S5598 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE May 18, 2004 below the budget request for fiscal year were not officially integrated until We must keep struggling until we 2005, and $108 million for the defense much later, when attorney Charles can live up to the spirit of the Brown nuclear waste disposal, a reduction of Kellar arrived in Nevada in 1959. ruling, and to the letter of the Civil $23 million below the budget request Thurgood Marshall, then head of the Rights Act that followed 10 years later. for fiscal year 2005. These amounts au- NAACP Bar Representation Program, Until we provide every child with an thorized include a $92.4 million reduc- solicited Mr. Kellar to move to Nevada equal—not separate—opportunity to tion to the defense related administra- to establish a chapter and legal rep- get a good education. tive support account. The committee resentation. Mrs. DOLE. Mr. President, 50 years has consistently rejected funding for At the time, one had to live in Ne- ago our Nation witnessed a significant this account because the funding is for vada for one year before sitting for the step in providing equal education for non-defense activities. bar exam. So, to establish residency, every child of every race. On May 17, Once again, I thank my chairman for most white law students would engage 1954, the United States Supreme Court his superb leadership. I believe that the in paralegal work, Mr. Kellar spent his ruled in favor of a young girl who had defense authorization bill is a good year studying real estate at an un- been denied enrollment in her neigh- one, and that programs that fall under known little college called UNLV in borhood school simply because of the the purview of the Strategic Forces order to qualify for residency. color of her skin. On the 50th Anniver- Subcommittee have been dealt with in When he was finally eligible to sit for sary of the Supreme Court’s Brown vs. a measured and responsible way. The the exam, the hotel he reserved for his the Board of Education ruling, I want Armed Service Committee and its staff stay refused to admit him. He had to to recognize the courage, vision and have worked diligently and in a bipar- spend his two nights sleeping in the boldness of that decision and celebrate how far our country has come—and tisan manner to ensure our military re- airport. To add insult to injury, Mr. focus on a new bold vision that will mains the best equipped and best Kellar was accused of cheating on his exam, for his results were near perfect. lead us into the future. trained fighting force in the world. I The Brown decision not only called would ask my colleagues that we pro- He had to sue the Nevada State Bar in order to gain admission, which he was for an end to segregation—it began a ceed quickly with the Defense author- process of healing in America, still ization, and urge support of the bill. finally granted in 1965. The first case he filed was a class ac- needed almost 100 years after the Civil Mr. President, I yield the floor and tion suit against the Clark County War. The Brown decision affirmed the my remaining time. School District in 1968, charging that constitutional promise of equality for f access to an equal, public education all Americans. It overturned laws that 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF BROWN was denied to African American stu- denied millions of school children free- VERSUS BOARD OF EDUCATION dents—in spite of the Brown v. Board dom and choice in education and set this country on a new course, affirming Mr. REID. Mr. President, yesterday of Education ruling 14 years earlier. civil and human rights while demand- marked the 50th anniversary of the Su- Despite the fact that he won the case, the school district decided to convert ing the full respect and protection of preme Court’s decision to reverse the the law for all people. Brown vs. the long-standing principle of ‘‘separate the West Las Vegas schools to sixth grade centers, which would be fully in- Board of Education was a decision of but equal’’ in our public schools. The courage and conviction and was one of ruling handed down in Brown v. Board tegrated. However, the white students would be bused to the schools while the the finest moments of the American ju- of Education was the great catalyst dicial system. But while this decision America needed to move toward equal black students would have to walk. Mr. President, the landscape of Clark paved the way for the establishment of opportunities for all children. County is much different today in the equal learning environments, today On May 17th, 1954, the Supreme Court sense that we now publicly educate a there is evidence of work yet to be spoke unanimously: ‘‘. . . in the field much more diverse population of stu- done. of public education the doctrine of dents. But there are still factors in our Unfortunately, 50 years later, we still ‘separate but equal’ has no place.’’ school system that separate and dis- have a relatively two-tiered education When we talk about Brown v. Board criminate against certain groups of system. Many students are in schools of Education, it is natural to think students: economic status, English lan- where they are receiving an incredible about its application and enforcement guage learners, students with learning education; other children are in medi- in the South, because that was where disabilities, and so on. ocre classrooms, emerging at the end of the most publicized acts of segregation I am concerned about these barriers, each school year barely even able to and discrimination took place. just as I am concerned about the gap in read at the levels of their peers. The re- ¨ But it is naıve to think that the academic achievement between dif- ality is disheartening: nationally, at South was the only region of America ferent groups of students. This gap says the fourth-grade level, the achieve- grappling with the new educational and to me that we still have a lot of work ment gap in reading between blacks racial standard of equality. Western to do in terms of providing truly equal and whites is 28 percentage points. And states like Nevada struggled to adapt opportunities for all of our children. consider this: only one in six African- as well. And even after 50 years, in spite of Americans can read proficiently after Nevada was not a place widely associ- the law, segregation itself is still alive graduating from high school. It truly is ated with having a large population of and well. hard to believe such disparity exists African Americans back in 1954 . . . but Taylor County High School in Butler, today. in fact it was home to many African Georgia, held its first integrated prom Years after opening the doors of op- Americans who migrated from Arkan- in 31 years last year—in 2003. This year, portunity to every child—regardless of sas, Louisiana, and Texas—primarily the white students decided to return to their race—we have yet to truly take seeking employment in Law Vegas’ their old tradition of holding their own advantage of the possibilities Brown hospitality industry. private party—a segregated prom. It is vs. Board created. Breaking through Clark County’s classrooms were seg- disappointing to realize that segrega- prejudice in school enrollment was the regated before the Brown Decision— tion is still preferred by some people. first step—educating each and every and they remained so afterward. While But it just goes to show that we still student to his or her full potential is there were no written laws segregating have work to do. the next. I give President Bush much schools in Clark County, there were The Brown decision truly was a land- credit for recognizing this problem and impenetrable school zoning laws that mark . . . it showed that America had applaud his willingness to make it an made it pretty clear that children come a long way since Plessy v. Fer- issue in the last national election. He could only go to school where they guson. Before Brown, we knew that said that, if elected, he would institute lived . . . and because of housing dis- segregation was wrong. After Brown, change, and he did. Within four days of crimination, most black people lived in we knew that it was illegal. assuming office, he provided a blue- concentrated areas. That was a tremendous step, and I print that became the No Child Left Brown v. Board of Education was de- am certainly grateful for it . . . but we Behind Act of 2001—an act that was cided in 1954, yet Clark County schools cannot rest on our laurels. passed with wide bipartisan support.

VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:15 Jan 29, 2014 Jkt 081600 PO 00000 Frm 00040 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\2004SENATE\S18MY4.REC S18MY4 mmaher on DSKCGSP4G1 with SOCIALSECURITY May 18, 2004 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S5599 With this law our country is begin- than $113 million above 2001 levels. Thurgood Marshall, Charlie Houston ning to address the achievement gap. Funding for schools in North Carolina patiently, painstakingly and bril- The ‘‘old ways’’ will no longer be toler- and throughout the country is finally liantly used the Constitution to cor- ated. Along with many mothers, fa- tied to real accountability for real re- rect itself and end legal segregation thers, teachers and school administra- sults. I will continue to work with the forever. tors, we are demanding equity, justice education leaders in my home State to And the other cases were from Dela- and inclusion for every child. ensure that each child receives the best ware, Virginia, and the District of Co- This significant piece of legislation education possible—and to ensure that lumbia. The other names were Belton, raises academic standards, holds No Child Left Behind continues to Davis, and Bolling. And in Topeka, schools accountable for performance, build on the foundation the Brown De- there were 12 other families involved, requires that every child learn to read, cision laid for closing the opportunity nearly 200 total. This wasn’t one case works to ensure that there is a quality gap in classrooms across America. and one person and one school, but the teacher in every classroom, and pro- Our classrooms are the training cause of millions, and ultimately a vides more choices and flexibility for ground for America’s future, and