to thank congressman cummings and the committee. the drafting committee worked hard. this worked long. they were thoughtful. they were visionary. they were bold. they were not afraid of difference and they found unity in their approach. and we as members of the platform committee have an and tunity to review discuss the platform as they have presented it. ms. franklin: i am especially encouraged by his words that we too have to mess with it much. as a co-chair, i don't get to determine that. you do. but i do get a chance to talk with you about the protocols associated with the meeting and whatever messing we'd like to do. first and foremost, we're going

to share lots of opinions. it's important to remember, as has been said by several of our speakers, that we're all mocrats and that our differences are relatively small. our goal for our party and our country are shared and that should come first. second, third, fourth and fifth as we embark on this process. second, we will consider amendments section by section, in the order as laid out in the draft platform. everyone has the draft, correct? i can't hear you. ok. if you have submitted a proposed amendment when it is call, please approach the microphone to present your amendment to the committee. the clerk will read the amendment, please keep in mind that in order for a proposed amendment to be considered, it must be seconded by 15 committee members.

if there are not 15 seconds, the amendment will not be considered. you will be recognized for presenting your amendment before the chair requests the second. you have one minute, which is not part of your 10 minutes, to present the amendment. if you go over the one minute, it will be counted into the 10 minutes should your amendment have the appropriate seconds. please state your name before beginning to present your amendment. it is important for all speakers to provide your name before speaking. this is for our court reporters ' ease. in order to be able to alternate speakers for and against, as you've heard, we are requesting that those in favor line up to the right of the podium, of the microphone, and those opposed to the amendment to line up to the

left. our rules have set 10 minutes for each debate, to be divided between for and against. five minutes for each. when you have exhausted your time, no other speakers will be recognized on the pending amendment. upon exhaustion of the time, the chair will call for the vote. now, let's begin. the first section we will . nsider today is the preamble we have no amendments to the preamble. [applause] 2-2. the honorable maxine waters and ben jealous will present the preamble. please join us in welcoming them. [applause]

mr. jealous: this year, in 2016, democrats meet in philadelphia with the same basic belief that animated the continental congress. when they gathered in philadelphia 240 years ago. out of many, we are one. ms. waters: under president obama's leadership and thanks to the hard work and determination of the american people, we have come a long way from the great recession and the republican policies that triggered it. u.s. businesses have now added 14.8 million jobs, since private sector job growth turned positive in early 2010. 20 million people have gained health insurance coverage. the american auto industry just

had its best year ever. we're getting more of our energy from the sun and the wind and importing less oil from overseas. mr. jealous: but too many of us have been left out and left behind. they're working longer hours, with less security. wages have barely budged. and the racial wealth gap remains wide. while the costs of everything, from child care to a college education, has continued to rise. for too many families, the dream of home ownership is out of reach. and as working people struggle, the top 1% accrues more wealth and more power. republicans in congress have chosen gridlock and dysfunction over trying to find solutions

to the real challenges we face. it is no wonder that so many feel like the system is rigged gainst them. ms. waters: democrats believe that cooperation is better than conflict. unity is better than division. empowerment is better than resentment. and bridges are better than walls. it's a simple but powerful idea. we are stronger together. democrats believe we're stronger when we have an economy that works for everyone , an economy that grows incomes for working people, creates good jobs, and puts the middle class life within the reach for more americans. democrats believe we can spur more sustainable, economic -- sustainable economic growth, which will create more good paying jobs and raise wages. and we can have more economic

fairness, so the rewards are shared broadly. not just with those at the top. we need an economy that prioritizes long-term investment over short-term profit seeking, rewards the common interest over self-interest, and promotes innovation and entrepreneurship. mr. jealous: we believe that oday's extreme level of income and wealth inequality where the top gains go to the top 1% and the richest 20 people in our country own more wealth than the bottom 150 million people makes our economy weaker, our communities poorer, and our politics poisonous. ms. waters: and we know that our nation's long struggle with race is far from over. more than half a century after

rosa parks sat and dr. king marched and john lewis bled, more than half a century after cesar chavez and others organized, race still plays a significant role, determining who gets ahead in america and who gets left behind. we must face that reality and we must fix it. mr. jealous: we believe a good education is a basic right of all. no matter what zip code they live in. we will end the school to prison pipeline, and build a cradle to college pipeline instead. where every child can live up to his or her god-given potential. ms. waters: we believe in helping americans balance work and family. without fear of punishment or penalty. we believe in at last guaranteeing equal pay for

women. and, as the party that created social security, we believe in protecting every american's ight to retire with dignity. [applause] mr. jealous: and we firmly believe that the agreed, wrecklessness and illegal behavior on wall street must be brought to an end. [applause] simply put, wall street must never again be allowed to threaten families and businesses on main street or ack streets or side streets. ms. waters: democrats believe we're stronger when we protect citizens' right to vote, not corporations and billionaires' right to buy elections. we will fight to bring an end

to the broken campaign finance system, overturn the disastrous citizened united decision. [applause] restore the full power of the voting rights act. [applause] and return our elections to the american people. [applause] mr. jealous: democrats believe that climate change poses a real and urgent threat to our economy. our national security and our children's health and futures. and that we deserve the jobs and security that come from becoming the clean energy superpower of the 21st century. [applause]

ms. waters: democrats believe we are stronger and safer when america brings the world together. and leads with principle and purpose and when we strengthen our alliances, not weaken them. we believe in the power of development and diplomacy. we believe our military should be the best trained, best equipped fighting force in the world. and that we must do everything we can to honor and support our veterans. [applause] and we know that only the united states can mobilize common action on a truly global scale. to take on the challenges that have no borders. from international terrorism to climate change to health pandemics. mr. jealous: above all, democrats are the party of inclusion. we know that diversity is not

our problem, it is our promise. and as democrats we respect differences of perspective and belief and pledge to work together to move this country orward, even when we disagree. [applause] with this platform, we do not merely seek common ground, we strive to reach higher ground. ms. waters: we are proud of our heritage, as the nation of immigrants. we know that today's immigrants are tomorrow's teachers, doctors, lawyers, government leaders, soldiers, entrepreneurs and activists, p.t.a. members and pillars of our communities. [applause] mr. jealous: we believe in protecting civil liberties and guaranteeing civil rights and voting rights, women's rights

