had to be profess. and ultimate power over you. so he came here to establish a new government. they wanted this contract with the people and the government that said the government cannot abridge certain lines and the establishment of religion and the free practice thereof that protected. the gentleman from virginia mentioned earlier in his comments there was a young couple in albuquerque, new mexico, she had a way with meras that started in-home

photography business. just wanted to give expression. also wanted to defend their rights what they plooved their did and they would do nothing that compromised their faith and religious beliefs. the constitution protects that. very soon after establishing their business, they had an inquiry from a gay scoum asking that they they photograph their vows. the young couple in the photography studio refused and they were taken before the human rights commission and equally surprised when they found they had no right in this country and the commission said you are gimenty of violating a different law, one that did not comport with the constitution.

the young people appealed to the new mexico appeals courts and the court of appeals foundals at they qur found in violation. ignorant of what the constitution protects. it was these things that the founding fathers were worried about. catholics are afraid they're going to have to provide contraceptives from the government of the same mind. doctors, who are opposed to abortion, fear that this government is going to tell them what they must do in violation of their conscience. are we the american people -- are we, the american people, supposed to stand by? i think not. i think it's time for us all, not just congress, not just your representatives, but all to raise their voices and speak out

on a government that is too strong, has forgetsen its limitations written that -- forgotten its limitations written in that constitution and especially under that first amendment, protecting our free exercise of religion. speak with us, stand up and speak with us. i yield back. mr. forbes: i thank the gentleman for his words tonight. and for some brief remarks. my dear friend from virginia, congressman griffith, and we're glad to have you with us tonight for your comments. mr. griffith: i am so glad to be with you this evening. so many people in washington and other parts of the country believe that it was the intent of the founding fathers to bleach from our society our religious beliefs and you have heard others speak this evening that that is not the case. in particular i would like to share with you, in the short time that we have remaining, the words of thomas jefferson from that famous letter to the danbury, kentucky, baptist.

because everybody focuses on one phrase and not the entire letter. he opens with salutations to the danbury, connecticut, baptists and then begins the meat of the letter. believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his god, that he owes account to none. either for his faith or for his worship. that legislative powers of government reach actions only and not opinions. i contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole american people, which declared that their legislature should make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. thus building a wall of separation between church and state. adhering to this expression of the extreme will of the nation, on behalf of the rights of conscience, i shall see with sincere satisfaction the progress of those sentiments which tend to restore to man all his natural rights.

convinced he has no natural right in opposition to his social duties. now, the next paragraph grave and the closing paragraph of the letter is very instructive. because the man who wanted to bleach religion out ends the letter as president of the united states as follows. i reciprocate your kind prayers, for the protection and blessings of the common father. and creator of man. and for yourselves and rur religious association my high respect and esteem. obviously it was never his intent to bleach out of our society religion and the statue of religious -- statute of religious freedom today still stands where you and i both serve and i yield back. mr. forbes: mr. speaker, we thank you for the time tonight but over your head stands the phrase, in god we trust. two years ago when they opened the visitor's center, they tried

to take that phrase out of it. members of the prayer caucus came here and stood and because of that it's now written and engraved in the walls over there. we believe that if you can engrave it there, you can engrave it there, we can engrave it once again in the hearts of the people of this country. i want to thank you for the time that you've allowed us today. i want to thank the majority leader for yielding us this time. i want to thank our founders for giving us this great right of freedom of religion and my prayer and our prayer tonight is that the american people will be wise enough to keep it. and with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 3, 2013, the gentleman from new york, mr. jeffries, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader. mr. jeffries: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members be given five days to revise and extend their remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. jeffries: it's an honor and a privilege, mr. speaker, to

once again have this opportunity to stand here on the floor of the house of representatives and to anchor the c.b.c. special order, where for the next 60 minutes members of the congressional black caucus have an opportunity to speak directly to the american people. on an issue of great significance to us, which is the future of the organized labor movement and how that relates to the economic viability of the african-american community and to america as a whole. now, today we've aught all just returned from the august recess, we're here back at the capitol and of course we're in the midst of a very robust period of deliberation. as it relates to the administration's request for us

to grant authorization for this country to strike militarily against syria for what appears to be the use of chemical weapons in violation of international law against the syrian people. that debate will play itself out over the next few days and perhaps even the next few weeks. but while we undertake that solemn obligation to make the best decision for this country and for our constituents as it relates to such a critical issue of war and peace and possible military engagement, we also have a similar responsibility to deal with the domestic issues that continue to impact our constituents as well as the american people. and we know that we're still in the midst of a very sluggish economic recovery.