our cause for all of America. parents. schools and teachers are entrusted You and I know that this country has Accountability is the cornerstone of with the minds of tomorrow. We must made progress. The ‘‘White Only what makes No Child Left Behind so guarantee that those minds are being Signs’’ have come down. Thurgood bold and visionary. In the past, the challenged, educated and encouraged Marshall went on to serve on the Su- Federal Government would send checks to their greatest potential. Together preme Court. We have Congressman to fund education and hope something with the standard of excellence pro- and women and Senators who have good might happen. Now the Govern- vided by the No Child Left Behind Act, taken their place in our national lead- ment is sending checks—at record lev- teachers, parents and students have ership. And we have doctors and law- els, contrary to partisan charges—and the opportunity to continue the dream yers and storeowners in every neigh- asking school systems to show what first realized 50 years ago through the borhood and in any town. progress they are making and what Brown vs. the Board of Education rul- We have come far, but we’re not problems remain to be addressed. ing. A dream where every child has the there yet. While many years passed before the right to be educated—and none of them I grew up in an America that was Brown vs. Board decision made a visi- will be left behind. growing up too with this landmark de- ble difference in our classrooms, it Mr. EDWARDS. Mr. President, 50 cision. This is something I’ve lived took far less time to see the changes years ago on a Monday in May, the Su- with my entire life living in the South initiated by No Child Left Behind. I am preme Court revealed the soul of our in the ’50s and ’60s. pleased to say we have witnessed this Constitution when it said, ‘‘. . . in the We all have a responsibility when it progress in my home State of North field of education, separate but equal comes to issues of race and equality Carolina. In Charlotte, our State’s has no place.’’ It was a moral decision and civil rights, but as a Southerner, I largest city, reading levels have risen just as much as it was a legal decision feel an especially enormous responsi- significantly. Dr. Jim Pugsley, super- that ended discrimination in every bility to lead on this issue. We South- intendent of Charlotte-Mecklenburg place across America. erners have this special responsibility, Schools, has a lot to be proud of. Just Some of you remember that day. I not only because we know America’s a few years ago, only 35 percent of Afri- was just born and can only imagine tragic and painful history on race, but can-American fifth graders in his dis- what it was like to experience that mo- also because we have led the way in trict were reading at grade level, but ment of truth. To hear those words breaking free from that history. today, that number has more than dou- ‘‘has no place’’ To see those headlines, From the time I was very young, I bled to 78 percent of African American ‘‘Supreme Court bans . . . ’’ To feel the saw up close the ugly face of segrega- fifth graders reading at grade level. advance of justice. It was a glorious tion and discrimination. I saw young Schools all over the country are cele- day in America and for all those fami- African-American kids shuttled up- brating similar results. The Chicago lies, children, teachers, and heroes of stairs in movie theaters. I saw white Sun Times recently reported that Chi- the last two centuries who risked their only signs on restaurant doors and cago public school children who trans- lives to move America to that moment. luncheon counters. When I was in the ferred from schools in need of improve- All of that effort and success and his- sixth grade, my teacher walked into ment to higher performing schools tory was wrapped in the family name, the classroom and said he wouldn’t under NCLB showed an 8 percent great- Brown. But we can never forget that teach in an integrated school. er learning gain in reading and math there were other families involved in But even in the struggle’s darkest than the national average. that case. days, countless Southerners stood as Granted, you cannot set lofty goals One of these cases began in my birth profiles in courage. For every George for thousands of schools without pro- state of South Carolina. The African- Wallace, we had a Terry Sanford. There viding the funding to back it up. I am American kids had to walk up to nine were four Southern Justices on the pleased to say president Bush, along miles each way between their homes Court that decided Brown. And it was with this Congress, is working to se- and their only school in Summerton. Lyndon Johnson, a Texan, who told a cure significant amounts for our school The white kids had 30 school buses to joint session of Congress in 1965, ‘‘We system. In fact, the United States take them back and forth to their SHALL overcome!’’ spends more money in our K–12 edu- schools. The African American parents I have heard some of these pundits cation system than any other country went to the Clarendon County School and politicians on television debate in the world with the exception of Board with a simple request—one where and when in America we can Switzerland. This year, the President school bus. talk about this issue. They think it is has requested unprecedented funding The school board said no. So J.A. De fine to stop and pat ourselves on the increases for education in his overall Laine, a minister, convinced a humble back on special days like today or Mar- fiscal year 2005 budget. Never before farmer named Levi Pearson to sue the tin Luther King Day or during Black has a President invested so much in Clarendon County school district for History Month. But they don’t think education. Total spending for K–12 edu- buses. That case was Briggs v. Elliott we should talk about race and equality cation has gone up $9.7 billion since No and became one of the five cases from and civil rights any other time. But we Child Left Behind was signed into law. around the country that were consoli- need to talk about this everyday and In fact, the President’s 2005 budget re- dated and eventually became known as everywhere. quests $2.5 billion for North Carolina Brown v. Board of Education. Why? Because this is not an African- education—that is 54 percent more The long journey from the back roads American issue. This is not a Hispanic- than when President Bush took office. of South Carolina to the chambers of American issue or an Asian-American The 2005 budget also increases title I the Supreme Court was mapped out issue. This is an American issue. It is funding to $290.5 million to help our and led by attorney Charles Hamilton about who we are. What our values are. State’s neediest children. That is more Houston. Together with his prote´ge´ What kind of country we want to live

VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:15 Jan 29, 2014 Jkt 081600 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\2004SENATE\S18MY4.REC S18MY4 mmaher on DSKCGSP4G1 with SOCIALSECURITY S5600 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE May 18, 2004 in. What kind of country we want our We have come far, but we are not Rockwell used it as the basis for his children and grandchildren to live in. there yet. painting, ‘‘The Problem We All Live We have come far, but we are not Fifty years later, we are still fighting With’’ that I have hanging in one of my there yet. that fight. But thank God we have Senate offices. And all of the families We need leaders who not only talk some courageous judges who uphold who joined the NAACP to take down the talk of civil rights and equality, our civil rights laws and ensure equal Plessy vs. Ferguson once and for all. but are willing to DO something about justice for all. We have to continue to When those walls were raised; when it. We need leaders who understand fight for judges who will enforce our all the doors and gates were locked, the that 50 years after Brown v. Board of civil rights laws and stand up for African American community found its Education we still have two public equality in America. We have so much own gateway to a good education. De- school systems in America: one for stu- work to do with economic equality and spite all of the odds, despite those in dents who live in affluent communities educational equality. That takes lead- power who said, ‘‘You can’t have this and another for students who don’t. ership, not slogans and photo ops. chance,’’ ordinary people stood to- There are still students in our rural The administration can talk about gether tall and strong and said, ‘‘Yes areas and in our cities who try to learn ‘‘No Child Left Behind’’ all they want. we can!’’ in a crowded trailer, learn to read It is great rhetoric. These moments of history shadow us under a crumbling ceiling, and try to But the reality is that children are today. These heroes are looking right study science with equipment that being left behind all over the country. over our shoulders. They are urging us ought to be seen only in their history They sit in the back of the classroom, to move forward. They are telling us, books. wishing they could do better, but no ‘‘we’ve brought you this far, but you’re Yes, there are signs of hope. In my one hears them, no one sees them. not there yet.’’ own State, for example, schools in They walk the halls and go unnoticed Our journey to one America is the Charlotte and Durham and elsewhere because our schools are so crowded now greatest mission of our history. Our are raising test scores while also clos- that no one knows their names. They work, our effort, our commitment ing the achievement gap. try their best, but drop out of high must be constant. I know mine is. To- But the truth is that while our best school—they give up on their education gether, from the heights of national public schools are among the best in because the education system has power to every local Head Start center, the world—the state of many of our given up on them. we must strive to open doors, to make schools remains the shame of our Na- None of us would tolerate that for sure that there’s always a seat at the tion. our own children. Well, these ARE our table, and the voices of all Americans Education has made all the dif- children. Every single