and workers' rights, lgbt s for people ht with disabilities. [applause] we believe america is still, as robert den kendy said, a great country -- robert kennedy said, a great country, an unselfish contract cri and a compassionate country. -- an unselfish country and a compassionate country. ms. waters: these principles stand in sharp contrast to the republicans who have nominated as the standard bearer for their party and their candidate for president a man who seeks appeal to americans' basist differences, rather than our etter natures. mr. jealous: the stakes have been high in previous elections. but in 2016 the stakes can be measured in human lives. in the number of immigrants who

would be torn from their homes, in the number of faithful and peaceful muslims who would be barred from even visiting our shores. in the number of allies alienated and dictators courted . in the number of americans who would lose access to health care and see their rights ripped away. ms. waters: this election is about more than democrats and republicans. it is about who we are as a nation. and who we will be in the future. 240 years ago in philadelphia we started a revolution of ideas and of action that continues to this day. since then, our nation has been tested many times, through bondage and civil war, segregation and depression, two world wars and the threat of

nuclear annihilation. generations of americans fought and marched and organized to widen the circle of opportunity and dignity and we are fighting still. mr. jealous: despite what some say, america is and has always been great. but not because it has been perfect. what makes america great is our unerring belief that when we -- that we can make it better. we can and we will build a more just economy, a more equal society, a more perfect union, because we are stronger together. [applause]

ms. franklin: you've heard the preamble. are you ready to vote? all in favor indicate -- i'm sorry. clickers. you ready to vote? he floor is open for the vote. my eyes are pretty good, aren't they? i know, i see. we'll restart. we can vote aye and nay. all in favor indicate by the sign of aye. nay. the ayes have it.

unanimously. [applause] we are breaking. for the postevent. i think you have the details. ok. e'll get them for you. just a second. just a second. we're almost there. there is an event honoring rlando memorial, the victims of the pulse night club tragedy. there will be buses at 6:30, which will take us to the at 2416 useum of art north mills avenue. 2416 north mills avenue.

the buses will be ready to pick us up at 6:30 at the registration area. >> so let me say this. following the memorial service, we will reconvene immediately back here. we're going to have an evening session of some duration. it is hoped that the time that is being spent over the next hour-plus during the memorial service will allow us to move more speedily through some additional sections of the platform. mr. malloy: we're investing time in trying to reach understandings and that's why we're taking this break at this time. we will stand in adjournment until after the memorial service, following the memorial service, please come back and let's be ready to begin our work again. thank you. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] [captions copyright national able satellite corp. 2016]

ms. franklin: excuse me. we expect to be back between 8:00 and 9:00. plan accordingly.

ms. franklin: just give us a minute. we're breaking now. the buses will be outside at 6:30. we expect to be back here between 8:00 and 9:00. and -- wait a second. here. ll be provided [applause] but please leave your clickers. leave your clickers. thank you and see you at the event. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2016]

>> so, the democratic national

committee is taking a break from its fourth and final hearing in orlando, florida, to set the party's platform. committee members will return again between 8:00 and 9:00 eastern. we'll bring that to you live ere on c-span. >> our road to the white house coverage continues in cleveland. with live coverage of the republican party platform committee. monday, july 11, starting at 10:00 a.m. eastern, and continuing tuesday, july 12, at 10:00 a.m. eastern. the r.n.c. platform committee is responsible for drafting and approving the party platform and submitting it to delegates. live coverage on c-span, the c-span radio app, and cspan.org. ♪ >> the hard-fought 2016 primary season is over with historic conventions to follow this summer. >> colorado. >> florida, >> texas. >> ohio. >> watch c-span as the

delegates consider the nomination of the first woman ever to head a major political party. and the first nonpolitician in several decades. watch live on c-span. listen on the c-span radio app. or get video on-demand at cspan.org. >> you have a front row seat to every minute of both conventions on c-span. all beginning on monday, july 8. >> following last night's shootings of police officers in dallas, president obama made a statement in poland where he was attending a nato summit. president obama: good morning, everybody. let me begin by thanking presidents tusk and juncker for the opportunity to meet today.

with your understanding, i want to begin with a few words about the situation back in the nited states, specifically the situation in dallas, exas. my team has been keeping me updated throughout the morning of the evening in dallas. i spoke this morning with mayor rawlings of dallas to convey the deepest condolences of the merican people. i told him that the federal government will provide whatever assistance dallas may need as it deals with this tremendous tragedy. we still dont know all the facts. what we do know is that there has been a vicious, calculated and despicable attack on law nforcement. police in dallas were on duty, doing their jobs, keeping people safe during peaceful protests.

these law enforcement officers were targeted, and nearly a dozen officers were shot. five were killed. other officers and at least one civilian were wounded -- some are in serious condition, and we are praying for their recovery. as i told mayor rawlings, i believe that i speak for every single american when i say that we are horrified over these events, and that we stand united with the people and the police department in dallas. according to police, there are multiple suspects. we will learn more, undoubtedly, about their twisted motivations. but let's be clear, there is no possible justification for these kinds of attacks or any violence against law enforcement. the f.b.i. is already in touch with the dallas police, and anyone involved in these senseless murders will be held ully accountable.

justice will be done. i will have more to say about this as the facts become more clear. for now, let me just say that ven as yesterday i spoke about our need to be concerned, as all americans, about racial disparities in our criminal justice system, i also said yesterday that our police have an extraordinarily difficult job and the vast majority of them do their job in utstanding fashion. i also indicated the degree to which we need to be supportive of those officers who do their ob each and every day, protecting us and protecting ur communities. today is a wrenching reminder of the sacrifices that they make for us. we also know that when people

are armed with powerful weapons, unfortunately it makes attacks like these more deadly and more tragic. and in the days ahead, were going to have to consider those realities as well. in the meantime, today our focus is on the victims and their families. they are heartbroken. the entire city of dallas is grieving. police across america, which is a tight-knit family, feels this loss to their core. and we're grieving with them. id ask all americans to say a prayer for these officers and their families. keep them in your thoughts. and as a nation, lets remember to express our profound gratitude to our men and women in blue -- not just today, but every day. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] fdic north dakota >> attorney general lore --

[captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2016] >> attorney general loretta lynch also spoke about the dallas shootings. ms. lynch: good afternoon, everyone. thank you all for being here today. last night at least five police officers were shot and killed. several more were injured. along with two civilians, as they sought to protect a

peaceful protest in dallas, texas. our thoughts and our prayers and condolences go out to the families of those who have lost loved ones. the department of justice, including the f.b.i., a.t.f., the u.s. marshals service, and the u.s. attorneys' office, on the scene is working closely with our state and local counterparts and we intend to provide any assistance that we can to investigate this attack. and also to help heal a community that has been severely shaken and deeply scarred by an unfathomable tragedy. it is an unfold folding situation, we'll be providing additional information when it is available and appropriate. but more so, this has been a week of profound grief and heartbreaking loss. the peaceful protests planned in dallas last night was organized in response to the tragic deaths of alton sterling n louisiana and philando castile minnesota. we're providing assistance to local authorities in minnesota

who are leading the investigation there. today we are feeling the devastating loss of dallas area rapid transit officer brent thompson and four other fallen officers whose names remain unreleased and we await notification to all of the families. after the events of this week, americans across our country are feeling a sense of helplessness, of uncertainty and of fear. these feelings are understandable and they are justified. but the answer must not be violence. the answer is never violence. rather, the answer, our answer, all our answer must be action. calm, peaceful, collaborative and determined action. we must continue working to build trust between communities and law enforcement. we must continue working with every person in this country to give equal justice and you the law and we must take a hard

look at the ease with which wrong doers can get their hands on deadly weapons and the frequency with which they use them. and we must reflect on the kind of country that we want to build and the kind of society that we are choosing to pass on. to our children. and above all, we must reject the easy impulses of bitterness and ranker and embrace the difficult work, but the important work, the vital work, of finding a path forward together. above everything, we must remind ourselves that we're all americans. and that as americans we share not just a common land, but a common life. not just common goals, but a common heart and soul. and those we've lost this week have come from different backgrounds, different neighborhoods, but today they're mourned by officers, by residents, by family and friends, by men and women and children who loved them. who needed them and who will miss them always.

they are mourned by all of us. to the families of all who have lost their lives in this series of tragedies, we share your pain and your loss. to our brothers and sisters who wear the badge, i want you to know that i am deeply grateful for the dangerous work you do every day to keep our streets safe and our nation secure. our hearts are broken by this loss. and the department of justice will do all that we can to support you in the days ahead. and to those who seek to improve our country through peaceful protests and protected speech, i want to you know that your voice is important. do not be discouraged by those who would use your lawful actions as a cover for their heinous violence. we will continue to safeguard your constitutional rights and to work with you in the difficult mission of building a better nation and a brighter future. and to all americans, i ask you, i implore you, do not let

this week precipitate a new normal in this country. i ask you to turn to each other, not against each other, as we move forward. let's support one another. let us help heal one another. and i urge you to remember, today and every day, that we are one nation, we are one people, and we stand together. may god bless the families and the loved ones of all who were taken from us this week and comfort their grief with his everlasting grace and may god bless the united states of. thank you -- united states of america. thank you. reporter: what do you use to explain the spike in police murders? [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] [captions copyright national able satellite corp. 2016]

>> the u.s. flag is flying at half-staff over the capitol today because of the shootings in dallas. the u.s. house this afternoon wrapped up legislative business for the week. on the floor several house members made statements about the shootings of the dallas police officers. first, we hear from the house chaplain. house floor. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2016] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] our nation awakens to more news of deadly violence around the country. fear of safety from such violence prevails in many places. fear of you, o lord, is the beginning of wisdom. bless the members of this people's house with such wisdom as they continue to work -- as they continue the work of this assembly, guide them to grow in understanding in attaining solutions to our nation's needs. bless those as well charged with protecting and serving our

country. they, too, need wisdom and insight into the pressure ints of insecurity among our citizens. lord, have mercy. may all that is done this day be for your greater honor and glory. men. the speaker pro tempore: the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1, the journal stands approved. the pledge of allegiance today will be offered by the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson. mr. thompson: i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will entertain up to five requests for one-minute speeches on each side of the

aisle. for what purpose does the gentleman from wisconsin seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, -- the speaker: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the speaker is recognized for one minute. we are all stunned by the events last night in dallas. we are all outraged. an attack on the people who protect us is an attack on all of us. our hearts are with the dallas police department. our hearts are with the victims , and especially with their loved ones. they wear the badge too. i know that to be a cop's wife, to be a cop's husband is to prepare for the worst, but who could have fathom such horror as this? there's no cause or context in which this violence, this kind of terror is justified.

none at all. there will be a temptation to let our anger harden our divisions. let's not let that happen. there's going to be a temptation to let our anger send us further into our corners. let's not let that happen. that script is just too easy to write. it's too predictable. let's defy those predictions. a few perpetrators of evil do not represent us. hey do not control us. blame those who committed these vicious attacks and no one else. and as the president rightfully said, justice will be done. we also have to let the healing be done as well. this has been a long week for our country. it's been a long month for america. we have seen terrible, terrible, senseless things.

every member of this body, every republican and every democrat wants to see less gun violence. every member of this body wants a world in which people feel safe regardless of the color of their skin. that's not how people are feeling these days. sometimes we disagree on how to get there. sometimes we disagree passionately on how to get there, but in having this debate, let's not lose sight of the values that unite us. let's not lose sight in our common humanity. the values that brought those protesters to the streets in dallas, the values that brought those protesters to the streets in washington last night -- respect, decency, compassion, humanity. if we lose those fundamental things, what's left?

we need to take a moment here for reflection, for thought, for prayer, for justice, for action. right now, let's let justice be done and let's also let some healing occur too. i yield. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields. for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? ms. pelosi: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. pelosi: thank you, mr. speaker. the ambush and murder of police officers during a peaceful protest is a tragedy that tears it at the heart of every american. i agree with the speaker that this -- episodes like this must not harden our divisions but should unify us as a country. we are all horrified by this despicable act of violence and we share in the shock and grief

for the officers killed, their loved ones and the entire dallas community. when these officers left their homes earlier in the day, there's always the chance that they would be in danger. right now we don't even know the names of all of them. the names have not yet been released, but i do want to acknowledge dart officers brett thompson and those names yet to be released as well as those who were wounded, including one civilian. many questions have yet to be answered, but whatever the motivation of the perpetrators of this horrible crime, it is clear that those perpetrators of this vial act have an agenda of evil. the past few days have seen too much death and too much heartbreak. as martin luther king wrote, darkness cannot drive out darkness.

only light can do that. hate cannot drive out hate. only love can do that. and that, of course, reminds me of our glorious song of saint francis which is the anthem of my city of san francisco that i call upon now. saint francis, appeal to the lord. make me an instrument of thy peace. where there is darkness may i bring light. where there is despair, may i bring hope. i associate myself with the remarks of the speaker when he referenced our president. justice will be done. justice must be done. we must also mercy must be done. and as we do that, as we seek mercy and justice, i also want to reference a remark of the mayor of dallas when he said we st get to the root causes of what happened last night.

