Reporter: “Congresswoman, you got emotional when [inaudible] Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee. Can you elaborate on what that means to you personally, and given that this bill has been introduced for generations, are you thinking about new ways to elevate H.R. 40?”
Pressley: “Well, I’m — I’ll in a moment turn it over to the congresswoman here, but I got emotional because I’m humbled and because I feel a tremendous amount of responsibility. These are unprecedented and deeply consequential times. And I’m also emotional because I just was thinking about the labor of love that H.R. 40 was for Sheila Jackson Lee. As far as what I’ll do in this moment, in the same way that I’ve championed the Equal Rights Amendment and gender equality being enshrined in our Constitution, I’m not afraid of hard fights. I’m not deterred by challenging landscapes, because I’ve always believed that the power of the people is greater than the people in power. And I’m so glad that Congresswoman Summer Lee spoke to the advocates and the movement, because we are grateful for the leadership of the lawmakers, the black history makers, who have shepherded and started this, but there is a movement, as Congresswoman Jackson spoke to, that continues to gain momentum throughout the country. So it’s not just black folks that are self-interested in this. This is people of conscience that recognize the power and the necessity of the work of truth and reconciliation and healing. And there is precedent. We have done this for Native Americans, for indigenous people. We have done this for Japanese Americans. So when people say, well, I — my family didn’t own slaves. Why should I care about this? Well, you know, we were able to do truth, reconciliation and the work of — the reparative work for Japanese Americans. You know, not everybody played a role in that, either. So, that’s what brings us here today and I’m excited to do the work of intentional and inclusive movement building and to appeal to people of conscience.”
