Diane Watson

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. Madam Speaker, I come to contribute and to continue to contribute to a woman that really was the matriarch of the American civil rights movement, And I want you to know her crusade for racial justice and gender equality spanned more than six decades. This is a fact you need to know: it was at age 19 that Mrs. McLeod saw the leadership, the skill, and the brilliance of Dorothy Height. She was 19 years old when Mary McLeod Bethune passed the mantle of leadership over to her, and she held it high and she served all people well. I just want you to know that I found out, with a little research, that my grandmother went to school with Mary McLeod Bethune, and she used to tell us about her when we were 3 years old, my sister and I. And so it was many, many decades ago that the leadership was struck, and we stand on her shoulders.

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and exclude extraneous materials on the subject of memorializing Dorothy Height.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, we come with heavy hearts today to memorialize a woman who made such a great impact on us who passed away early this morning. Dorothy Height was a founding matriarch of the American civil rights movement whose crusade for racial justice and gender equality spanned more than six decades. She fought for equal rights for both American Americans and women. She was among the coalition of African American leaders who pushed civil rights to the center of the American political stage after World War II and she was a key figure in the struggle for school desegregation, voting rights, employment opportunities, and public accommodations in the fifties and the sixties. In high school, Dorothy was awarded a scholarship to Barnard College for her oratory skills, yet upon arrival she was denied entrance. At the time, Barnard admitted only two African Americans per academic year, and Height had arrived after the other two had already been admitted. At its 1980 commencement ceremonies, Barnard College awarded Height its highest honor, the Barnard Medal of Distinction. She also went to New York University and received a master's degree in educational psychology and eventually became the recipient of no fewer than 36 honorary doctorates. Dr. Dorothy Height began her career as a caseworker for the New York City Welfare Department. In 1944, Dr. Height joined the national staff of the YWCA and she was instrumental in bringing about an interracial charter for YWCAs in 1946. Dr. Height also served as National President of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority from 1946 to 1947 and developed leadership training programs and interracial and ecumenical education programs. In 1957, Dr. Dorothy Height was named President of the National Council of Negro Women, a position she held for 40 years, in which she emphasized self-help and self-reliance, including programs in nutrition, childcare, housing, and career counseling. During civil rights struggles in the 1960s, Dr. Dorothy Height helped orchestrate strategy with movement leaders, including Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Roy Wilkins, A. Phillip Randolph, Whitney Young, James Farmer, Bayard Rustin, and John Lewis. During the 1960s, Dr. Dorothy Height organized ``Wednesdays in Mississippi,'' which brought together black and white women from the North and South to create a dialogue of understanding. In the mid-1960s, Dr. Height wrote a column entitled ``A Woman's Word'' for the weekly African American newspaper, the New York Amsterdam News. In the 1970s and 1980s, the National Council of Negro Women helped organize and operate development projects in African countries. Because of her experience and depth of knowledge, she later served on a number of committees, including as a consultant on African affairs to the Secretary of State, on the President's Committee on the Employment of the Handicapped, and on the President's Committee on the Status of Women. In 1974, Dr. Height was named to the National Council for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, which published the Belmont Report, which was a response to the infamous Tuskegee Syphilis Study and an international ethical touchstone for researchers to this day. American leaders regularly took her counsel, including First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Dr. Height also encouraged President Dwight D. Eisenhower to desegregate schools and President Lyndon B. Johnson to appoint African American women to positions in government. I remember her telling me a story that the location of her office and their office building right now down on 7th Street, where you can see the Capitol in the background, was the last place that they retrieved two young African sisters who were running away from slavery. They brought them back and sold them off of the spot which is an historical preservative for her National Conference of Negro Women. What irony. She was that great lady who could see into the future, and I think that property just beckoned to her. When she turned 90 years old, I was there at her birthday celebration here in Washington, D.C. They had purchased property that was very, very expensive, but they were able to get it for $8 million. Oprah Winfrey came, and she said, I understand that you owe $5 million. She said, Well, I have something with me that I think will help you. She gave a check for $2.5 million. Now deduct that from the $5 million. Then she proceeded that evening to go around the room and get those who were lobbyists, those who were advocates, to commit to paying off the balance. Within a few months' time, every penny of that property was paid for. What a story. It used to be Sears, the headquarters for Sears. As you know, that's in Chicago now, but the history of the property and where she still went when she was able to get there was the place they sold the last two young African women into slavery. I thought it was important to let you know the spiritual impact, the special gifts that she had for using her judgment to make the right decisions. In 1994, President Bill Clinton awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which is the Nation's highest civilian honor. The musical stage play, ``If This Hat Could Talk,'' is based on her memoirs. ``Open Wide the Freedom Gates'' is the name of her book of memories. It showcases her unique perspective on civil rights movements, and it details many of the behind-the-scenes figures and mentors who shaped her life. My mother is now 100. I am reminded that my grandmother, her mother, used to sit us down at her feet. Because most of the history of Africa is Aro, she used to tell us these stories of Mary McLeod Bethune. Mary McLeod Bethune, out of Florida, started the first college for colored girls. My grandmother used to talk about her all the time. I finally found out that she went to school with Mary McLeod Bethune when she lived and had her first child in Florida, and so I always thought that Mary McLeod Bethune was an aunt. I was so disappointed when I found out she wasn't related. She talked about the line of Judah. That was Haile Selassie, and they feel that most black people were descendants of Haile Selassie. My grandmother talked about Mrs. Roosevelt. She also talked about Marcus Garvey and that back-to-Africa movement. All of these were powerful figures in the history of black people here in America. So, when we would see Dr. Height, regardless of how ill she was--but her mind was sharp--she would bring forth this history that we could only read about. Dorothy Height had served on the advisory council of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities and on the National Advisory Council on Aging. Wasn't that wonderful. She lived to 98. She passed this morning. On March 24, 2004, her 92nd birthday, she received the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest decoration Congress can bestow, and I am so proud to say that I was the author of the bill that gave her the Gold Medal. As I circulated around these Chambers, I went to that side of the aisle and would sit next to various Members and would tell them, I am carrying the Gold Medal bill for Dr. Dorothy Height. They would ask, Who is Dr. Dorothy Height? I'd get very quiet, and I'd say, I'm going to tell you who she is, but you'd better not let other people know you don't know who Dorothy Height is. She proceeded Rosa Parks, and she was 19 years old when Mary McLeod Bethune handed her the mantle of leadership. She took it at age 19 and held it until her demise. Of course she had to have other people take over after she retired. I knew her story because my grandmother related it to me. She started telling me about it when I was 3 years old. My sister, 18 months older than I, would have to sit there, too. She is deceased now. My grandmother read us the newspaper. She could have read it upside down, sideways or bottom up, but I remembered what she said because, traditionally, the story of our history was Aro, and that's why I took great pride after I entered these most honored Chambers to pay tribute to a woman who is part of all of our history. Dr. Dorothy Height was the chairperson of the Executive Committee on the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the largest civil rights organization in the United States of America. Dr. Dorothy Height was an honored guest and was seated among the dignitaries at the inauguration of our current President, Barack Obama, on January 20, 2009. She helped create and organize the Black Family Reunion celebration held annually since 1985. These gatherings were intended to honor the traditions, the strengths, and the history of African American families, while seeking solutions to such social problems as teen pregnancy, drug abuse, and violence. She attended these National Black Family Reunions celebrated on the National Mall in Washington, DC, every year until her death this morning. Her death was something that we all feel so terrible about. We mourn her loss, but she leaves us a great legacy; and we all stand on her shoulders. She had the insight to keep our families together. Because when we were kidnapped off of the continent, when they brought us here to America, they separated husband and wife and took the babies away from their mothers' breasts and sold them for more property. And she knew that strength was with unity. And when you can bring families together, then you can be empowered. So we owe so much to Dr. Dorothy Height. And we pay tribute to her strength, her vision, her dedication, and her brilliance. Her voice will never die out. We will continue to hear it when we talk about equality and justice and opportunity and fairness. With that, Madam Speaker, I would like to call up the most distinguished Member of Congress from Los Angeles, Maxine Waters, for as much time as she might consume.

