Congresswoman Cori Bush Introduces Legislation Urging Federal Reparations

Washington D.C. (May 18, 2023) — Congresswoman Cori Bush (MO-01) introduced a resolution that forcefully argues why the federal government must provide reparations to descendants of enslaved Black people and people of African descent. The resolution outlines the various forms those reparations should take. The Reparations Now Resolution seeks to advance federal reparations, support existing reparatory justice efforts such as H.R. 40 and H. Con. Res. 44, and provide further momentum to reparations efforts at the state and local levels.

 

“I am one of the 40 million people in this country descended from enslaved Africans. Our ancestors were torn away from their homes and families, enslaved, and forced to fuel this country’s economy since the day it was founded. And then they were left landless, impoverished, and disenfranchised," said Congresswoman Bush. “Black people continue to bear the harms of slavery and its vestiges, through the Black-white wealth gap, segregation and redlining, disparities in health outcomes, a racist and destructive criminal legal system, and countless other ways. Yet our federal government refuses to acknowledge the lasting harms of slavery and the unjust world it created for Black people. We know this injustice because we experience it every day. This resolution will move us closer to a federal government that acknowledges its responsibility for this injustice and enacts a holistic and comprehensive reparations package that begins to address the harm it has caused, the wealth it has extracted, and the lives it has stolen.”

 

A copy of this resolution can be found HERE. A copy of the one-pager can be found HERE. A copy of her remarks, as prepared for delivery, from yesterday’s press conference announcing this resolution can be found HERE.

 

This resolution is co-sponsored by Representatives Jamaal Bowman (NY-16), Al Green (TX-09), Jonathan Jackson (IL-01), Barbara Lee (CA-12), Summer Lee (PA-12), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Delia Ramirez (IL-04) and Rashida Tlaib (MI-12).

 

Rep. Cori Bush memoir, The Forerunner: A Story of Pain and Perseverance in America

From one of America's most transformative politicians and activists, a powerful and inspiring memoir that sheds light on a harrowing personal journey and reveals how urgently we need our political leadership to prioritize meeting the needs of our most marginalized communities.

"Piercing and gripping... Bush’s words are beautifully devastating." —The Cut

Having worked as a nurse, a pastor, and a community organizer in St. Louis, Missouri, Cori Bush hadn’t initially intended to run for political office. But when protests in Ferguson erupted in 2014, Bush found herself on the frontlines, providing medical care and protesting violence against Black lives. Encouraged by community leaders to run for office, and compelled by an urgency to prevent her children and others from becoming social media hashtags, Bush campaigned persistently while navigating myriad personal challenges—and ultimately rose to unseat a twenty-year incumbent to become the first Black woman to represent her state in Congress.

The Forerunner is the raw and moving account of a politician and activist whose life experiences, though underrepresented in the halls of Congress, reflect some of the same realities and struggles that many Americans face in their everyday lives. Courageously laying bare her experience as a minimum-wage worker, a survivor of domestic and sexual violence, and an unhoused parent, Congresswoman Bush embodies a new chapter in progressive politics that prioritizes the lives and stories of those most politically vulnerable at the core of its agenda. A testament to the lasting legacy of the Ferguson Uprising and an unflinching examination of how the American political system is so deeply intertwined with systemic injustice, The Forerunner is profoundly relatable and inspiring at its heart. At once a stirring and emotionally wrought personal account and a fierce call to action, this is political memoir the likes of which we’ve never seen before.

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Black congresswomen write letter praising Pres. Biden for keeping Supreme Court pledge

A group of 14 Black Congresswomen including Rep, Cori Bush, Rep. Barbara Lee, and Rep. Joyce Beatty wrote a public letter to President Joe Biden Thursday, commending him for pledging to nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court amid a conservative backlash that he was instituting a "quota" system.

Read that letter below:

Rep. Bush_Supreme Court Letter by George L. Cook III

Rep. Cori Bush slams Sen. Joe Manchin on spending bill opposition

Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) released the following statement criticizing Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) on Monday hours after he publicly refused to sign off on the latest iteration of a $1.75 social spending package that House Democrats hoped to vote on this week.

"Joe Manchin does not get to dictate the future of our country.

I do not trust his assessment of what our communities need the most. I trust the parents in my district who can’t get to their shift without childcare. "I trust the scientists who have shown us what our future will look like if we fail to meaningfully address the climate crisis. I trust the patients and doctors crying out for comprehensive health coverage for every person in America.

"When I promised St. Louis a historic investment in children, in our seniors, in housing, and in our schools, I said that I would do everything I can to actually deliver change that our community can feel. "We cannot spend the next year saying, ‘the House did its part, and now it’s the Senate’s turn.’ We need the Senate to actually get this done.

"Joe Manchin’s opposition to the Build Back Better Act is anti-Black, anti-child, anti-woman, and anti-immigrant. When we talk about transformative change, we are talking about a bill that will benefit Black, brown and Indigenous communities.

"Those same communities are overwhelmingly excluded from the bipartisan infrastructure bill. We cannot leave anyone behind.

Senator Manchin must support the Build Back Better Act."

U.S. Rep. Cori Bush Camps Outside Capitol to Protest End of Eviction Moratorium

U.S. Representative Cori Bush camped outside the Capitol overnight to protest the end of the nationwide eviction moratorium put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I'll be sleeping outside the Capitol tonight. We've still got work to do," wrote Bush, who was evicted three times and once lived in her car before the start of her political career.

More than six million Americans could face eviction on Sunday should Congress allow the current moratorium to expire. The Missouri Democrat, 45, protested Friday night into Saturday which she documented via Instagram.

In her first post, Bush called out several of her Democratic colleagues for going on vacation Friday as the House of Representatives adjourned for their August recess "rather than staying to vote to keep people in their homes."

Bush promoted H.R. 4791 — known as the Protecting Renters from Evictions Act of 2021 — numerous times to her Instagram story throughout her multi-day effort. The House bill proposed by California Democrat Maxine Waters would extend the eviction moratorium until the end of the 2021 calendar year.

As Bush noted, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention previously extended the moratorium from June 30 to July 31. The Supreme Court later ruled that it was up to Congress to make the decision moving forward.

"The least our Democratic-controlled government can do is extend protections for people at risk of becoming unhoused. Especially, ESPECIALLY when we already have an unhoused crisis in our country. We need action NOW," Bush stated.

Saturday morning, Bush reiterated her point in another Instagram post begging lawmakers — including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi — to return to Washington, D.C., to immediately address the issue.

To our 7 million neighbors who are facing eviction: we're here, and we aren't going anywhere.

We must extend the eviction moratorium by midnight. pic.twitter.com/tgdBpWmjc9

— Congresswoman Cori Bush (@RepCori) July 31, 2021

[SOURCE: MSN]

Cori Bush wins election, becomes Missouri's first Black congresswoman

Democrat Cori Bush has been elected to Missouri’s 1st Congressional District, making her the first Black Congresswoman in the history of Missouri.

Bush dfeated her Republican challenger, Anthony Rogers by winning 78.9% of the vote.

Vote Totals

Democrat Cori Bush: 245,520

Repiblican Anthony Rogers: 59,156