| 00:00:00 | AS THE OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, POLICE DEPARTMENT -- AT THE OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, POLICE DEPARTMENT WHO REACTED WITH BRUTALITY TO THOSE PEACEFULLY PROTESTING. |
| 00:00:12 | MR. |
| 00:00:13 | SPEAKER, I WANT TO REMIND OUR NATION'S LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITIES ALL ACROSS THE LAND THAT CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE IS AS AMERICAN AS AMERICAN PIE. |
| 00:00:30 | IT IS AN ACT FOR WHICH OUR GREAT NATION WAS CONCEIVED. |
| 00:00:36 | IT REQUIRED GREAT COURAGE TO DO WHAT THEY DID AT THE BOSTON TEA PARTY. |
| 00:00:43 | IT REQUIRED GREAT COURAGE FOR THE GREAT AMERICAN HENRY DAVID THEY AREOW TO REFUSE -- THEREUX TO REFUSE TO GO TO WAR AGAINST MEXICO IN 1849 AND THAT GAVE BIRTH TO THE ANTIWAR MOVEMENT THAT CONTINUES TODAY. |
| 00:01:05 | THE EQUALITIES THAT WE AS AMERICANS ENJOY TODAY ARE THE RESULT OF THOSE GREAT, COURAGEOUS AMERICANS THAT FOUGHT FOR OUR LIBERTIES, MR. |
| 00:01:24 | SPEAKER. |
| 00:01:25 | THE WOMEN'S SUFFRAGE MOMENT -- MOVEMENT WENT FROM 1848 TO 18 -- TO 190. |
| 00:01:33 | GENERATIONS -- 1920. |
| 00:01:36 | GENERATIONS OF COURAGEOUS WOMEN MARCHED, THEY FASTED AND THEY WERE ARRESTED. |
| 00:01:44 | FINALLY, IN 1920 THE 19TH AMENDMENT GAVE WOMEN THE RIGHT TO VOTE. |
| 00:01:53 | IT TOOK MORE THAN SEVEN DECADES OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE TO ACHIEVE THE CHANGE THAT THEY SOUGHT. |
| 00:02:03 | LET'S NOT FORGET, MR. |
| 00:02:07 | SPEAKER, THAT ABOLITION OF SLAVERY, THE LABOR MOVEMENT AND THE ERADCATION OF CHILD LABOR. |
| 00:02:15 | THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT ARE ALL -- ALL USED CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE AS A POWERFUL AND PEACEFUL WEAPON TO CHANGE LAWS AND TO PROTECT ALL OF OUR LIBERTIES. |
| 00:02:37 | MEMBERS OF THE MOVEMENT NOW EMERGE AS YET ANOTHER GENERATION OF COURAGEOUS AMERICANS, VOICING A GENERAL FRUSTRATION THAT MANY CITIZENS FEEL OF THE ELITE WHO MISMANAGED THE AMERICAN ECONOMY. |
| 00:03:00 | THEY ARE CHALLENGING US, THIS CONGRESS, OUR GOVERNMENT, TO REFORM NOT ONLY WALL STREET, BUT REFORM A CULTURE OF SELFISHNESS AND GREED THAT HAS DISTORTED WHO WE ARE AND MADE THE AMERICAN DREAM APPEAR UNATTAINABLE. |
| 00:03:24 | WE'RE LOSING GROUND AS A RESULT OF THESE INDIVIDUALS, THIS GROTESQUE AMERICAN GREEDY ELITE. |
| 00:03:39 | THE OCCUPY MOVEMENT, MR. |
| 00:03:42 | SPEAKER, INVITES A SENSE OF GROWING DISILLUSIONMENT WITH THE DIRECTION OF OUR COUNTRY. |
| 00:03:49 | I FOR ONE UNDERSTAND THAT FEELING. |
| 00:03:58 | A DAILY OCCURRENCE IN THIS VERY HOUSE AND IT'S HARD FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE NOT TO FEEL THE SENSE OF UTTER FRUSTRATION. |
| 00:04:07 | THEY SEE THEIR ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES UNABLE TO GOVERN AND -- IN THIS CRUCIAL TIME. |
| 00:04:18 | MR. SPEAKER, A BETRAYAL OF AMERICAN VALUES OCCURRED LAST NIGHT IN OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA. |
| 00:04:27 | WHEN POLICE FIRED TEAR GAS ON THOSE PEACEFUL DEMONSTRATORS. |
| 00:04:34 | IT OCCURRED IN NEW YORK CITY WHEN POLICE MACED AND BEAT PROTESTERS. |
| 00:04:45 | GOVERNMENT VIOLENCE AGAINST OUR OWN PEOPLE? |
| 00:04:49 | IS THIS NOT THE VERY THING THAT WE CONDEMN IN OTHER PLACES ALL AROUND THE WORLD? |
| 00:04:58 | HOW DARE WE DENOUNCE AN ACTION WHEN COMMITTED ABROAD BUT YET REMAIN SILENT WHEN IT HAPPENS IN OUR OWN, VERY OWN, OUR OWN BACKYARDS? |
| 00:05:15 | I FOR ONE CANNOT REMAIN SILENT. |
| 00:05:19 | HISTORY TEACHES US THAT VIOLENT RESPONSE TO CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE NEVER, EVER WORKS. |
| 00:05:28 | IT MAKES PEOPLE ANGRIER, IT TURNS PUBLIC OPINION AGAINST LAW ENFORCEMENT, AGAINST THE POLICE. |
| 00:05:38 | IT IS COUNTERPRODUCTIVE AND NEVER ACHIEVES THE GOALS OF THOSE WHO ARE TRYING TO IMPOSE ORDER. |
| 00:05:48 | GETTING ARRESTED IS A FUNDAMENTAL PART OF DISOBEDIENCE, CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE. |