Ms. WATSON. I want to thank you, Representative Waters, for your association over the years with her and following in her footsteps. You know, we all joined hands together because I think those family reunions were a very special moment in our communities. And we remind each other of the importance of our family bonds, and we show this country that we can stay together and our families are not dysfunctional. And that's what she stood for. And so I thank you for your words this evening. And I have asked that all of these statements be recorded. And as we close out this late hour, I just want to say that we have had the privilege to live at a time when such a great, great woman whose ancestry emanated from what we call the Dark Continent, lived among us, taught among us, and touched us all. May God rest her soul.

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. Madam Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. I just want to say to my colleague and those here on the floor this evening, I am so proud to share the space in this Chamber with the likes of you. And particularly you, Congressman Garamendi. And he was correct in saying that, yes, when I got into the Senate, he relinquished his committee, and I held it for 17 years. I think he probably is aware of my feelings at this moment. I have viewed the ugliness of today, Congressman Garamendi, that is so reminiscent of what I went through when I was on the school board in the 1970s, and we had to integrate our schools. I was the only person there who was an African American, and I had to endure the slurs that were heard today. It was absolutely ugly. The use of the ``N'' word, spitting, the ranting, the distortions, the slurs, and the deceitful references to our health care reform. I felt it was despicable. I didn't think it could happen again here in America, but I'm reminded that hate continues. Why should there be ranting and raving when we're trying to cover the 38 million Americans without health care insurance? And 8 million are in our State, California, and 6 million of them are children. I want to say that the legislation that we are addressing will make health care affordable for the middle class. I don't know how many people out there ranting were middle class, but this definitely will help them. It will provide security for our seniors and guarantee access to health insurance for the uninsured. I just want to very quickly mention what it will do for the 33rd Congressional District. That is my district in Los Angeles, Culver City, California. It will improve health insurance coverage for 304,000 residents, it will give tax credits and other assistance to up to 173,000 families and 15,100 small businesses to help them afford coverage. It will improve Medicare for 75,000 beneficiaries, including closing that doughnut hole. It will extend coverage to 132,000 uninsured residents. It will guarantee that 22,200 residents with preexisting conditions can obtain coverage, and certainly the children, starting when the bills are signed into law. It will protect 1,100 families from bankruptcy due to unaffordable health care costs. It will allow 66,000 young adults to obtain coverage on their parents' policies until they are 26 years old. Isn't that exciting. It will provide millions of dollars in new funding for five community health clinics in my district alone. And it will reduce the cost of uncompensated care for hospitals and other health care providers by $16 million annually. And I want to set the record straight: this will add and protect and supplement, not take anything away.

Ms. WATSON. I want to set the record straight, because there have been so many distortions. In church last Sunday, and I am Catholic, and it is Lent, and I was going down to take communion. I was four people before getting to the priest to get communion when someone I know leaned over and said, ``Don't take my Medicare away.'' The distortions that are out there have to be set straight. I really appreciate my colleagues and you, Representative Garamendi, for talking about closing the part D doughnut hole. I think it was about $2,300 that you had to expend for your own prescriptions and then you went into a period of time when you got no help and no discounts. Now that is going to be eliminated. And I just want to say for my friend who stopped me in church last Sunday, the legislation will allow 6,100 Medicare beneficiaries in my district who entered the part D doughnut hole and are forced to pay the full cost of their prescriptions, that under this bill these beneficiaries will receive a $250 rebate in this year, 2010; 50 percent discounts on brand name drugs beginning in 2011; and complete closure, complete closure of the doughnut hole within a decade. A typical beneficiary who enters the doughnut hole will see savings of over $700 in 2011 and over $3,000 by 2020. And you will be here to see that because you are from California too.

