JOYCE BEATTY OF OHIO.
SHES THE CHAIR OF THE
CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS.
REPRESENTATIVE BEATTY, HOW DO
YOU EXPLAIN TO PEOPLE WHAT THEY
SAW ON JANUARY 6th AND WHAT
THEYRE SEEING TONIGHT, YOU
BEING ARRESTED WITHIN MINUTES OF
ENTERING THAT VAST LOBBY WHERE
YOU WERE HARMING NO ONE?
>> THANK YOU, LAWRENCE, FOR
HAVING ME ON.
I THINK ITS QUITE SIMPLE.
WHAT WE SEE IS THE DISPARITY OF
TREATMENT.
WE SEE THE DISPARITIES WHEN IT
COMES TO BLACK AMERICANS AND
MAJORITY AMERICANS.
WE WERE THERE PROTESTING, BUT
THE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT CHANGE
OR THE RESPONSES TO THE RULES OF
ENGAGEMENT ARE DIFFERENT.
WE WERE WARNED THAT THERE WAS A
WARNING AND THAT AFTER THREE
WARNINGS, WE WOULD BE SUBJECT TO
BEING ARRESTED.
WELL, AS YOU SAW, WE WERE IN OUR
MOVEMENT, IN OUR MOMENT.
WE FELT LIKE JOHN LEWIS AND
MARTIN LUTHER KING WHEN THEY
ORGANIZED AND PROTESTED, IT MADE
A DIFFERENCE.
AND THATS WHY WE WERE THERE.
BUT IT IS A DIFFERENCE.
WE SAW AND WITNESSED -- I WAS
THERE ON JANUARY THE 6th AND WE
KNOW WHAT HAPPENED THEN AND WHAT
DIDNT HAPPEN.
ANOTHER REASON WE NEED TO PASS
THE JOHN LEWIS VOTING RIGHTS
ACT.
THATS THE ONLY WAY WE CAN MAKE
A CHANGE WHEN WE GET MORE PEOPLE
REGISTERED TO VOTE WITHOUT VOTER
SUPPRESSION, THATS WHY WE HAVE
THE JOHN LEWIS VOTING RIGHTS
ACT.
>> YOU AS A MEMBER OF THE HOUSE
HAVE FLOOR PRIVILEGES IN THE
UNITED STATES SENATE.
YOURE ONE OF THE FEW PEOPLE ON
THE PLANET WHO IS ALLOWED TO
WALK ONTO THE SENATE FLOOR.
BUT APPARENTLY, THEY DONT WANT
TO HEAR YOUR VOICE.
THEY DONT WANT TO HEAR YOU
RAISE YOUR VOICE IN ANY WAY, NO
MATTER HOW PLEASANT THAT MUSIC
ACTUALLY SOUNDED IN THE HART
BUILDING TODAY.
>> THANK YOU.
AND YOURE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.
THIS IS WHY WE WILL CONTINUE.
BECAUSE IT IS OUR VOICES THAT
WILL MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
AND WE KNOW THAT.
ITS BEEN TRIED AND PROVEN AND
TESTED THROUGHOUT HISTORY.
WE HAD THE AUGUST 6th, 1965,
LEGISLATION PASSED BECAUSE THE
PRESIDENT, THEN PRESIDENT
JOHNSON, THEN MET WITH MARTIN
LUTHER KING AND WE RECEIVED THE
VOTING RIGHTS ACT.
SO WHEN YOU THINK OF FROM WHAT
HAPPENED WITH ROSA PARKS IN THE
50s TO MONTGOMERY, MONTGOMERY LED US TO THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT
LED US TO THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT
OF 1964, THEN TO THE 1965 VOTING
RIGHTS ACT, LOOK AT HOW MANY
TIMES JOHN LEWIS AND MARTIN
LUTHER KING TALKED ABOUT
CROSSING THE EDMUND PETTUS
BRIDGE BEFORE THEY DID IT.
WE WILL HAVE AN OPEN DIALOGUE
WITH CIVIL RIGHTS LEADERS AND
WERE GOING TO INVITE THE MEDIA
IN BECAUSE HERES WHAT I KNOW,
LAWRENCE, WHEN WE USE OUR VOICES
AND WE SPEAK UP, AND ESPECIALLY
BLACK WOMEN, WE HAVE BECOME
POWERHOUSES.
WE DELIVER PRESIDENTS OF THE
UNITED STATES, WE HAVE A STRONG
VOTING BASE, WE HAVE A STRONG
WORKING BASE AND THIS IS OUR
TIME TO MAKE SURE THAT WE PASS
THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT.
>> WHAT IS THE NEXT STEP FOR
YOU?
>> THE NEXT STEP IS NEXT
WEDNESDAY, THE ENTIRE
CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS ON
WEDNESDAY WILL HAVE A MEETING.
WE ARE PLANNING AN EDUCATION AND
AWARENESS SESSION.
YOU SAW POWERFUL WOMEN STANDING WITH ME.
WITH ME.
MELANIE CAMPBELL, HUGE IN THE
LABOR MOVEMENT, LOTS OF WOMEN.
YOU HAD TAMIKA MALLORY STANDING
THERE.
ALL GENERATIONS OF WOMEN COMING
TOGETHER BECAUSE HERES WHAT WE