and in that spirit, i want to also acknowledge alton sterling in baton rouge and philando castile. we have to get the facts and to the root causes of what caused these tragedies. in the spirit of martin luther king and of saint francis, we must continue to work of nonviolence and demand an end to senseless killing everywhere. we must do so while sharing our common values, our safe in the dignity and worth of every person, the spark of divinity hat lives in all of them and our tremendous, tremendous grief in the loss of life. just in particular for the families of the police officers, thank you. thank you for sharing your loved ones with us. we pray that it is a comfort to you that so many people mourn

your loss and are praying for onute. mr. cleaver: mr. speaker, sometimes, not all the time, but sometimes out of chaos we can find our purpose. t is going to be my prayer this night and for the next few nights that this body can see clearly that our purpose is to lead our nation away from the edge of the mayor's nest of fear and a response to fear that creates even more fear. we do so by understanding that words matter. words matter. they can do damage. i grew up in public housing in texas right outside of dallas,

texas, and in the projects they would say, sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me. wasn't true when i was a boy and it isn't true today. words can hurt. words can horrify. words can hinder. words can also heal, and one of the things we need more today than we have in the immediate past are words of healing instead of words of hate. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? without objection, the gentleman from california is recognized for one minute. mr. lamalfa: mr. speaker, i rise today with deep sadness at the horrific spectacle that took place las night in dallas where members of the dallas police and dallas rapid transit system were singled out with

terrorist activity during what had been a civil protest ironically about officers themselves. they stood in the gap, even keeping order as their fellow officers were falling, as they were being protested previously in the march over recent tragic events that happened elsewhere in our nation. as the sniper shots rang out, as they saw their brothers falling, these dallas officers still responded to their internal call to duty, to protect not themselves but the innocent demonstrators that were also in that line of fire. mr. speaker, time and again, the american police force has showed their commitment to all lives and will continue to do so. like any government agency, they need to be accountable when they do bad also, but we know the vast number of contacts with police and all lives of americans are for the positive and the well-being of their security. john 15:13, greater love has no man than this as he lay down his life for his friends. now, five officers' lives have

been taken in the line of duty have shown that greater love. our country uplifted god these five lives lost, those injured are still in medical peril, their families and loved ones who suffer beside them for comfort and healing. we're more indebted to them than we can ever express. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california may seek his own one minute and yield on his feet. mr. honda: thank you, mr. chairman. i would like to yield my one minute to mr. cleaver. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. cleaver: thank you, mr. honda. thank you, mr. speaker. when a nation experiences a tragedy like the one we have just witnessed, it can either weaponize, ize,

and fragmi advertise -- frag ma advertise or it can harmonize and mobilize. the house of representatives of the united states must choose the latter. when reason fails as it sometimes does, in my world it's time to pray. we have multiple religious affiliations in this body, but all of us believe in something that would condemn any kind of violence, even verbal violence. the world is watching what we do. and we shouldn't waste time atching over our ideology. a little boy closed his finger in the door and began to cry. his name was bob. and he began to cry and cry and cry. his parents ran in and his

other brother, billy, was also crying. and so the parents thought both of them were hurt. but when they looked at billy, they said you haven't been hurt. why are you crying? e said, i'm helping bob cry. this whole nation is crying and those of us here remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from california is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, we mourn the loss of police officers in dallas and we pray for the recovery of those who are still in the hospital trying to heal. as the brother of two police officers and son of a police officer, this is every family member's worst nightmare to think that when you see them off to work that you may never see them come home. mr. swalwell: we stand here, this house, with the families. we think about sergeant scott lunger in hayward, california, who lost his life on july 22

last year. but it's also not inconsistent as we mourn the death of these police officers to also ask for ustice without delay for alton sterling of louisiana, and -- castile. steal what's inconsistent is have a moment of silence and make a call of justice and then do nothing further in this chamber, the one place in the world where we can make the greatest difference to reduce gun violence. so i hope this house answers that call and does not stand silent any further but actually recognizes why we're here. to keep the public safe and to act. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from texas is recognized for one minute. mr. barton: mr. speaker, the entire nation is aghast and

shock and in mourning about what happened in dallas, texas, last evening. one of the officers that was killed, an officer named brent thompson, he's a constituent of corsicana, texas, he's 43, or was 43 years old. he had just gotten married two weeks earlier. he was a dallas area rapid transit officer, a dart officer targeted, in hot, cold blood, by apparently an ganized effort to target police officers, perhaps even angelo police officers, in dallas. we need to pray for his family,

and we also need to take a look at our society and make a decision that those who defend , admire, ld respect and support. our prayers go out to officer thompson's family. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? >> unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from michigan is recognized for one minute. mr. kildee: mr. speaker, my heart breaks as does the hearts of my colleagues with the terrible tragedy that took place last night and for the victims of the horrific violence that we have seen in the last few days and weeks. we're better than this. we can do better than this. and in this body we

recognition? ms. johnson: i ask for a minute of remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. johnson: let me thank my colleagues from texas for joining me. the calculated ambush and murders of the dallas law enforcement officers during a peaceful protest in downtown dallas last night was a disgraceful act of violence. it happened in my district. i live less than five blocks away. my prayers and sympathy go out to the families of the officers slain and the victims of the shooting. our response going forward, not just in dallas but across our nation will be more important now than ever before. my thoughts and prayers are also with the families of alton castile and philando who also lost their live this is week as well. we must de-escalate violence.

this is a stark reminder that relations between law enforcement and the communities they serve remain extremely tense. we must do everything we cannot to inflame this tension even further. we need to recognize the root cause of this tension and work to end the divisiveness between law enforcement and citizens. i do also want to commend the dallas police department. the dallas police chief, david brown, a constituent and someone i work with very closely in the llas area rapid transit work closely for their brave and swift response to the shooting. these officers are among some of the most capable and professional law enforcement officers in the country and i commend them for their bravery during this incident. .

mr. speaker, i ask not just for a moment of silence, but also for firm action. we need to bring meaningful legislation to the floor that will help bridge the divide between law enforcement and communities. >> i rise today as a proud and sad citizen of dallas, texas. i'm so proud of the thin blue line that keep all our citizens safe, including my wife, my son, my daughter. mr. hensarling: and so sad for the fallen, their family, their sons, their daughters, their spouses. it is a time of mourning. it is a time of prayer. but it is also a time of justice. swift and sure justice.