one of them. will be heard. ference in my life. I was the first mem- Their failure is our failure. And their I believe that wherever you live, who- ber of my family to go to college. But success is our success. We’ve got to do ever your family is, and whatever the millions of our children are being de- better by them. Yes we must have high color of your skin is, if you are willing nied the opportunities I had. expectations of them. But as David to work hard, you ought to be able to Poor and minority students come to Broder noted in a recent column, we go as far as your God-given talents and school with greater challenges, and our also have to provide the resources they hard work will take you. We believe in education system then turns around need to meet those standards. bringing people together. What we be- and gives them less of everything that And that takes real leadership not lieve, what I believe, is that the family matters. We spend less in their class- rhetoric. Real leadership is courage, you are born into and the color of your rooms. We give them fewer qualified and commitment, and action. It means skin will never control what you are teachers. And we teach them a weaker doing everything we can to make able to do or how far you can go in curriculum. One Washington, DC, high equality a reality—not only in our this, our America. school enrolls three times more stu- laws, but in our lives, in communities That is the America we should all be- dents in ‘‘office reprographics’’—train- where poverty and discrimination re- lieve in. That is the promise of the ing on photocopiers—than in pre-cal- main a scar on our Nation. Brown decision. And that is the Amer- culus and calculus combined. More than anything, leadership ica we can create, not just for a pre- Millions of our young people drop means recognizing that social justice is cious few, but for everyone. out, turning their backs on their fu- not a zero-sum game where ‘‘we’’ give We have come far and we are not tures. Minority students have only a something to ‘‘them’’—whether it’s done, but I do believe that we WILL get 50–50 chance of finishing high school. women or minorities or immigrants. there yet. Those who do make it to their senior The Brown decision was not about I ask unanimous consent to print an year are four years behind their peers some ‘‘them.’’ It was about ‘‘us.’’ All of article from the Washington Post writ- in reading and math. That’s right—mi- us. ten by David Broder entitled ‘‘Still nority seniors test at the same level as We have come so far, but we are not Separate and Unequal.’’ white eighth-graders. there yet. There being no objection, the mate- And just last week, a judge in To- I believe that the best way to mark rial was ordered to be printed in the peka, KS, of all places, ordered the the 50th anniversary of the Brown deci- RECORD, as follows: public schools shut down because the sion is to push onward with all of the [From the Washington Post, May 13, 2004] funding was so inequitable that it ut- strength and determination we can STILL SEPARATE AND UNEQUAL terly failed to serve the needs of poor, muster to ensure that the promise of (By David S. Broder) minority, disabled and non-English Brown is finally realized. It is time to In his ‘‘two Americas’’ stump speech—the speaking children. honor those heroes who would not quit, single most powerful message anyone deliv- In his opinion, Judge Bullock quoted who would not settle for anything less ered in the Democratic primaries this win- directly from Brown: ‘‘Today, edu- than the right book to read, a school ter—Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina cation is perhaps the most important bus to ride on, and a great teacher to talked bluntly about the differences between the education, health care, housing and function of State and local govern- guide them. other basics available to the well-off and the ments. . . . It is required in the per- In moving forward, we honor the Lit- working poor in this country. formance of our most basic public re- tle Rock Nine who walked passed angry ‘‘We have two different school systems,’’ sponsibilities, even service in the mobs, and inspired the Nation with Edwards said in countless appearances, ‘‘one armed forces. . . . In these days, it is their grace. We honor James Meredith, for people in the most affluent communities doubtful that any child may reason- who persevered despite the full weight and another for everyone else.’’ That mes- ably be expected to succeed in life if he of Mississippi demanding that he stay sage—largely dismissed by the Bush White is denied the opportunity of an edu- home. We honor little Ruby Bridges, House and de-emphasized by John Kerry in his reach for middle-class votes—is of special cation. Such an opportunity, where the who needed U.S. Marshals to protect relevance as the nation prepares to note the State has undertaken to provide it, her from the wall of human hate that 50th anniversary on Monday of the supreme must be made available to all on equal stood between her and her new school— Court decision that formally ended racial terms.’’ a scene so compelling that Norman segregation in our schools.

