The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Senate section on pages S7228-S7229 on July 19, 2000.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS
The following petitions and memorials were laid before the Senate and were referred or ordered to lie on the table as indicated:
POM-599. A resolution adopted by the Legislature of the State of Alaska relative to the Exxon Mobil Corporation; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
POM-600. A resolution adopted by the Legislature of the State of Alaska relative to fair trade between the United States and Canada; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
POM-601. A petition from the Native Hawaiian Convention concerning the reestablishment of a Native Hawaiian Nation; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
POM-602. A resolution adopted by the House of the Legislature of the State of Illinois relative to industrial hemp; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
House Resolution No. 553
Whereas, Industrial hemp refers to varieties of the cannabis plant that have a low content of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and that are cultivated for fiber and oil; and
Whereas, Industrial hemp should not be confused with varieties of cannabis that have high content of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and that are commonly referred to as marijuana; and
Whereas, The commercial production and cultivation of industrial hemp is now permitted in Canada, under licenses and authorizations issued by Health Canada; and
Whereas, Health Canada controls, through rules, all activities relating to the importation, exportation, possession, production, sale, provision, transportation, sending, delivering, and offering for sale of industrial hemp; and
Whereas, Industrial hemp is grown legally throughout Europe and Asia; and
Whereas, Many farmers facing uncertain times in the agricultural marketplace view the reintroduction of industrial hemp as another potentially alternative crop that will have long-term economic benefits to the farmers who produce hemp and the persons who use hemp in the production of textiles, paper products, concrete reinforcement, automobile parts, plastic, cosmetics, organic foods, and natural body products; and
Whereas, Congress never originally intended to prohibit the production of industrial hemp when restricting the production, possession, and use of marijuana; therefore be it
Resolved, by the House of Representatives of the Ninety-First General Assembly of the State of Illinois, That we urge the United States Congress to acknowledge the difference between the hallucinogenic drug know as marijuana and the agricultural crop known as industrial hemp; to acknowledge that allowing and encouraging farmers to produce industrial hemp will improve the balance of trade by promoting domestic sources of industrial hemp; and to assist United States' producers by clearly authorizing the commercial production of industrial hemp and by being the leading advocate for the industrial hemp industry; and be it further
Resolved, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to the President pro tempore of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the chairmen of the Agriculture Committees of the United States Senate and House of Representatives, the United States Secretary of Agriculture, and each member of the Illinois congressional delegation.
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POM-603. A resolution adopted by the House of the Legislature of the State of Louisiana relative to the preservation of liberty; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
House Resolution No. 33
Whereas, the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States of America, which became effective on March 4, 1789, declares that the people of the United States have established that constitution with the stated purposes of forming a more perfect union, establishing justice, insuring domestic tranquility, providing for the common defense, promoting the general welfare, and securing the blessings of liberty; and
Whereas, the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America, which became effective on December 15, 1791, provides, in part, that ``the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated . . .''; and
Whereas, on November 19, 1863, in his Address of Gettysburg, President Abaham Lincoln noted that our nation was conceived in liberty and spoke of the need for those who heard his words to resolve ``. . . that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom; and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth''; and
Whereas, these noble and lofty ideals, upon which our nation was founded and preserved, of liberty and government for the people, appear to be in danger as the echoes of the increasing raids against the citizens of our country, the latest of which was in Miami, reverberate across our land; and
Whereas, our nation must always be prepared to do the things which are necessary to preserve our liberty, but in preserving the liberty of the nation, the rights of the individuals must also be preserved; and
Whereas, certain actions by certain agents of our federal government have risen to an unhealthy fear of our government among the citizens of our nation; and
Whereas, the United States Congress should take the lead in preserving the liberties of our nation as a whole and the liberties of the individual citizens of our nation: Therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Louisiana House of Representatives does hereby memorialize the United States Congress to take such steps as are necessary to preserve the liberties of our nation as a whole and the liberties of the individual citizens of our nation; be it further
Resolved, That copies of this Resolution shall be transmitted to the presiding officer of each house of the United States Congress and to each member of the Louisiana delegation of the United States Congress.
