Barbara Lee: We Need H.R. 1 and H.R. 4 So People Aren’t ‘Totally Oppressed’ and ‘Not Part of This Country’s Democracy’

On Saturday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Velshi,” Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) stated that there are those who “want to keep others in a place where we’re totally oppressed and totally not part of this country’s democracy.” She added that this goes back to voting rights and we need to pass H.R. 1 and H.R. 4 “so that we can have a system that allows the voices of people who have not been heard to be heard through their elected officials.”

Lee said “[T]here are those in this country who are trying to revise history. We need more civic education, more history taught, so that the country understands why they’re seeing each and every day systemic racism played out in the disproportionate rates, for instance, of African Americans dying from COVID, the disproportionate rates of African Americans who live below the poverty line. … I think this is just another effort actually that authoritarian countries and leaders use to try to create an environment where only those that are powerful, the rich prevail, and they want to keep others in a place where we’re totally oppressed and totally not part of this country’s democracy. So, this goes right back to voting rights. We need H.R. 1 passed, we need H.R. 4 passed so that we can have a system that allows the voices of people who have not been heard to be heard through their elected officials. This is about more than just voting. This is about preserving our democracy.”

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