VerDate Mar 15 2010 22:15 Jan 29, 2014 Jkt 081600 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 4624 Sfmt 0634 E:\2004SENATE\S18MY4.REC S18MY4 mmaher on DSKCGSP4G1 with SOCIALSECURITY May 18, 2004 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S5601 Brown v. Board of Education was a legal countable’’ but where ‘‘implementation has that led the way for the passage of the landmark, but the reason that the anniver- been rocky.’’ The district could not reach its Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting sary is being observed, rather than cele- mandated improvement goals, with 27 Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Hous- brated, is what Edwards had the courage to schools on a watch list for failing to meet ing Act of 1968. point out. In far too many places, the notion standards. Officials cannot say how many While we must never lose sight of the of equal opportunity in education is still far Cleveland teachers rate as ‘‘highly quali- from reality. fied.’’ And state budget cuts cost Cleveland benefit and the power of the Brown v. In ‘‘Beyond Brown v. Board: The Final Bat- schools $33 million in the current biennium. Board of Education decision, we must tle for Excellence in American Education.’’ The Romulus schools are 97 percent white; not believe that the fight for true written for the Rockefeller Foundation and the Cleveland schools, 80 percent non-white. equality is over and won. published this week, Ellis Cose of Newsweek Fifty years after Brown, John Edwards’ de- Fifty years later, our country is cities example after example of the holes scription still applies. struggling along the path toward a that remain in the system. ‘‘[B]lacks (and Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I com- truly equal society. Unfortunately, Puerto Ricans and Mexican-Americans) do memorate the 50th anniversary of the today, in many areas, we are still sepa- not, for the most part, go to the same rate and unequal. Individuals come to schools, or even the same types of schools, as landmark United States Supreme do the majority of non-Hispanic whites,’’ Court decision, Brown v. Board of Edu- work in integrated environments and Cose wrote. ‘‘They are more likely to go to cation. return home to segregated neighbor- schools such as those found in parts of rural On May 17, 1954, Justice Earl Warren hoods. Parents send their children to South Carolina; schools that, were it not for read the unanimous decision of the schools that seem to be returning to the American flags proudly flying over the United States Supreme Court, which those reminiscent of the days of seg- roofs, might have been plucked out of some stated, ‘‘We conclude that, in the field regation. impoverished country that see education as of public education, the doctrine of The road to Brown v. Board of Edu- a luxury it can barely afford.’’ ‘separate but equal’ has no place. Sepa- cation was not an easy one, nor was it The law firm headed by Richard Riley, the swift. So, on this, the 50th Anniversary former secretary of education in the Clinton rate educational facilities are inher- Cabinet, represents parents and school offi- ently unequal.’’ of the Brown v. Board of Education de- cials in several of those poor South Carolina The decision made a statement about cision, it is important that we not only counties in a lawsuit seeking to force the the course that this country needed to recognize the struggle behind the Civil state to provide more funds for those take to achieve the greatness that we, Rights movement, but that we rededi- schools. With integration—the original goal as a Nation, are capable of achieving. cate ourselves to the goal of providing for the Brown decision—thwarted in many equal opportunity for all. places by residential segregation, resistance Brown v. Board of Education became f to busing and the growing reluctance of fed- the measure of equality—and a plat- eral courts to impose their orders, Cose form on which the civil rights era was VOTE EXPLANATION born. points out that the new legal battleground Mr. BIDEN. Mr. President, as was an- has become state court lawsuits seeking In December 1955, Rosa Parks refused nounced yesterday, I was not able to be ‘‘adequacy’’ in school funding. to give up her seat on a Montgomery, here for the vote on the amendment of- The suits, which have begun to win scat- AL, bus to a white person and was ar- fered by Senator HUTCHISON, No. 3152, tered success in states as diverse as New rested. This sparked an outrage in the York, North Carolina, Arizona and Idaho which includes service academy cadets African American community, who de- since the first breakthrough in Kentucky in and midshipmen in the military’s dis- 1989, ask the courts to require that the state cided to boycott