for anyone who engaged in this act of evil. mr. speaker, it's also time for healing. it is a time to remember martin luther king's dream which should be america's dream that one diour children will grow up to be judged by the content of their character and not the color of their skin. so i dream also that one day we may decide that it is not a controversial statement to say that all lives matter. because it's not a time for us, it is not a time for them. it is only a time for we, the people, to treasure all life and respecting the dignity of all of god's children. it's time to look into our hearts and ask the fundamental question, today, will i promote a color conscious society or will i promote a color blind society? today, will i exploit the wound or today will i tempt to heal the wound?

may the god who gave us life and liberty heal the wounded of our nation. to heal the wounded of the city of dallas. to lift up the families of the fallen and to bless our land with greater peace and greater understanding. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from maryland seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to speak out of order for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. hoyer: mr. speaker, all of us were deeply shocked and heart broken to learn of the assassination of five police officers in dallas last night. nothing can ever justify the cold-blooded murder of those who have sworn to protect and serve. such an act does nothing to bring back those who were killed by police in previous days.

killings that also shocked the conscience of our country. violence only begets violence. not justice. the killings of alton sterling and philando castillo at the hands of law enforcement officers were horrifying and unacceptable. their families deserve a full investigation and for justice to be served. just as those five fallen officers deserve justice. justice for all. those officers who were shot in dallas and their families deserve that. as we mourn, we remember that the way we bend the arc of the moral universe toward justice is by bending it together. in the days ahead, let us focus

on what unites us and on our shared determination to see justice prevail. black believes matter -- black lives matter. law enforcement officers' lives matter. justice matters. life matters. ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, as a resident of texas, representing parts of houston, texas, which includes the headquarters of the houston police department, the nation's heart is heavy and saddened. our hearts and prayers go out to the people of dallas, the families who have lost their fallen heroes.

we respect all of those who are on front lines, allowing the american people to protest. we understand the young people who were of many colors and backgrounds, who felt compelled to protest the loss of life of two individuals. the law enforcement officers respected that too. they understood the pain of mr. castile and mr. sterling's deaths. always in america we have been able to come as protesters under the constitution, but we recognize that "law and order" -- law and order is the standard of this nation. as i pray for these families, i ask that congresspersons rise to the level of leaders and leadership, to seek out unity. as i just spoke to the head of my police department, i extended my hand, to be able to work together with community and police, to bring us

together. because that is why we are a great nation. and houston on sunday will march and mourn for those fallen. but we'll be praying for nonviolence in this nation. what i will say, mr. speaker, is that the words that are ugly of those who want to divide us, i will not hear them, i will not listen to them. i will only embrace and bring us together and i will tell the young people whose faces i saw last evening in washington, who were a ray of mosaic colors and backgrounds and religions that we love you, we thank you for this protest of nonviolence, and we will stand against violent gun behavior and it is of thugs and terrorists, not of americans who want unity and respect for all, and human dignity. i yield back, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. are there nur any further one minutes?

-- are there any further one minutes? for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute, to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. green: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, that which has occurred in dallas, texas, to the term eaning in the line of duty. there are of duty husbands who will not return home. in the line of duty, peace officers will not return home. i don't know the gender of all of them. and want to make sure that i cover all of them. let me just say, in the line of duty, there are peace officers who will not return home.

those husbands and wives and children had every reason to believe that their loved ones would return home. they're in pain. we i want them to know that suffer together. all of us in this country suffer whenever any one of us is taken by violence. innocent people in this country are suffering. people of goodwill are suffering. families are suffering. and my prayer is that out of this adversity we can build a unity that will afford us the opportunity to develop the harmony necessary for the people of the greatest nation in the world to live together. we have to span these chasms that divide us and forgiveness is in order. we must also make sure that

justice is done. all who are associated with the dastardly deeds that occurred with reference to dallas must be arrested, convicted, must be prosecuted to the fullest extent that the law allows. there can be no exceptions. their time has come now for those who are suffering to receive our prayers and our sympathies and i regret that in the line of duty has taken on >> the u.s. flag is flying at half staff. they will remain until sunset on tuesday. the democratic national committee's platform committee is meeting in orlando, florida to vote on the democratic party's platform. it is on a break.

the committee will recon -- reconvene at 9:00 p.m. you will see it live here on span. >> our road to the white house continues until cleveland with live coverage. monday, july 11, starting at 10:00 a.m. eastern a continuing on tuesday. the r.n.c. platform committee is response i will for approving the party platform. live coverage or c-span, the c-span radio app and c-span.org. >> the hard-fought 2016 primary season is over. >> colorado. florida. texas. ohio. >> considering the first woman

to head and the first nonpolitician considered in the decades. listen on the c-span radio app. >> you have a front-row seat to every minute of both conventions on c-span all beginning on monday, july 18. >> up next here on c-span, a conversation from the university of delaware about institutional racism in the criminal justice system. a former police officer who left the st. louis police force because of what he considered systemic problems in the criminal justice system. >> there have been a number of incidents that suggest a real need to have an open dialogue about race.

. as i have said all semester, if you wouldn't stand up and say it in public, don't tweet it.

and organization focused on addressing on the prison industry beginning with the pipeline. mr. hudson was racial justice manager for the american civil liberties and former police officer.

>> i have had quite the day and i'm getting my second wind now and very glad to be here with you to talk about race in america and more importantly for e to talk about police -community relations and some of the dynamics we have seen resm to race and police in the united states in the last 18-24 months. i think it's important and i'm very glad to have this opportunity to speak to you and potentially if they decide to run this on c-span, the country

from a very different perspective from law enforcement and my colleagues who share a law enforcement background, a lot of times in the mainstream presentation of police points of view, you don't hear from officers who understand the history of policing in america and the relationship between police and the black communities that they serve in urban core communities across this country. to tell you about who i am before i get started. i'm a lot of things, i'm a father, a son, former st. louis university basketball player and currently an organizer for the naacp. i'm speaking strictly in the capacity of my position and the

board chair of the ethics project. and i'm here to talk to you as candidly as i can in the space in our history where your generation and talking to the college students here and the organizers on this campus and around the country have put us in a position to effect real change, real change and has to happen. to lay the foundation for you, i want to share some things with you about my experiences when i was on the department and then i'll get to my remarks. to give you a sense, a foundational sense of some of what this movement that you've seen grow from ferguson, all the way around the world has been villified wrongfully in so many orners, is really about.

