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“REMEMBERING BAXTER LEACH” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Labor was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1115 on Sept. 10, 2019.
The Department provides billions in unemployment insurance, which peaked around 2011 though spending had declined before the pandemic. Downsizing the Federal Government, a project aimed at lowering taxes and boosting federal efficiency, claimed the Department funds "ineffective and duplicative services" and overregulates the workplace.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
REMEMBERING BAXTER LEACH
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HON. STEVE COHEN
of tennessee
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, September 10, 2019
Mr. COHEN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to mourn the passing of Baxter Leach, a hero of the historic 1968 Sanitation Workers Strike that brought Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to Memphis, where he was assassinated. Mr. Leach, 79, passed away on August 27. Born on September 12, 1939, in Schlater (Leflore County), Mississippi, he worked as a sharecropper from the age of 12. He came to Memphis for a better life, took a job no one wanted for starvation wages, and ended up making history. In 1968, Mr. Leach helped organize sanitation workers for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)-backed strike protesting the inhumane working conditions that resulted in two sanitation workers being crushed to death inside a garbage truck compactor. This was a significant event in the civil rights movement and drew national attention to the poor working conditions of sanitation employees in the South. He was always generous with his time, keeping the memory of the strike, Dr. King's assassination and its aftermath alive for students, labor historians and visitors to the historic Lorraine Motel which has been transformed into the National Civil Rights Museum. He often quoted Proverbs 22: ``a good name is rather to be chosen than great riches and loving favor rather than silver or gold.'' Mr. Leach was a voice for the dignity of all workers and an advocate for civil rights and equality. Just last year, he received the National Civil Rights Museum's Freedom Award and played a prominent role in the MLK50 events commemorating the 50th anniversary of the strike and Dr. King's assassination. In addition to his Freedom Award, Mr. Leach received the keys to the cities of Memphis and Jackson, Tennessee, and received recognition from Operation PUSH, the National Action Network, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters; the University of Memphis School of Law, Cossitt and Benjamin L. Hooks Libraries; and the Henry Logan Starks ``Lighting Our World'' Award from Memphis Theological Seminary. In 2011, he joined all the living 1968 sanitation workers in being inducted into the White House Hall of Fame by President Obama. On that same visit, he and his fellow strikers were inducted into the U.S. Department of Labor's Hall of Honor by Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis. Often sought out as a guest speaker, he typically finished his speeches with the unforgettable motto of the picketing strikers' placards: ``I AM A MAN.'' When he retired in 2005, Mr. Leach had worked for the City of Memphis for 43 years. In 1984, he and his wife, Jimmie, established Melanie's Soul Food Restaurant which served the Mid-South until it was destroyed by fire in 2012. Melanie's was one of the absolute best soul food restaurants, and Mr. Leach served pastors and community leaders like they were royalty. After the disastrous fire, he and Jimmie established Girlee's, another great soul food restaurant. By the end of his life, he had worked with presidents, union organizers, academics and a wide circle of admirers. At his funeral on Saturday, AFSCME International president Lee Saunders said that, even though he never finished high school, talking with Mr. Leach made you feel good about yourself, a rare quality. He also called Mr. Leach a bold pioneer and a steadfast and true trade unionist, and a friend. Retired AFSCME secretary-
treasurer Bill Lucy, who saw the 1968 strike to its successful conclusion, spoke of Leach's work improving working conditions and said a part of Leach's character was to never quit. Mr. Lucy also said Mr. Leach was ``one of a group of men who made the decision to change the course of history.'' Mr. Leach was a big man physically but he was also a big man in every facet of his personality--in heart, courage, generosity and integrity. I wish to extend my deep condolences to Baxter Leach's family and friends. America has lost a true hero. His was a life well lived.
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