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POM-604. A resolution adopted by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey relative to the Voting Rights Act of 1965; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Assembly Resolution No. 90
Whereas, On August 6, 1965, United States President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the federal Voting Rights Act (VRA) into law; and
Whereas, The purpose of this landmark legislation was to ensure that the voting rights of African-American citizens, as guaranteed by the Fourteenth and Fifteenth amendments, to the United States Constitution, are preserved and strongly enforced; and
Whereas, Prior to the passage of the VRA, many areas of the United States were in the grip of oppressive state laws that purposely hindered and abridged the right of African-Americans to register and vote by imposing demeaning tests and devices that kept them away from the polls on election day and permitted white voters to have control over the electoral process and the candidates for elective office; and
Whereas, For example, before the passage of the VRA, only 29 percent of African-Americans were registered to vote in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia compared over 73.4 percent of whites, and within two years after the passage of the law, more than 52 percent of African Americans were registered to vote in those states; and
Whereas, When the VRA was adopted, Section 4 of the law abolished literacy tests and all other similar devices used to discriminate against minority voters; and
Whereas, Section 5 of the law was designed to ensure that minority voters would have the opportunity to register to vote and fully participate in this county's electoral process free of discrimination; and
Whereas, Section 5 mandated that any change in election law in states that had a history of electoral discrimination--including something as small as moving a polling place--must be precleared, either through the federal Department of Justice or through the federal district court in the District of Columbia, to ensure that the change did not abridge minority voting rights; and
Whereas, In the wake of the passage of the VRA, the federal Department of Justice has used it to stop or remove a large number of the discriminatory practices that diluted the voting strength of African-Americans or prevented them from achieving electoral victories; and
Whereas, These practice include racial gerrymandering--drawing Congressional or legislative district boundaries with race as the primary consideration--and the use of at-large elections in counties and municipalities, whereby representatives are elected from the political subdivision as a whole, instead of from districts within it, so that a majority of white voters always defeat African-Americans candidates; and
Whereas, New Jersey has long had an interest in ensuring that African-Americans are permitted to exercise their constitutionally-guaranteed right to vote, as evidenced by the honor given to Thomas Mundy Peterson of Perth Amboy, the first African-American to vote in the United States after the passage of the Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution in March 1870; and
Whereas, Given that the civil rights community believes that the VRA has allowed African-Americans in this country to fully exercise their right to vote and have an important role in this country's democratic process, it is fitting and proper for this State to acknowledge the year 2000 as the 35th anniversary of the VRA; now, therefore be it
Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. This House acknowledges the year 2000 as the 35th anniversary of the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
2. Duly authenticated copies of this resolution, signed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and attested by the Clerk thereof, shall be transmitted to every presiding officer of the Congress of the United States, every member thereof elected from this State and to the executive officers of the largest civil rights organizations in the United States and this State.
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POM-605. A resolution adopted by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey relative to the proposed ``Justice for Holocaust Survivors Act''; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Assembly Resolution No. 58
Whereas, During the tragic events we now call the Holocaust, in which the Nazi dictatorship in Germany illegally expropriated private property and murdered six million Jews as part of a systematic program of genocide; and
Whereas, Five million others were also murdered by the Nazis; and
Whereas, There are thousands of Holocaust survivors living in the United States who are being denied restitution for their pain and suffering during the Holocaust; and
Whereas, This situation affects many survivors who have come to the United States during the last 50 years, as well as thousands of survivors from the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics who have arrived here during the last decade and who have experienced a disproportionate refusal rate by the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany; and
Whereas, Many Holocaust survivors are indigent and in need of financial assistance; and
Whereas, Current United States law precludes lawsuits against sovereign governments such as the Federal Republic of Germany; and
Whereas, H.R. 271 of 1999, the Justice for Holocaust Survivors Act, would amend the federal Foreign Sovereigns Immunity Act to permit U.S. citizens who are victims of the Holocaust, whether or not they were citizens of the United States during World War II, to sue the Federal Republic of Germany for compensation in U.S. courts; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The President and the Congress of the United States are respectfully memorialized to enact H.R. 271 of 1999, the Justice for Holocaust Survivors Act, which would permit U.S. citizens who are victims of the Holocaust, whether or not they were U.S. citizens during World War II, to sue the Federal Republic of Germany for compensation in U.S. courts of law.
2. A copy of this resolution, signed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and attested by the Clerk thereof, shall be transmitted to the President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives and every member of Congress elected from this State.
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POM-606. A joint resolution adopted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia relative to voluntary school prayer; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
House Joint Resolution No. 71
Whereas, the framers of the Constitution, recognizing free exercise of religion as an unalienable right, secured its protection with the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States; and
Whereas, statements of belief in a Supreme Power and the virtue of seeking strength and protection from that Power are prevalent throughout our national history; and
Whereas, today there are numerous signs of harmonious church/state coexistence, including organized prayer at every Congressional session, the use of the Bible while administering the oath of office, and the imprinting of ``In God we trust'' on the national currency; and
Whereas, prayer in public schools existed for nearly 200 years before the United States Supreme Court ruled in Engel v. Vitale that a government-composed nondenominational
``Regents'' prayer recited by students was unconstitutional as a violation of the establishment of the religion clause of the First Amendment; and
Whereas, this decision has severely constrained the exercise of religious freedom guaranteed by the First Amendment; and
Whereas, in the aftermath of the recent tragic events at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado and Westside Middle School in Jonesboro, Arkansas, many believe that providing for school prayer would help to prevent these incomprehensible acts of violence from recurring at other schools; and
Whereas, several resolutions have been introduced during the 106th Congress, proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to allow for individual or group prayer in public schools and other public institutions; and
Whereas, the proposed amendments would not prescribe the content of the prayer, endorse one religion over another, or require any person to participate in prayer; and
Whereas, voluntary prayer is a beneficial practice that provides the opportunity for free expression of religion and rebuilding a moral emphasis needed in a country troubled by outbreaks of unprecedented school violence; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of delegates, the Senate concurring, That the Congress of the United States be urged to propose an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to allow for voluntary school prayer; and, be it
Resolved further, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates transmit copies of this resolution to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President of the United States Senate, and the members of the Virginia Congressional Delegation in order that they may be apprised of the sense of the General Assembly of Virginia in this matter.
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