arly in my career, i was working with an officer, female officer and this officer happened to be a white female officer and i will tell you not only white female officers that abuse and the issue is abuse of authority where it takes place which is consistently in black and brown communities but i was working with this officer. and we got a call and it was a call from an officer need in aid. anybody who knows law enforcement officers know that this is a very serious call, all officers in the range, earshot of this call, stop whatever you are doing and expedite to the

officer's location. he or she is in trouble, serious trouble, could be. so this officer put out an aid call and was chasing an armed suspect and he was running and giving out his coordinates and we expedite to his location and get there force and we see the officer. we don't see the suspect and the officer is bent over like this, winded and breathing hard and we go up to the officer and the female officer asked him. are you ok, are you all right? yeah, i'm ok, i'm all right. where did he go? northeast a street in is louis, missouri and this a long block.

long block and bent over like his. he said i think he went in that house. he picked the house. at random. we go up to the house me and the female officer. we get to the door. she is banging on the door. she had the flashlight. open this door. open this [bleep] i'm not going to use the language. we know somebody is in here and we are going in there to bring you out. from the back of the house with the ralk cuss we created we see a shape begin to approach the door. wooden door and glass in the center and moving about this speed right here.

slowly getting to the door. the door opens, cracked. standing in the door is a kid about 19 years old, african-american and i'm standing with this female officer. i'm 6' 8" and i'm out of shape right now but at that time, i was working out every day, i was 26 , 270, single-digit body fat and short-sleeved body shirt that was a size medium. and it looked like i was busting out of it. he opens the door and he looked and he says, lady, i don't know what you are talking about. i live here. i have lived here all my life. everybody on this block knows my family and my family and i'm all

by myself. but you got the wrong house. and i guess that was the wrong answer. because as he got the words, she grabbed him by his throat and took him to the edge of the porch we were on and in north st. louis, they set up real high, if you go to the edge of it, you are going to fall maybe 10 feet. she had him by his throat over the edge of the porch, bam, cracked him in the face. and if somebody hits you like that and i'm sure this has been hundred times and i say if somebody hits you like that, you are going to do one of two things, you are going to put up your hands and try to olympic something else that may be coming at you or you may offer

up some discouragement for that kind of behavior giving this is a police officer. she thought he was trying to engage. she hit him gow. pow, to the face, pow to the groin. and this happened fast. and at this point and picture this and grabbed a uniform officer and get her off of this guy and take her to one side of the porch. i told you it was an officer need in aid call. every officer come to this location. he had canceled the aid call and slowed it down. police work and police calls, people want to know what the call was about. here come the rest of the officers. up the steps of the porch come the black male officers.

and they gather on the front of the house and looks at me and looks at the veteran officer i had in the corner and said what happened? what's going on here? she points to the guy where she left him and said that s.o.b. he assaulted me and plaque officer said, oh, yeah. he went over to the guy and said, man, get up. he said, you see, i can't get up. and the man said get the -- fill in the plamping -- up. and he grabbed him in his shirt and picked him up and bam and his face was against the house and his hands are behind his back and he cuffed him up and the kid is still leaning against

the house and he said now get down this porch and getting into this car. and the kid was leaning on the house looking at him and he said man, i will never forget the look in his eyes, a mix of anger, hurt, surprise, fear, all of that, because he was looking at this brother in front of him thinking, why are you doing to me. he said one last time, he said man, you see, i can't go. officer, i can't go. he dropped down and grabbed this kid by his ankles and pulled him out. if you have your hand bound behind your back and can't move and somebody grabs you by your ankles and pulls as hard as you can, what do you think happens? you hit your head.

and he did. and drug him down the porch and threw him in the car and got back to the station and we are all in the sergeant's room and we all get into it. first the female officer said, let me tell you something, if you interfere with me again when i'm doing police work, i will never ride with you again. i said that's a pretty good damn idea. i'm with that. the other officer go back and forth and the sergeant hears and squashes the whole thing. we don't have to do. puts us back in service and that was that. what always bothered me about that encounter, what has stayed with me to this very day was the reason the kid kept telling the

officer, you see that i can't go. you see i can't go. the reason he was saying that, because when he first came to the door and saw me and the other officer are standing there and cracked that door open, he was standing on crutches. she snatched him off his crutches to do that to him. and nobody was in the house. and it was his home. and he was in violation of no law, no law. i got one more to set the oundation and then we'll talk. 22ry college, young kid, 21, at the time, 2006, comes to us, was brought to our attention

about an assault committed on him about police officers in st. louis, a traffic stop, a check point significances and every car that comes through has to stop. and he's at the checkpoint. one night and he stops but the officers are at a distance and he can't understand what the officer is directing him to do or what he wants him to do. so he gets out of his car to find out more what he has to do because he has somewhere to be. he has somewhere to be. he gets out of the car. and the officer says get back into the blanking, blanking car. because he has to be he approaches the officer and in an attempt to explain that so he can move through the checkpoint.

instead of offering an explanation for his simple act of noncompliance which these days can get you killed, the officer proceeds to assault him physically, he maces him, chokes him up with the mace, eyes burning and getting ready to arrest him. any time they beat you up, they charge you with resisting arrest. anthony pleads his case. one of the supervising officers arrives and a decision is made to finally let anthony get medical attention which they initially denied to him and to release him. this was due to the fact that at some point they realized that the assault that the officer committed on anthony had caused

him to miss his flight back to iraq for his second tour of duty in the united states army. i interviewed anthony at length and to hear anthony, this black kid, this soldier, describe to me, how that he felt he had no rights here in the united states , that anyone were bound to recognize how he had always felt this way because the police had always treated him this way and his family this way, including disappointing, to say the least. these kinds of experiences are part of the daily limbd reality of plaque people everywhere in this country, particularly in the urban coerce of america and

you need to fully understand when you see black limbs matter, this is what they are talking about. this isn't the only thing they are talking but the real life experiences of people and they are tired, we are tired. these is generations old, fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, going back to who knows when and zero accountability for any of it because as police officers we can fall back on that narrative of heroism, sacrifice, risk, some of the favorite words of the police departments all the time in the mainstream media, the former new york city detective, the town crier. people that justify that will do

on the street. his is where we are. but what about the more serious cases we've seen? no we have all see n accountability. eric gardner. murdered. in front of us. make no mistake. murdered on the street as he pleaded for his life. that officer using an illegal chokehold brought on by his own department's policy. and zero expectation that him and his could horts are going to be held accountable. in the aftermath, you get a union boss, police chief union