Ms. WATSON. And very quickly I, too, want to add my thanks to my colleagues for providing this time. I want to remind our country that in this legislation, we have community health centers. And I remember in the beginning some people were very disturbed because their districts--and they feel that they have areas that are so remote, how will this health insurance plan cover them. They need to know that nationwide the legislation will provide $11 billion in new funding for these health clinics. And they'll be in rural areas; they will be in suburban areas. Those people who are not in the urban core will be provided with health care. And if the community health centers in the district, your district, receive the average level of support, these centers will receive millions of dollars in new assistance so that we can cover as many of the uncovered as possible. And I want to remind the viewers that if you have insurance and you like your insurance, you can keep your insurance. If you love your doctor or your health care provider, government does not come in between that relationship. And I want the viewing public to know that. And then I want to end by saying there is no deficit spending. I sat in my office and heard the opposition say, It's going to rob my children, you know, and, it's going to wreck their children, and it will rob them because they'll have to pay off the deficit. The cost of health care reform under the legislation proposed is fully paid for in large part by eliminating, and you mentioned it, waste, fraud, and abuse and excessive profits for private insurers. The legislation will reduce the deficit by over a hundred billion dollars over the next 10 years and by about $1 trillion over the second decade. So thank you, Representative Garamendi for allowing us this time to set the record straight. Onward to victory.

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, an estimated 64 million women do not have adequate health insurance coverage. 1.7 million women have lost their health insurance coverage since the beginning of the economic turndown, which was somewhere around December 2007. Nearly two-thirds lost coverage because their spouse's job was lost. Thirty-nine percent of all low-income women lack health insurance coverage. Women are more likely to deplete their savings accounts paying medical bills than men. Women are charged up to 48 percent more than men in the individual market. Any medical event can place a woman at risk for potentially devastating financial costs, even when she has insurance. In a recent study, more than half of women reported delaying needed medical care due to costs compared with 39 percent of men. In many cases, even women and children with insurance do not receive key preventive care, from mammograms to well-baby and well-child care, because they can't afford the copays. Partly due to cost, 1 in 5 women over the age of 50 has not had a mammogram in the past 2 years. Now, our health care reform stops insurance premium discrimination against women known as gender rating. It bans insurance companies from charging women higher premiums than men for the same coverage. Since 40-year-old women are charged up to 48 percent more than 40-year-old men with the same health status, we really need this bill. It would end discrimination based on preexisting conditions such as domestic violence and previous C-sections, prohibiting insurance companies from charging higher rates for these conditions. The bill says that 79 percent of women with individual market policies will have the maternal coverage that they haven't had in the past. Our health care reform bill requires maternity care to be a part of essential benefits. It requires all employer plans and gateway plans to have women's screening and preventive care provided at a minimum or no cost. This includes annual mammograms for women under 50. It will allow women to visit their choice of community providers who offer the spectrum of essential benefits, including women's health clinics. It would allow OB-GYNs to be the center of a medical home supported by community health teams. It codifies offices of women's health via the Department of Health and Human Services to ensure that women's health issues will be comprehensively addressed, from basic research to awareness campaigns. I would say, Mr. Speaker, to all of my colleagues that if we really want to make the United States a number one Nation in health delivery, let's start with the women who bear the children who will be the future of this country.

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak out against the HIV- AIDS epidemic in African-American communities. While African Americans are 12 percent of the United States population, approximately 50 percent of HIV-AIDS patients nationwide are black. Just over the the last 6 months, 452 new cases of HIV were reported in Los Angeles County alone. Our prevention strategy is clearly not working for many of our constituents. That is why I support H.R. 1964, the National Black Clergy for the Elimination of HIV-AIDS Act. They sit up on our right in our gallery, and I welcome them here. This bill seeks to expand and increase programs for HIV education, prevention, testing, care, and treatment in ways that are responsive to the needs of African-American communities. Moreover, this bill recognizes how important faith-based outreach is.

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. Madam Speaker, I come here to let you know my mother turned 100 on January 4 after she had a broken hip, and 2 days before Christmas another broken hip, and last night she broke her femur. And just a few minutes ago, they called me to say she was in need of a blood transfusion. I want you to know the only way we kept the mother of four who put all of us through college is because of Medicare and our insurances. Madam Speaker, let us not let Americans die unnecessarily. This women's sister--my mother's sister--lived to 106, and I will do everything in my power to be sure that other Americans can benefit from the kind of health care reform we're proposing today.

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 311) expressing the support of the House of Representatives for the goals and ideals of Red Cross Month.

