Katherine Clark

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, by direction of the Democratic Caucus, I offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, House Democrats took the necessary action to defeat this virus and restore the economy in May, but Mitch McConnell said let's hit the pause button. So Americans have waited 7 long months for the GOP to take action to end their suffering. As over 300,000 Americans lost their lives, they said more testing was not necessary. As veterans and children waited in lines at food banks, they proposed a tax credit for business lunches. As 8 million more Americans fell into poverty, they proposed cutting unemployment benefits. As one out of four women have lost their jobs and have left the workforce, they fought to limit paid leave and access to childcare. As 40 million Americans teeter on the verge of homelessness, they fought to shield corporations from negligence and deny workers basic safety protections. This bill is too little too late, but it is a lifesaving bridge to a better time and a new President who will focus on restoring Americans' jobs and their health.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the retirement of Karen Bird, Executive Director of the Alliance of Dedicated Cancer Centers (ADCC). As Executive Director, Karen represented the country's leading cancer centers whose one and only mission is to defeat cancer. She worked tirelessly to communicate to Congress and the Administration the importance of the ADCC member institutions and what they do to improve patient treatment and to drive innovative cancer research. Thanks in large part to Karen's efforts, patients now have greater access to lifesaving treatments such as CAR-T cell therapies. Prior to her work at the ADCC, Karen was Chief Financial Officer at the renowned Dana-Farber Cancer Institute where she succeeded in working with both physician leadership and senior executives to grow new ventures and programs. She developed a finance department that was considered best in class and was able to help Dana-Farber respond quickly to the 2008 financial crisis with an integrated financial forecasting model that encompassed endowment, research, and patient care. Perhaps most importantly, Karen has generously served as a role model and mentor throughout her career, ensuring that the pipeline of talent in finance and especially for women--was amply filled and abundantly qualified. It is a great honor to represent Karen Bird and her lifetime commitment to advancing our nation's understanding of the causes, prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and survival of cancer.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, 99 days ago House Democrats passed the HEROES Act to provide much-needed relief to the American people suffering from this pandemic. What was the reaction from the GOP? A shrug. Funding for State and local governments to protect jobs of first responders and teachers? Mitch McConnell said: Let them go bankrupt. Feeding hungry children and families? They said: Let's hit the pause button. Funding for testing, treatment, and hospitals as death tolls soared over 175,000? Donald Trump said: It is what it is. Unemployment benefits and eviction protection? Not right now. In May, we also funded the post office, a critical service enshrined in our Constitution, a lifeline to seniors and veterans, like John, who called me yesterday from my hometown who had to wait an extra week to get his medication. It is a pillar of our democracy allowing people to vote safely from home this fall. We are here today to defend this institution from slow deliveries and removal of critical mail infrastructure. Twelve mail sorting machines in my home State have been removed. When Mr. DeJoy was asked about this, he said: They are not needed. Donald Trump said he didn't want those ridiculous ballots delivered. We will not stand by while the Postal Service is dismantled and good jobs are lost. We will fight so that every vote is counted. Vote ``yes'' for the Postal Service. Vote ``yes'' for the people. Vote ``yes'' for democracy.