On Brown Anniversary, Kerry Says We Must Continue to Come Together to Expand Opportunity

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TOPEKA, Kansas, May 17 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision in Topeka Monday, John Kerry said we have come far since 1954 but still have work to do in America before we realize the full promise of the landmark civil rights decision. While we take time to reflect on our progress, Kerry said it is important that we continue to come together to build a stronger America by achieving greater equality and overcoming those who still seek to divide.

"Brown summoned our country to make real the ideal of one nation and one people," Kerry said. "A nation where one day all of God's children would live in the light of equality. A nation where, as Dr. King said later, we would be able to transform into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. Those of us who have embraced this vision redeemed the promise of America and make our country stronger. All of America is a better place because of Brown."

Fifty years after the Supreme Court's historic decision, Kerry emphasized today that there are still too many instances of inequality in our country and still too many powers that seek to divide our nation. Kerry cited our schools, which are underfunded and divided by income, and our health care system, where there are still too many disparities by race.

"Today, more than ever, we need to renew our commitment to one America," Kerry said. "We should not delude ourselves into thinking that the work of Brown is done when there are those who still seek, in different ways, to see it undone - to rollback affirmative action, to restrict equal rights and to undermine the promise of our Constitution."

Kerry today said he will strengthen our nation by bringing equal opportunity to all Americans and bringing our country closer to realizing the full promise of Brown. v. Board of Education.

"Yes, we have to defend the progress that has been made, but we also have to move the cause forward," Kerry said. "Brown began to tear down the walls of inequality. The next great challenge is to put up a ladder of opportunity for all."

As President, Kerry will fight every day to expand opportunity for all Americans. He will strengthen our schools by fully funding No Child Left Behind and putting a quality teacher in each of America's classrooms - with help targeted to the schools that need it the most. His health care plan will reduce racial disparities in health and make quality, affordable health care available to all Americans. His economic plan will expand opportunity by creating 10 million jobs and reducing the flight of US jobs to countries overseas.

Kerry knows that discrimination remains a problem in America and as President, he will seek rigorous enforcement of the nation's civil rights laws. He will strengthen laws damaged by right-wing judges and support strong hate crime laws. To make sure all of America's voices are heard, Kerry will also take steps to reform our election system so that every vote is counted.

The 50th anniversary of the decision in Brown v. Board of Education represents an historic opportunity for all Americans to reflect on the progress that has been made to achieve equal opportunity in America. America is a better place because of Brown and while we reflect on our progress, we must also acknowledge how much further we need to go in order to realize its promise. Today, John Kerry celebrates this historic decision and reiterated his commitment to bringing equal opportunity to all Americans.

Expanding Opportunity in Jobs, Education, and Health Care. John Kerry has a plan to create 10 million new jobs, reduce outsourcing and create manufacturing jobs. He also understands that real equal opportunity is impossible without improving our public school system. John Kerry supports full funding for the No Child Left Behind Act and special needs education, a new initiative to increase excellence in teaching, and Kerry will help one million more students graduate from high school. Finally, John Kerry knows that current racial disparities in health and health care are unacceptable. He has a plan to make high-quality, affordable health care available to all Americans and reduce these disparities.

Rigorous Enforcement of the Nation's Civil Rights Laws. John Kerry understands that discrimination remains a problem in America and that strong enforcement of our nation's civil rights laws is critical to ensuring equal rights and opportunities for all Americans. As a former prosecutor Kerry has the strength and skills to enforce civil rights laws, reduce discrimination and expand opportunity.

Strengthen Civil Rights Laws Damaged by Right-Wing Judges and Strengthen Hate Crime Laws. John Kerry supports congressional efforts to reverse damage done to civil rights laws by right-wing judges. He wants to ensure that every American can get their day in court and have access to fair and meaningful remedies for injustice. John Kerry supports strong enforcement and equal justice for all victims of hate violence.

Improve Voting Rights and Election Reform. Even before he is elected President, Kerry will protect voting rights by providing teams of election observers and lawyers to monitor elections and enforce the law. He supports efforts to reform our national election system and to correct the problems revealed by the 2000 Presidential election. He will also seek new ways to improve election fairness and agrees with the bipartisan recommendations that once people have served their time in prison they should be allowed to participate fully in our democracy.

End Racial Profiling. As a former prosecutor Kerry knows that racial profiling is nothing more than ineffective law enforcement and must be prohibited. He also supports strong and effective remedies for victims of racial profiling.

