Opinion Pieces

By Reps. Alcee L. Hastings (D-Fla.), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), and Gwen Moore (D-Wis.) A year ago, when Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Cecile Kyenge spoke in Washington at a Capitol Hill event, she emphasized the European Union’s (EU) motto: “united in diversity.” Today we can see just how deeply challenged this principle is – not just among EU member states, but throughout the world. Across Europe, fear-mongering, anti-migrant political parties have made leg... Read more

When I was a young boy growing-up in Altamonte Springs, Florida, my parents made the decision to leave the segregated south. They became live-in domestic servants for several Jewish families, first in Queens (Jamaica Estates) New York, and then in Beverly Hills and Bel Air, California, which was when my lifelong relationship with the Jewish community began. As a youth, I have many fond memories of attending bar mitzvahs, learning about the Jewish faith, and even working as a short order cook in ... Read more

I have traveled to Israel 18 times since first being elected to Congress. As a former president of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) and a commissioner of the United States Helsinki Commission, an independent US agency that promotes democracy, human rights, security, and economic cooperation among the OSCE’s 57 member nations, I have had the privilege to represent the United States in Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, and throughout the Middle East,... Read more

I travel to Washington at the beginning of every week Congress is in session. When the week is over, I come home to Florida. As your representative in Congress, I have grown accustomed to frequent air travel, and have spent a lot of time in airports in Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Washington, D.C. In the weeks approaching Labor Day – the one day a year dedicated to honoring the contributions of the hardworking men and women who make our country great – I found myself reflecting on the a... Read more

It is difficult for many of us to imagine having to choose between paying the rent on time or purchasing our sick child’s prescription medicine. But for many Americans who live paycheck to paycheck, circumstances like these are an all-too-familiar reality. For these individuals who are credit-constrained, payday loans provide a financial solution when emergencies or other unforeseen events arise. I know how important these loans can be: I myself relied on a short-term loan to establish my first ... Read more

The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) recently held its 45th Annual Legislative Conference (ALC), which was a resounding success. Now, I believe, the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) will be faced with the challenge of pursuing the numerous important goals outlined during the conference: ensuring justice and opportunity for all Americans, protecting voting rights, and expanding access to education and health care. A lesser known priority, but one that is no less urgent, is the reautho... Read more

When the House of Representatives reconvenes in September, one of our first priorities will be to address the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) to curb Iran’s nuclear program. After careful review, I have decided that I cannot support this deal. The goal of the recently concluded negotiations was to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. The negotiators worked diligently, but in the end, the JCPOA allows Iran to remain a nuclear threshold state while simultaneously reaping the be... Read more

Upon seeing a pink ribbon, the average American will easily be reminded of the tragic toll taken by breast cancer and the critical need for supporting breast cancer research. The same can be said for blue ribbons and the fight against prostate cancer. Alzheimer’s also has a symbol, the purple ribbon, but when compared to cancer and other serious illnesses, the disease receives only a fraction of the research funding. As our population ages and the number of Americans afflicted by Alzheimer’s gro... Read more

By Alcee Hastings, Debbie Wasserman Schultz Fifty years ago today, President Lyndon Johnson signed into law the Voting Rights Act. With a stroke of his pen, long-entrenched policies that had prevented African-Americans and other racial minorities from casting their ballots were finally declared illegal nationwide. The law is arguably one of the most important pieces of civil rights legislation in U.S. history, bringing to a close a century of political disenfranchisement. However, where millions... Read more

The ongoing struggle for equality comes in many forms, from protecting voting rights and advocating for equal pay regardless of gender to strengthening anti-discrimination laws in the workplace and increasing economic opportunity. When it comes to our nation’s health care system, it is clear that significant racial and ethnic disparities persist in the morbidity rates for various diseases, access to treatment and care services, and outcomes. While we are closer to realizing an AIDS-free generati... Read more