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak in support of two pieces of legislation coming to the floor this week, the Child Care Is Essential Act, and the Child Care for Economic Recovery Act. This pandemic has exposed fault lines that exist just beneath the surface of our society. Whether it is a broken healthcare system or the consequences of our Nation's history of racial injustice, this pandemic is exacerbating harms done by systems that fail our families. Our system of childcare is no exception. Childcare is a powerful tool for educating our children and for fueling our economy. If we unite around its utility and take decisive action to save the childcare sector, we can help rebuild and revitalize our future. Simply put, childcare is essential. But ignored, underappreciated, and neglected for so long, our system of early care and education is now at a breaking point. Right now, 40 percent of our Nation's childcare centers and family childcare homes will be forced to close permanently without immediate financial support. Our children, moms, dads, doctors, nurses, teachers, small business owners, and over 23 million families will have nowhere to turn. Think about that. Before this pandemic, it was difficult and sometimes nearly impossible for working families to find quality, affordable childcare. If the pandemic destroys 4 out of every 10 childcare spaces, how will parents return to work? How will businesses reopen? How many children will be pushed out of their classrooms? Great outcomes for an entire generation of children are at stake and could be impacted for years if we don't invest now in early care and education. With proper investment, childcare can combat the economic and social inequities of our time, in addition to providing a foundation for our children. What is more, with an investment in childcare, we can stabilize and secure American families. Before the pandemic, childcare costs often exceeded a family's rent or mortgage payment, driving parents out of the labor market entirely. Parents of color face even more hurdles and costs in finding affordable, high-quality care. Economists are predicting that losing access to childcare is not just about losing 2 or 3 years of income. It is an entirely different trajectory for the rest of a parent's life. This also disproportionately impacts women in the workplace. The rising costs of childcare are associated with a 13 percent decline in employment of mothers with children under 5. Investing in childcare is about ensuring moms can pay the bills and pursue their dreams. It is also an investment in opportunity and in equality for our Nation's mothers. These bills will also honor our Nation's caregivers, who provide an essential service to our children, economy, and community. In an industry where 96 percent of childcare professionals are women, and 40 percent of them are women of color, over 325,000 have lost their jobs since February. This workforce is already underpaid, many of them barely making minimum wage. Our failure to value the work of caregivers is one of the many examples of how our society and how Congress fails to value women's work and, especially, the work of women of color. Finally, it is not just our families who rely on childcare. Childcare is essential to our entire economy. A survey from Northeastern University tells us that during the pandemic, working parents lose, on average, a full day of work productivity every week due to a lack of childcare. We know that has repercussions for our businesses. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation found that in one State alone, a lack of childcare is estimated to cost employers almost as much as $3 billion annually in lost productivity, absences, and turnover rate. The solution is not complicated. The problem we face is solvable. The two bills before us are a critical first step. Our Nation needs to seize this opportunity to provide equity in education, parity for women, and stability in our economy. That is why I urge my colleagues to pass the Child Care Is Essential Act and the Child Care for Economic Recovery Act. It is time to invest in our children, our women, and our economy.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, as we all know, sexism isn't new to Congress, and it is not new to America. It happens in homes, in schools, and in all places of work. The behavior, the language, and the assault wielded against my colleague was disgusting, inappropriate, and endemic of the toxic masculinity that permeates our culture and our country. Slurs like the one used by Representative Yoho are meant to degrade, objectify, and belittle women. It was an attempt to dismiss her, her role in this body, and her position altogether. All women have experienced this to some degree, but so often, it is women of color who are singled out. When we hear comments like this, men and boys think it is appropriate. Women and girls expect it. Today, we stand with our colleague. We will not accept this behavior anymore. We will not be made to feel less than. This is our House, and we are claiming our space.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Espaillat).