president chin up, chest out, not only justifying this murder but calling on his officers to turn their backs on the nayor of real rk to describe the life and talk about how to deal with the police. lynch would do better to have his officers stop turning his backs on the human rights and the protections of the constitution that extend to all the citizens. he would do much better in that regard. andra bland, sandra bland, who encounters an officer and rightfully is indignant at a nonsense stop and who correctly averts the right that extends to her only to be met with the

contempt of this officer for having the nerve as a black woman to assert her rights to him. he's asking her -- he's directing her to put out a cigarette after the mons that he was issuing her is issued. their interaction is done. if i'm the police and i'm on the street with you and you have received a summons from me and i have conducted our business, i'm out. i'm not standing there and put that cigarette out and if you don't put it out, i'm going to light you up and hit you with this because i don't like your attitude. we have got to come to a place where you officers see the inherent value and dignity in everyone and every life and the people they serve in their communities. i want to go through and the

reason i'm going through, because we do have some media coverage here and i think it's important if this goes out nationally for people to hear a different perspective, one that acknowledges the realities of our ugly history and institutional racism in our criminal justice system. rice, the child was shot within two seconds of the police officer arisk. he barely exited the vehicle. this was an officer who had a history of failure in his performance area, the department he left to go to the cleveland police department said he was unfit to duty particularly when it relates to firearms. and in the reports he thought he saw him reaching for his waistband and it could be a toy gun. whether it is a toy gun or real

gun, that is crazy. but then you fire within two seconds and the boy's sister shows up and put her in the ground before you help administer help. that happens in black communities. contrast that with the recent shooting of the white young man in louisiana, six-year-old boy, tragic. shouldn't have happened. the two black officers who shot that kid have been indicted, quickly and $1 million bond set for both of them. freddie gray, freddie gray. he did not leave his home in baltimore on april 15, 2012 with a broken back and crushed wind pipe and didn't do it to himself. but yet, officers would assert that that's the case and become indignant when we don't believe

them. the state's attorney for baltimore who had the courage and the integrity to indict the officers was met with the acombress i have response in the attacks on her and her family by the police unions and the police officers because they want zero accountability. zero. none. that's why this movement that you see growing around you and the unity you have created amongst you in the communities u come from, black, white, lgbt and the unity that you built is so vital to the change we need to see because historically there's been no recognition of the value of black life in this country,

period. and it's ok to say, black lives matter. yes, we have had our moments. there are moments when people have given us some victories. but there has never been in the history of this country, never a consensus, nationally, a majority that says you know what? everyone should be equally valid and we agree to that. it has always been, at least half the country who would fight that with everything in them. everything in them. that's the american reality. 'm not talking about the america, but american reality. when it comes to precedent, good reason for the officers not to be held. trayvon martin, another kid,

stalked, then killed by george zimmerman a man whom i have seen and heard, zpwiff us an example of a textbook coward, all of his fights with women and children. he engages with trayvon and shoots to death a child he physically fought while jouth weighing by 100 pounds and gets off on the stand your ground law. melissa alexander's case in florida, a woman who was confronted by a man who had a history of brutally assaulting her and in that moment he said he was going to assault her again and she produced a gun and she said no, you are yeoh not. she fired a warning shot, hitting no one, killing no one

and she was sentenced to 20 years in prison. the process distorted by race and racism gets a result like that and you believe that a lot of people in florida would agree with that. .he last case i want to about michael brown. michael brown was killed 10 minutes from my house. killed by wilson in ferguson. there were credible witnesses that described the scene of that shooting that contradicted wilson's account and should have been tried on the facts in front of a jury. but a prosecutor was determined to prevent that and dump that information in front of the grand jury and told them to sort through it, which included the

testimony of a hostile witness for whom it had been accomplished as fact that she could not have been and was not physically present at the time michael was shot. this was a prosecutor who has a history of that kind of thing. 20 years earlier, a shooting in a jack in a box parking lot when it was filled with students from a local school and the police carried out an operation on the same lot where the students were with two suspects, killing them both, one of them unarmed, one of them a gainfully employed father. that goes to grand jury and was discovered that will at the lied about key elements of testimony in the case. key elements. but he does the same thing with it and wilson was allowed to leave and get his story

straight. much was made about what michael brown was doing. was there a strong-armed robbery. and the criminologyization of black victims is common in this country. but again that goes to the race of the person involved. you don't always handle youthful poor choices that way. i was randomly on the web the other day and i came across an actor of mark walberg. anybody know who mark walberg is? famous guy. when mark was a kid like michael brown, he brutally assaulted two men, one of whom he knocked unconscious while shoutings racial taunts at him to a

vietnamese guy and another guy, he permanently blinded him in one eye. when they showed the tape, he sheffield somebody. but you had officers and officials and elect d people saying that is enough. look at the kid eff was. he pushed that guy. we gave mark walberg a chance to get his life. good thing that he was redeemable. and what about black-on black crime and what about why i'm here. where are the protests when blacks kill other plaques. this is an offset for the human rights violations, civil rilets violations and brutality we see from people who are sworn toll

protect and serve us. first, people commit crimes where they are against the people around them. where you live. so there is black-on-plaque crime, white-on-white crime. it's crime. where is the coverage of the many protest the and efforts to address the efforts that take place all the time in st. louis. me and my colleagues are vested in ongoing in decades' long efforts to push back against the kind of things that contribute to the violence in our communities at the grassroots level. some cases door-to-door. what we have not been able to do is slow the defunding of underresourced of education, unemployment or the mass incarceration that results of inequities.

aven't been able to do that. put it together anywhere and you will get what you get whether st. s in russia, poland, louis, missouri, the balms, wherever you create those conditions, you will have what you have. it is not miss teryouse but not only the violence we talk about and i think it is important to talk about this because what it omes down to us and you talk about young people losing their limbs, we lost that future. at might he or she have been or given to us. what have we lost? our future. violence in our communities are a problem and i will tell you

the problems but the number of futures lost to violence in our communities doesn't begin to approach the loss of lives to the criminal of justice. institutionally racist. and trades publicly on the stock market and insists that states ensure that the prisons they build to run for profit remain 390% occupied. i'll say this about the issue, this specific problem that i have. your young that ople, descendants of the community that has been targeted r suffering and abuse,

marchingalization and deprivation, enslaved, exploited, diminished at every on us uld now turn a gun and each other, that part of it pains me. i look at what is happening in chicago and st. louis and other cities and i pray for a raised consciousness in those communities among those young people to get a clear picture of hole we are and where we are and get a clear picture of where we are. mover, i would call out our entertainers, the ones who profit from the death of our brothers, who move a message in our community that the death of your brotherer is your mission in life.