and the american worker has fallen behind relative to the position that that worker was in coming out of world war ii and through the 1960's and the 1970's, into the 1980's and the 1990's. this is a matter of urgent concern to the members of the congressional black caucus and it should be a matter of urgent concern to everyone who's a member of this organization -- this august body. and part of the deterioration of the american worker, i believe, imperically can be shown to be directly related to the deterioration of unionized membership here in this great country. and so we'll explore those topics where we're a week removed from the labor day celebration and a few weeks removed from the 50th

anniversary of the march on washington, a march that was projected as one both for jobs and for freedom. we often focus on the civil rights aspect of the march and it produced some tremendous pieces of legislation, but the march on washington was also about jobs and economic opportunity and it was put together with the significant assistance of the organized labor movement here in america. i've been joined by several distinguished colleagues, members of the house of representatives, but also members of the class of 2012, this wonderful freshman class, and i believe the first speaker will be the distinguished gentleman, my good friend from the other side of the hudson narrowly always dressed representative donald payne jr. and i yield to him

such time as the gentleman may consume. mr. payne: mr. speaker, i'd like to thank the gentleman from new york for that kind introduction and his consistent leadership on the c.b.c. special order hours. night's topic is african-americans and the labor movement. and it is an american story. historically union members have played a critical role in the civil rights struggles of the past and the involvement continues today. when dr. martin luther king was jailed for civil disobedience, it was unions and union members who came to the legal and financial aid of dr. king.

african-american workers have played a pivotal role in strengthening our unions and our economy. the path to the middle class for african-americans has always been through union jobs. and what we see today is an .rosion of that dream people's way of life, what they're used to, the levels of which they're used to live at is eroding. and it is because there's an attack on organized labor in this country from forbeses within this nation -- forces within this nation that are eroding the quality of life for hundreds and thousands of americans throughout this nation. so i am really here to say and to point out to this august body

that labor has been the pathway for many americans, not just african-americans, but people of all walks of life, to live the american dream, to own a home, to feed their children, to send them to school, to take care of their parents, to have health has all been rity through labor. e stand here today and count the countless number of times that the labor movement has been there for us in america. this is aa kinship you can expect from a fell o'union member -- this is a kinship you can expect from a fellow union member. i have been in two unions in my lifetime, yes, i'm a member of

congress today. but there have been times in my life where i worked hourly jobs. an it was because of the union i was able to get a living wage raise the resources to my family. so i don't come to you preaching to you when not knowing how it is to get up every morning and punch the clock and look for you can get itpe in order to increase the wages that you bring home. the reason to support unions are clear. union workers are more likely to have health insurance and more ikely to have pension plans. receiving this preventative care now helps lower health care

costs later. and let me say something about the affordable care act at this point in time. it is a great piece of legislation, it will go down in history just as social security, medicare and medicaid have changed this country. because i can see the goal line. it's going to take some time to get there and yes it will have to be tweaked and looked at and changed in some areas. but it is a monumental piece of legislation that is going to change health care in this nation for millions of people that have never had health care. and to my fellow americans, that lowers the cost for all of you because you pay for people that do not have health care. so now you will have millions of

americans paying into their own system which lowers the cost for you. today labor unions are still at the forefront of improving equality in the workplace. right now in new jersey we are fighting to raise the minimum wage, despite overwhelming support by the people of new jersey, the governor of new jersey vetoed that bill. to raise the minimum wage to $18.25. but our workers will not be deterred. this november new jerseyans will have the chance to right that ship at the ballot box and raise the minimum wage for millions of workers. in jersey city, it is expected, the city will require paid sick leaf to all workers. this is important to our workers and to our economy, because it leave n that paid sick

reduces turnover inkoreaes for productivity and lowers health care costs for all. i spoke about my experience in labor. i worked for a manufacturing firm as a young man of 20 or so. and it was a business that manufactured computer forms. it was the only african-american company of its kind in united states of america at that time. and i was proud to work there because it was my vowcage was printing in schools. so i was very glad to go there and work in that atmosphere. but as a 20-year-old does sometimes, you know, you are young and make mistakes, i was

fired by that company. the oirn of the company that fired me was my uncle. my father was the hearing officer against me, and my grandfather was a witness against me. but let me say, no one knows how important it is to be represented because the union spite of back, in everything i was up against. i stand here understanding -- i stand here to let you know i understand what it is to be represented firsthand. mr. speaker, the people of this country and this great state of

new jersey deserve a wage that they can live on. you know, several months ago, colleagues of mine in the congressional black caucus took the snap challenge and we lived on what a person would have to live on for a day and try to make ends meet and eat. it was an eye-opening experience. two bottles of water. a microwave mack cronny and cheese and tuna fish. if which think people are living day, n that type, $4.17 a hen you have another thought

coming. we need to know what it costs to live in this nation and we will continue. as the c.b.c., as a group, to advice our opinion and let us be heard on these issues that impact our districts, our states and our nation. and i yield back. youreffries: thank you for thoughtful observations. you know, i think the organized labor movement has a pretty simple objective that a hard day's work should be compensated by a good day's pay and that anybody who works hard to provide for their family should be able to take care of their amily possibly even with a solidly middle-class existence.