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentleman from the great State of Florida (Mr. Soto); and I would ask my colleagues to keep their comments to 2 minutes.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentleman from New York (Mr. Tonko), my good friend.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I yield to the distinguished Member from New Mexico (Mr. Lujan).

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Raskin).

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, what a privilege it has been not only to serve with John Lewis, but to be witness tonight to the remembrances of our icon, the peacemaker, the justice seeker, Congressman John Robert Lewis. Personally, I never got used to working with John Lewis, and I struggled to call him ``John.'' I met him right after I got sworn in, in a special election, near the chair in which he often sat. I was completely tongue-tied. Whether it was a casual hello, a walk back and forth from the Capitol for votes, or planning a sit-in, every single interaction with John was profound. John knew oppression and he knew racial violence. He had been beaten, clubbed, spat on, and denigrated. John had experienced the worst forms of bigotry. He had seen the worst in people, and yet it steeled his determination and it deepened his faith. John Lewis is the kindest man I have ever known. Love, compassion, integrity were the hallmarks of everything he did, big or small. Like so many of you, I was fortunate enough to be able to go to Selma on several occasions with John and walk the Civil Rights Trail. To hear John Lewis speak on the Edmund Pettus Bridge is transformative. That bridge is an unusual structure. It has a steep rise as it comes up, it flattens in the middle, and then there is a steep descent. I could imagine John Lewis, as I saw him speak from that bridge, being a young man leading, with Hosea Williams, a column of 600 marchers and getting to the middle of that bridge and for the first time being able to see what awaited them, the sea of State troopers, of angry crowds. I am sure he could feel the violence in the air like electricity. But John did not turn back. He did not falter in the face of hatred and of violence. He was fortified by the moral clarity of why he was marching: to ensure that every American had the right to vote. And we know what happened. We know they were beaten, trampled, and gassed. But they reconvened and marched to Montgomery and made the Civil Rights Act the law of the land. Today we find ourselves again in this country in the middle of the bridge, and we can see the danger ahead. We can see those who seek to divide this country, suppress the vote, and cut off opportunity. While John Lewis cannot physically lead us across that bridge, he has taught us what to do. Many of us have referenced what would be the last words for us to hear from John Lewis, and he spoke, as always, inspirationally about the true sorrow he felt for the soul of America, that in the wake of the brutal murder of George Floyd we were not in a better place, and that those poisonous, toxic roots of slavery still entangled our institutions and our Nation. But he also said to us that he had never been more optimistic, watching the peaceful protesters across this country assemble. He told us, as he always did, to be bold, to not be weary. He told us that the winds of change are blowing. So we must honor him by continuing our work, by unfurling those sails to catch that wind, and to live for justice; to see, as he saw, the divinity in not only John Lewis, but in all of us; and to know that, collectively, we can continue the march that he started for us, and we can bring this country to live up to the ideals of justice and equality for all. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Ruiz), a distinguished Member.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Sherman).

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentlewoman from Iowa (Mrs. Axne). But please, I urge my colleagues, our time is very short. We want everyone to be able to speak, so please try to keep your comments under 2 minutes. One minute would be preferable.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on the topic of tonight's Special Order.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentlewoman from California (Ms. Speier).

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer).