| 00:05:59 | CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE. |
| 00:06:00 | THE OCCUPY MOVEMENT DEMONSTRATORS, THEY EXPECTED TO BE ARRESTED. |
| 00:06:10 | CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE PARTICIPANTS ALL EXPECT TO BE ARRESTED. |
| 00:06:17 | BUT THEY SHOULD ALSO EXPECT THAT THE POLICE WILL CONDUCT THEMSELVES WITH A PROFESSIONAL UNDERSTANDING AND SENSITIVITY OF THE POWER THEY POSSESS AND THE GOVERNMENT THAT THEY REPRESENT. |
| 00:06:36 | THEY CARRY WEAPONS AND THEY HAVE THE POWER TO MAIM, TO KILL, TO WOUND, AND TO ARREST. |
| 00:06:52 | WITH THAT GREAT POWER COMES GREAT AND EVEN GREATER RESPONSIBILITY, AND THAT GREATER RESPONSIBILITY INCLUDES THE FREEDOM THAT -- FREEDOMS THAT WERE PROMISED TO ALL AMERICAN CITIZENS IN THAT GREAT DOCUMENT, THE PREAMBLE TO THE CONSTITUTION IN THE BILL OF RIGHT -- AND THE BILL OF RIGHTS. |
| 00:07:18 | THE FREEDOM FROM, AND I QUOTE, UNREASONABLE SEARCHES AND SEIZURES, AS PROMISED IN THE FOURTH AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION. |
| 00:07:27 | THE FREEDOM FROM, AND I QUOTE AGAIN, CRUEL AND UNREASONABLE -- AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT. |
| 00:07:37 | AND I END THE QUOTE, AS PROMISED IN THE EIGHTH AMENDMENT. |
| 00:07:41 | AND FINALLY, MR. |
| 00:07:43 | SPEAKER, AND PERHAPS MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE FREEDOM ENSHRINED IN THE FIRST AMENDMENT WHICH GUARANTEES, AND I QUOTE, THE RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE PEACEABLY TO ASSEMBLE AND TO PETITION THE GOVERNMENT FOR A REDRESS OF THEIR GRIEVANCES, END OF QUOTE. |
| 00:08:12 | IT IS THE JOB OF LAW ENFORCEMENT TO UPHOLD THESE FREEDOMS. |
| 00:08:20 | UPHOLD OUR CONSTITUTION. |
| 00:08:23 | UPHOLD JUSTICE. |
| 00:08:24 | EVEN IN THE MIDST OF THE MOST DIFFICULT OF SITUATIONS. |
| 00:08:36 | USING MACE AND TEAR GAS AGAINST OUR OWN PEOPLE, EXERCISING THEIR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS? |
| 00:08:49 | THAT IS UNACCEPTABLE. |
| 00:08:50 | UNACCEPTABLE. |
| 00:08:51 | MORE IMPORTANTLY, IT IS UN-AMERICAN. |
| 00:08:58 | I DO SYMPATHIZE WITH THE TOUGH JOB OUR NATION'S POLICE OFFICERS FACE NOW AND HAVE FACED, AND I CAN'T UNDERSTAND -- I CAN UNDERSTAND WHY THEY MAY FEEL INTIMIDATED BY THE SHEER NUMBERS OR MISTAKE THE DEMONSTRATORS, THEIR PASSION, FOR AGGRESSION. |
| 00:09:27 | HOWEVER, I ASK IN A HUMBLE WAY, I ASK THE POLICE OFFICERS WHO ARE MONITORING THESE PROTESTS TO ACT WITH A RATIONAL HEAD, WITH RESTRAINT, VIOLENCE, -- VIOLENCE ONLY BREEDS VIOLENCE. |
| 00:10:02 | SUCH UNWARRANTED CROWD CONTROL METHOD WOULD ONLY SERVE TO CREATE MUTUAL CONTEMPT BETWEEN PROTESTERS AND THE POLICE ALIKE. |
| 00:10:14 | DIVIDING AMERICANS AGAINST AMERICANS, CITIZENS AGAINST THE POLICE. |
| 00:10:22 | WE DON'T WANT THAT. |
| 00:10:23 | THIS IS NOT A NATION THAT SUPPORTS AND ENCOURAGES THAT TYPE OF ACTIVITY. |
| 00:10:31 | IT WAS ONLY LAST WEEK, MR. |
| 00:10:34 | SPEAKER, THAT WE, THIS NATION, CITIZENS OF THE GREATEST COUNTRY IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD, ONLY LAST WEEK THAT WE DEDICATED A MEMORIAL TO A MAN WHO WAS THE EMBODYMENT, THE LIVING PROOF OF THE POWER OF DISOBEDIENCE AND NONVIOLENCE. |
| 00:11:07 | THOSE WHO MARCH PEACEFULLY IN THE FACE OF FIRE HOSES, IN THE FACE OF DOGS ATTACKING THEM, POLICE BATONS STRIKING THEM ALL OVER THEIR BODY, INCLUDING THEIR HEADS, THEY CHANGED AMERICA. |
| 00:11:33 | NOW, A NEW GENERATION FOLLOWS BOLDLY AND AUDACIOUSLY WITH AN AMERICAN AUDACITY, THEY FOLLOW IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THOSE AMERICAN PATRIOTS WHO DARED TO DISOBEY THE LAW OF THE LAND AS A MATTER OF CONSCIENCE. |
| 00:11:56 | AND PRIORITY. |
| 00:12:00 | A MATTER OF CONSCIOUSNESS THAT CREATED THIS GREAT CIVIL SOCIETY CALLED THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. |
| 00:12:10 | THEY MADE OUR NATION BETTER BACK THEN AND I |
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