Ms. WATSON. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Ms. WATSON. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I am grateful for the opportunity to speak today and to vote on H. Res. 311, a bill I introduced to honor one of the most well-known humanitarian organizations in the world, the American National Red Cross. This bill expresses the support of the House of Representatives for the work of this important institution by honoring March as Red Cross Month. Since the American National Red Cross was founded by Clara Barton on May 21, 1881, the organization has been at the forefront of providing relief to individuals around the world during times of great crisis. The American National Red Cross provides relief for more than 70,000 disasters annually, ranging from small home fires to hurricanes, floods, tornados, conflicts, and earthquakes, such as those that recently struck in Haiti and Chile. And I understand there was a 4.4 earthquake today in the Los Angeles area. The American National Red Cross has had a presence in Haiti since 2004, supporting local disaster preparedness, HIV education, malaria prevention, and measles immunization programs. In the 2 months since the devastating earthquake struck on January 12, the American National Red Cross has allocated $106.4 million for Haitian relief and development and efforts to provide both short-term and long-term assistance to the survivors. In just 2 months, the global Red Cross network has provided relief items for 400,000 people, including 99,000 tarps, tents, shelter tool kits, and meals for more than 1 million people, 40 million liters of clean drinking water, built more than 1,100 latrines, helped vaccinate more than 125 people, treated more than 55,000 people at Red Cross hospitals or mobile clinics, and assisted more than 25,000 people who arrived in the United States following the earthquake. With an estimated 1.3 million Haitians left homeless by the earthquake, the difficult and noble work the American National Red Cross has undertaken in Haiti is an effort that each and every American can be proud of. However, the relief they bring to Haiti is only one example in over 129 years of exemplary humanitarian service. This institution represents the best aspect of the American spirit to people all around the world. When a disaster strikes, the sign of the Red Cross is a source of comfort and hope, and a reminder of the generosity and the caring nature of the United States and its citizens. Since 1943, every President of the United States has proclaimed March as Red Cross Month, and I urge my colleagues to continue this tradition and support H. Res. 311. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, so I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 605) recognizing the continued persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China on the 10th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party campaign to suppress the Falun Gong spiritual movement and calling for an immediate end to the campaign to persecute, intimidate, imprison, and torture Falun Gong practitioners, as amended.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution, and yield myself such time as I may consume. This resolution recognizes the continued persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China on the 11th anniversary of the government crackdown on the spiritual movement. I would like to thank my friend, the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), the ranking member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, for introducing this legislation and for her dedication to this issue. Since 1999, the Chinese government has undertaken a harsh campaign of suppression against the Falun Gong movement, banning its presence in China and banning it as an ``illegal cult.'' According to the 2009 annual report of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, Chinese authorities ``conducted propaganda campaigns that deride Falun Gong, carried out strict surveillance of practitioners, detained and imprisoned large numbers of practitioners, and subjected some who refused to disavow Falun Gong to torture and other abuses in reeducation through labor facilities.'' According to the State Department's latest human rights report on China, the Falun Gong's core leadership was ``singled out for particularly harsh treatment,'' and simply believing in the discipline--without publicly practicing any of its tenets--was enough for practitioners to be punished or imprisoned. Falun Gong is a spiritual movement combining meditation and breathing exercises, with a doctrine loosely rooted in Buddhist and Daoist teachings. The Chinese government banned the group's existence and its practices in 1999, after thousands of practitioners gathered in Beijing to protest the government's restrictions on the group's activities. Chinese authorities are obsessed with eradicating the group because they believe it could pose a challenge to one-party rule and has the potential to generate social unrest and instability. This resolution calls upon the Chinese government to immediately end its decade-long campaign to prosecute, intimidate, and imprison Falun Gong practitioners solely because of their personal beliefs. It also calls on China to release those practitioners being held in prisons and labor camps throughout the country. Finally, this resolution expresses sympathy to Falun Gong followers and their family members for the suffering that has been inflicted on them at the hands of the Chinese government. I strongly support this resolution, and urge my colleagues to do the same. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from California, Representative Lynn Woolsey, chairwoman of the Education and Labor Subcommittee on Workforce Protections and a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Ms. WATSON

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1128) thanking Vancouver for hosting the world during the 2010 Winter Olympics and honoring the athletes from Team USA, as amended.

Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.