and if it's your mission, you ain't about nothing with us and who profit from sending that poison to us and see the blood on our streets and demror file and encourage it further when your right to freedom of expression which was bought and paid for with the blood and sacrifice with the people that came before you. get conscious, man. get conscious. wake up. don't be used by a system that has destroyed us because we landed. none of that, none of it changes the fact that will institutional racism is at the foundation of criminal justice of america. too many examples and in too short a time to do it maybe in question and answer, but nothing we can talk about it, not new

terrorist threats, not looting, nothing can change the reality of the problem and issues that we have to come to grips as a country to move it forward. you can't sweep it under the rug or hey, look over there. none of that. equal treatment under the law is not the american reality. and we are going to have to dig deep within our ourselves. and to make the discussion more comfortable and let me just say this will. here's how to make this racial discussion and we talk about plaque and white but we have other races in this country. plaque and white, here's how to make it comfortable, understand it, accept it and we can go forward. the problems i'm talking about here tonight and i talk about in all the places that i discuss them when it comes to race and

racism and institutional racism and our history with it, no one in this auditorium tonight is under indictment to why people in the room is under indictment for any of this. why? because you didn't create the conditions. we were all born into this reality. this is what we were born into. it was like this when you showed up. if you are alive now, our responsibility is to acknowledge fully what that reality is, not the narrative, the reality of our history is and where it is now and do something about it collectively together. that's our role. this will allow us to have this

discussion. as i prepare to close and i was told to have 0 minutes and i'm getting there. there are things that we can do to change the dynamic between police and communities that they serve. the police-community relationship and the breakdown in it was the again cyst of the movement. it has expanded to include race whether few are talking about education, employment, health care. you name it. but relative to police and community, the first and foremost piece that we have to address is accountability, accountability. there's already plenty of good training and i heard that training, that new training. we've got new training already. but it's worthless if you

don'tville police officers who policy.here the eric gardner while officers took his life and no one is held accountable. dufus. like a accountability is everything and it starts. one of the things i would like a group of h is current and former officers from coast to coast. what i would like to see is doing a movement within the criminal justice movement itself nationally, starting with people who come from affected communities, black and brown communities who work in the criminal justice system, judges, attorneys, officers and we kl collect ourselves within that

system and demand and enforce the changes we want to see and its function in our community. there are enough of us and it's right. we have the moral high ground here, man. that's one of the things i would like to see. another thing i think would go a long way to resolving some of the issues we have seen is a special prosecutor in all cases involving use of force by a police officer resulting in serious injury or death. there are too close that they are going after any officer and of in alliance almost 100% the time. bob is a prime example of that. he was recently sued after mike brown's case and recently sued in the last month or two by a grand jury that he illegally removed from the grand jury

because he thought he had a pro pencity. and a former aclu attorney. he is john doe. bob takes him off the grand jury in violation of state law. you think they don't shape outcomes? you think they don't decide who combets justice and who doesn't? in cases involving police misconduct or police force that results in serious injury or death, eliminate the grand jury. gentlemen. eliminate the grand jury. it is a secrettive process that in too many cases in police misconduct result in alimb nation of accountability of police officers because the police officer has advocated and don't want to be tried on the facts. it is that or have the arts for

indictment take place where the public can be present. and the last thing i would tell you is to support the movement you see. it's an american movement. don't be afraid of black lives matter. these are young people who are american matters just like you but want their rights recognized and their right to live and right to dignity recognized. and it's not negotiable for them. it's up to really a discussion. they are citizens, too. and fully understand the history. so as i close my remarks, i'm amazed that i was able to get through. i thought i was out on my feet. they ran me ragged today. i had no idea when i got up at

4:30 this morning to fly to delaware, but i'm glad i came and i appreciate you giving me your time and valuing what you thought i might have to say enough to be here tonight and i look forward to engaging you. and she said, the questions need to be respectful and they do, but nothing is off limits. you can challenge me or ask me because i believe in free and open dying og because that's the way forward. and thank you for your patience with me tonight. thank you. [applause] >> was that too long? >> no. thank you for being here. you are the final speaker in this series we had all semester long about race in america and talk about the black lives matter movement and you are here

in this unique role as having served as a police officer and now kind of speaking out against the uncivil things that you saw. as the co-founder of the naling , how did you go from becoming a police officer to hold those same officers accountable? >> it wasn't a huge transition. when i came to the department, i came to the same ideology and same personal philosophy and same disposition. and what led to me is because who i am. profoundly disillusiononned. illusiononned with the justice department in the

united states and i knew i had to stop being a part of that system now. i haven't said this tonight and i think it is important that i do. there are good police officers. there are good police officers. there are good people doing a very difficult job under very difficult circumstances who have to make very difficult decisions sometimes and they deserve our support because it is a tough job. my contention is that the number of officers that will willfully abuse your authority and your human rights and civil rights is too big a number to not have a systemic policy response in place to deal with that. there are good officers in the country. >> so i'm going to pull up -- see if this is going to work here. ou had a couple of op eds or

editorials that came out in the past year and talking about your experience as a police officer and i recommend people looking this up on the "washington post." my students, one in particular said you spoke about -- the young black man with the crutches, what is frustrating and upsetting to read about whether other situations are encountered like that during your time in the police force? >> there are situations that i have been made aware of. it is a very common sense to see people's rights abused for little or no reason at all, for simple acts of noncompliance. yes, i'm aware, for example, of a colleague and it's interesting because he and i were probably

-- i wouldn't say adversaries but we weren't best buddies. his father was a chief of police in the st. louis department and his dad got into politics opposite a guy who was the first african-american. and i was on the security detail. i used to be in shape. i'm telling you. but this guy, why he was on the department, he was in the detective bureau and was a sergeant and he walked in on one of his officers who was threatening a black subject in a chair with a taser, held atlanta was enitals telling him he going to have him say what he wanted to say or else. and my colleague walked in on

that and stopped it, rightfully. and he wrote you the guy up and seized the taser and immediately, as you would expect, he was we don't deal with you. i was the only person who showed up. him and his dad were the only two people who showed up in support of him. every other officer in the union was aligned against him. how dare he stop him from -- stop him from threatening this suspect and ruin his good name. incidents like that, i cannot impress upon you enough. these are not isolated. these are part of the daily lived experience and the collective experience of black people all over this country.