the city’s buses as a ability discharge and retirement sys- determine what it takes to educate a child way to challenge the city’s segregation tem and allows ROTC cadets to use adequately—in staff, facilities, books and laws. The boycott led to a 1956 Su- TRICARE supplemental health care equipment—and come up with the money to preme Court decision that banned seg- provide it. programs when they are injured during regated buses. training. This amendment makes an The movements fits logically with the In September 1957, the commitment standards set in President Bush’s No Child important improvement to the health to equality in education was reiterated Left Behind education reform. The 2002 law care of our future military leaders, and aims at either rescuing or shuttering low- in Little Rock, AK, when President Ei- I would like the record to reflect that, performing schools and especially at helping senhower sent troops to Central High had I been here, I would have voted for students who have been shuffled through School to uphold the Supreme Court’s that amendment which passed unani- grades without really getting an education. desegregation order protecting the mously. By measuring youngsters’ competence in rights of the ‘‘Little Rock Nine.’’ basic skills at regular intervals and requir- In 1960, four freshmen from North f ing adequate progress for all parts of the Carolina Agricultural and Technical LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT ACT school population—not just the bright stu- OF 2003 dents—NCLB pressures states and districts College in Greensboro, NC, were re- to take steps to eliminate education failures. fused service at a lunch counter at the Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, I rise And that in turn sets up a demand for better F.W. Woolworth Store. They sat quiet- today to speak about the need for hate principals and teachers and materials. ly, without being served, until the crimes legislation. On May 1, 2003, Sen- But standards by themselves will not end store’s closing. The next day, they re- ator KENNEDY and I introduced the the two-track education system. Resources turned with 25 more students from the Local Law Enforcement Enhancement have to flow to the schools and districts that college. Peaceful protests at lunch lack the tools they need. A recently pub- Act, a bill that would add new cat- lished ‘‘Look Inside 33 School Districts’’ by counters across the country were initi- egories to current hate crimes law, the Center on Education Policy, an inde- ated and lasted for weeks. The lunch sending a signal that violence of any pendent advocate for more effective public counter protests resulted in a number kind is unacceptable in our society. schools, draws the contrast. of stores integrating prior to the pas- On January 15, 2001, a man was killed The Romulus, N.Y., school system, a small sage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. in a ninja-like stabbing in Prospect suburban district between Rochester and On October 1, 1962, federal officials Park, NY, near a popular area for gay Syracuse, has found no difficulty meeting escorted James Meredith, as he became men. The victim was slashed across the the first two years of NCLB requirements. the first African American to enroll at, throat and stabbed in the chest and ‘‘The district has taken steps to not only re- cruit well-qualified teachers for any vacan- and later graduate from, the Univer- back. Because nothing was stolen from cies that arise, but also retain them,’’ the re- sity of Mississippi. the victim, police believe he was killed port says. ‘‘Romulus has established an ex- On August 28, 1963, hundreds of thou- because he was believed to be gay. tensive mentoring program that taps the ex- sands of marchers—of all races—de- I believe that Government’s first pertise of retired teachers by matching them scended on Washington, DC to urge duty is to defend its citizens, to defend in mentor relationships with new teachers’’ Congress to pass legislation to provide them against the harms that come out that continue for a full year. No surprise, equal access to public facilities, qual- of hate. The Local Law Enforcement then, that ‘‘Romulus students perform at ity education, sufficient employment Enhancement Act is a symbol that can high levels.’’ A few pages later in the report one finds and housing options for African Ameri- become substance. I believe that by the Cleveland Municipal School District, cans. passing this legislation and changing whose officials ‘‘applaud the spirit of NCLB The Brown decision and the events current law, we can change hearts and and agree that schools should be held ac- flowing from it were major catalysts minds as well.

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