Nominated Judges That Want to Roll Back Civil Rights in America. George Bush has nominated some of the most radical, right-wing judges that our country has ever seen. For example, Bush appointed Charles Pickering through a recess appointment after Pickering testified in his confirmation hearing for a seat on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that as a trial judge, he threw out cases alleging sex or race discrimination on the job, assuming that they all lacked merit. Pickering was criticized for "his role in a cross-burning case in which he went out of his way to lower a defendant's sentence. Pickering found the first-time offender's recommended sentence of seven years too harsh, and sentenced him to 27 months." (Washington Post, 5/27/03; Miami Herald, 2/21/04)

Opposed Affirmative Action. On Martin Luther King, Jr's birthday, Bush announced his opposition to the University of Michigan admissions process filing two amicus briefs in the Supreme Court. The New York Times reported, "In the briefs, filed minutes before the midnight deadline for the administration to become involved in the most important affirmative action case in a quarter-century, the Justice Department said both schools had violated the Constitution's guarantee of equal protection in their efforts to enroll more minority students." (New York Times, 1/17/03)

Failed to Fund No Child Left Behind. George Bush failed to provide the necessary resources for No Child Left Behind, which was designed to help raise the standards of education and achievement for all children. In his FY 2005 budget, Bush under- funded the legislation by $9.4 billion. Combined with the past three year's shortfalls, America's schoolchildren now face a $27 billion shortfall. (Committee on Education & The Workforce, Democratic Caucus, "Enhancing College Opportunities," 4/1/04)

Placed the Civil Rights Division at a Standstill. Under President Bush and Attorney General John Ashcroft, the Justice Department's civil rights division has been effectively closed. Knight-Ridder reported, "Under Attorney General John Ashcroft, the Justice Department has abandoned lawsuits and settlements begun by prior administrations. The government has filed briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court opposing affirmative action and calling for a narrow interpretation of disability rights law...In the almost three years of the Bush administration, the department has brought 16 employment discrimination suits, down from 24 in the final three years of the Clinton administration." (Knight-Ridder, 11/21/03)

Failed to Provide Health Care to Legal Immigrant Children and Pregnant Women. George Bush has stood in the way of providing medical care to legal immigrant children and pregnant women. According to the National Council for La Raza (NCLR), President Bush's FY 05 budget "does nothing to improve access to and the quality of health care for Latinos. The President's budget proposal fails to lift the current ban on health care for legal immigrant children and pregnant women, does not provide funding to enhance access to health services to limited-English-proficient individuals, eliminates Community Health Workers Grants, and does not provide funding for a much-needed study of Hispanic health, the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey." (National Council of La Raza, "Statement Of Raul Yzaguirre On Latino Unemployment And The President's Budget, National Council of La Raza," 2/10/04)

What Is It With John Kerry's Homes

Even The New York Times?

By now you must know that John Kerry has more homes than most people have televisions. And we're not talking about modest two bedroom bungalows. Kerry's homes are the tv equivalent of 72 inch plasma whatevers.

The right wing is having a heyday with this. Smug, self-righteous talk show hosts lampoon the idea of Kerry as the champion of the common man. They love to point out that his vacation home in Idaho is a five hundred year old farm house from England, meticulously taken apart, piece by piece, and reassembled here in the States. The comparison is between Kerry, the effete, liberal northeastern snob, playing the dude in Idaho, and Bush, the authentic American cowboy from Texas.

Even the New York Times has jumped aboard, running in yesterday's (March 22, 2004) paper a big spread, complete with four color photos, of Kerry's various houses.

One small detail: These aren't Kerry's homes. They are his wife's. And before they belonged to her, they belonged to her former (now deceased) husband. He's the one who bought and paid for them; he's the one who had the English farmhouse deconstructed.

The more interesting point, for all you right wing hypocrisy watchers (and there are increasingly more of us), is that the first husband of Kerry's wife was also a senator. Unlike Kerry, however, the first husband was a Republican. So what we have is the right wing attacking Kerry for living in homes built by a Republican Senator.

Hypocrisy and deceit by the right wing propaganda machine is hardly newsworthy. Actually, I see Kerry's homes as a shining beacon for at least two important Republican principles. The first is the importance of family values. Kerry married the woman he loves, and to prove his love for her, he lives in her former husband's homes, no matter how garish or ostentatious he may find them to be. The second is the issue of the "death" tax. We know that the evil of the inheritance tax is that it destroys our incentive for working hard and accumulating more money and stuff than we could ever use or spend. You've got to believe that Kerry's wife's first husband was powerfully motivated knowing that, after he died, some Democratic Senator would be able to shack up in his homes, with his wife.

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