that is consistent with the idea of who we are as a country. we have a minimum wage that is you , $7.25 an hour that can work 40 hours a week and a family of four will fall below the poverty line. we see income and equality reach levels that are as bad as they were during the great depression. and part of the reason for these economic phenomenon have to do with the americans and their partnerships in the work force as union members and something we just have to confront in this country in deciding what type of america we are going to become as we move forward into the

future. i have been joined by a distinguished, eloquent, thoughtful colleague from the great state of ohio and i'm leased to yield the floor to the representative of ohio. mrs. beatty: it is a great honor to join my colleague, mr. jeffries, for joining the important discussion on achieving economic security through the labor movement. labor unions have an important role in the civil rights movement. today the labor movement continues to be an important issue for african emamericans, just as important as it was 50 years ago during the march on washington for jobs and freedom. you see, the lake unions and civil rights groups shared the

struggle of fighting for better pay and equal rights. the overall goal of this movement remains the same. we must invest in education, fair wages and workers' rights. we must continue to fight for those in our community who are denied economic opportunity and equality. labor unions are at the forefront of these endeavor. they ensure the gains that workers have made in the past, that they are maintained and the workers' rights will be preekted in the future. union members have played a critical role in the civil rights' movement and their movement continues today. historically the path for middle class and african i've americans are for union jobs and unions

provide america african-americans with economic opportunity. 13% of all union jobs in the united states are african-americans. despite they make up 11.4% of the overall domestic work force. african-american nonunion 1% more than workers. if we want to rebuild america's nid will class. we need strong unions. unions play a major role in our economy and on behalf of economy. the essence of what they do is providing workers with a strong voice so they receive a fair

share of the economic growth that h helped create. they have always been an important player in making sure that the economy works for all america. pped laborers have hill and paid ine eared health care. even today, union work iris still maintain more benefits and job protection than nonunion workers. union jobs continue to offer higher salaries, pensions, health care, benefits that give families, the economic security they deserve, the security to be able to sind their children to college or trade school. you see, i know firsthand,

because my dad was a union worker. oftentimes, i would say, i was able to go to college because of union dollars. this is the american dream and unions have helped ensure that more americans have a chance to live it. in central ohio, in the 3rd congressional district of ohio that i represent, labor unions are strong and a significant part of the community. during my august recess, i had the opportunity to visit the sheet metal workers' union, local 24, located in the district. i also had the opportunity to have a laborer' town hall meetings and tubing to those teaching our children, talking to workers, improving our

infrastructure, police and first responders and electric workers, those working in transportation, he postal service, nurses, our local, state, federal and municipal government employees, those that assist us every day and their work improves our community and our local economy. it is so important for us to come here today as members of congress and yes, members of the congressional black caucus and legality me tell you why. because in our current economic climate, unions are more important than ever before. you see, we need fair wages. wage.d a higher minimum if our economy continues toe

recover from the worst recession in 80 years, many workers are forced to spend their savings and figure out how to make ends meet. yes, unions are a vital part of our society and so important as we continue to rebuild america. e news ensure that workers can retire with dignity and preserve the principles of the middle class. we must make sure that we preserve the values of that civil rights movement 50 years ago and that labor movement that defines our country, because when unions are strong and able to provide a voice to american workers, our community, our state and our nation grows.

so tonight, i say thank you to all my friends in labor, because you are making us have a better america. thank you for this opportunity. and i yield back. mr. jeffries: thank you, congressman beatty, for those thoughtful and insightful remarks and for pointing out the historic connection between the struggle for civil rights here in america. of course we know that randolph was very central in the 1963 march in washington, that great labor leader who in 1936 formed brotherhood of sleeper car reporters. he made of the observation of the essence of trade unionism, social uplift, the labor

movement has been the have i yield back for the dispossessed the downtrodden and the poor and he he canoed those words but i think they ring true even now in 2013 in america today and we are thankful for that. i have been joined by another distinguished colleague, member of the freshman class, my colleague from the lone star state and my honor and privilege to yield to the gentleman from texas, mark veasey, may consume. mr. veasey: thank you for wages. about the labor and i thank my colleague for putting this together and very timely as we try to pull our

country out of the glut we are in and getting job numbers back and things are getting back and make sure that people have a living wage where they can earn a good salary and dignity and respect and feed their families and take care of them. listened to donald payne from new jersey talk about his life when he was growing up and the importance that unions paid in his life. when i was in high school, i worked in a growry store and it was a union grocery store and it was the only one in dallas. and we had benefits. we had time and a half and paid extra on holidays and we were young people and