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, it is difficult to close such a remembrance and a celebration, and we will never close the chapter on our friendship, admiration, and reverence for John Lewis. But John Lewis, for me, has always been the embodiment of the words of Micah 6. John has shown us what is good: to love justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God. Rest in peace, power, and glory, Brother John. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, the Moving Forward Act recognizes that childcare is infrastructure. Central to rebuilding our economy, stabilizing our workforce, and educating our children, childcare is a public good, supporting more than $99 billion a year in economic activity. But we have not treated it as such. Ninety-six percent of childcare professionals are women, and 40 percent are women of color, and they are chronically underpaid. Costs for families are high, creating barriers, especially from women, from entering and staying in the workforce. The pandemic has pushed this vital sector to its breaking point, and we cannot afford to let it fail. This bill creates a grant program to renovate and modify childcare facilities, helping them to reopen safely. It invests in providers and in our Nation's children. Childcare is the foundation for building an inclusive economy, and now is the time to invest in our future. I urge a ``yes'' vote on this legislation.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, almost 4 years ago today, I joined with my colleagues and my friend, Congressman John Lewis, in leading a sit-in on this very floor after the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida. We could not stand for another moment of silence. We could not stand for another day of inaction. We could not stand for another mass shooting in America. We sat in protest. The House Democrats stopped the work of Congress because Congress had stopped working for the American people. Now, 4 years later, our commitment to ending gun violence and hate remains absolute. Making the Pulse nightclub a national memorial will honor the 49 lives lost in Orlando and will declare that love is love. Today, during Pride Month, we celebrate these lives and we honor them, but we can't stop there. We need commonsense gun violence prevention measures now. Within weeks of taking the majority, House Democrats passed two bipartisan gun safety bills. To this day, they remain stalled in the Senate. COVID-19 is not the only public health crisis in this country. We lose 40,000 Americans a year to gun violence. We cannot waste another day. We ask the Republicans in the Senate to pass our legislation, end this sickening cycle of gun violence in our country. Choose love, choose peace, recognize that gun violence is often the lethal partner of racism and bigotry. With this national memorial, we will have a physical manifestation of our commitment to end gun violence and to have equality for all.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, we can't wish away this pandemic. We can't accept the false choice that we either reopen or lose to the virus. No. We must protect the American people and the institutions and values that define our Nation with action. The HEROES Act provides us a path forward. We will save lives with testing, tracing, and treatment. We will protect our communities by supporting our teachers, police, and frontline workers. We will bring relief to families by providing them financial aid, food, rent relief, and healthcare. We will protect the sanctity of our democracy by honoring every American's vote. We vote today knowing we have more hard days ahead and more work to do to ensure we don't just return to normal but that we emerge stronger, more just, and more prepared for the challenges ahead. Today, we vote for our heroes, for our future, and for the people.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, with the Second World War raging, Eleanor Roosevelt noted that: ``When all is said and done, and the statesmen discuss the future of the world, the fact remains that people fight these wars.'' The war on the pandemic is being waged in our crowded hospitals, our empty classrooms, and our closed businesses. Today's bill will bring Americans desperately needed relief, and I am deeply grateful for the victories that Democrats secured. But the pandemic has exposed the deep income, racial, and health disparities as it cuts a lethal path through our communities. And it has exposed the callous and deadly indifference of the protectors of the wealthy and the connected all too willing to sacrifice our neighbors for the bottom line. But in this House, the people's House, we know that our strength and our recovery as a nation rests in the health and prosperity of all Americans, and we will fight with everything we have for the people.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the CARES Act. Americans are facing a public health crisis that is an unprecedented threat to the health and safety of our communities. Hospitals are struggling to care for our communities and get the protective equipment they need. The pandemic has brought schools, businesses, and whole States to a standstill, including my home State of Massachusetts. Americans are calling for help, and today we will vote to bring them relief and offer them a lifeline, but it won't be the end of our support. To those on the front lines--healthcare workers, cashiers, childcare providers, truck drivers, cleaners, and postal workers--and to all Americans, we say: We see you. We appreciate and are grateful for your sacrifice, and we will continue to fight for the people.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Madam Speaker, today I rise to recognize the 30th anniversary of the anti-Armenian pogroms in then-Soviet Azerbaijan's capital of Baku. In January 1990, a violent seven-day long riot in Baku broke out against the city's ethnic Armenian civilian population. Approximately 90 Armenians were killed, and hundreds more were brutally beaten and forced to abandon their homes. The Baku Pogrom was just one of several anti-Armenian attacks that took place across Azerbaijan from 1988 to 1990 that were enabled by the Azerbaijani government. From Sumgait to Kirovabad and Baku, Armenian Christians living in the country were murdered, raped, and robbed. These vicious attacks led to the displacement of thousands of Armenian families fleeing the targeted violence as refugees. These were crimes against humanity that have still gone unrecognized by Azerbaijan. I call upon their government to acknowledge and condemn these acts of violence, actively prosecute the perpetrators of these crimes, and take all appropriate action so that these atrocities never happen again. Throughout history, the Armenian people have been targets of violence, murder and genocide. We must emphatically condemn these actions and any efforts to erase these atrocities from our collective memory. Failure to do so will only serve to embolden purveyors of violence against religious and ethnic minorities around the globe. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Armenian Caucus to continue pushing policies promoting peace and human rights for Armenians and for all. If we do not stand up to hate, we cannot end the cycle of intolerance.

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor my constituent, friend, and mentor, Joe Lawless. Joe loved his home city of Malden, Massachusetts, and his city loved him. He was a longtime supporter of the Irish American Club and of The Immigrant Learning Center. He served Malden on the Library Board of Trustees, the Housing Authority, and as deputy mayor. But Joe's legacy of generosity is best described by what he did behind the scenes. I remember Joe, while suffering from debilitating back pain, purchasing gallons of ice cream with all the fixings to serve sundaes for seniors. And catching a ride with Joe only to find the back seat of his car and the entire trunk filled with food to distribute to neighbors in need. Joe was a natural teacher. While I was never fortunate enough to sit in his classrooms at Boston College or Suffolk University, he taught me so much. He was the rare friend who made everyone whose lives he touched feel seen and appreciated, and we will all strive to live the wisdom and lessons in friendship, integrity, and service he gave us. Thank you, my friend. Rest in peace and love.