Barbara Lee — Rep. Barbara Lee Honors Maudelle Shirek on the House Floor

Speaker 1: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let me

Speaker 2: first send my thoughts and prayers to the city of Boston, the families and friends and all of those touched by yesterday's horrific tragedy. An incredible strength was on full display in the streets of Boston when untold numbers of people, the police, firefighters, volunteers, runners, and bystanders ran towards the explosions to try and help in any way they could without regard for their own safety. As we learn the details of this attack, let us remember that what makes strong as a nation is the tremendous care that we have for our fellow Americans, especially during the hardest times. This is a lesson that I learned deeply from my friend and mentor, Maudel Shirek. Maudel died last week at the age of 101. She'd be 102 June the 18th. And my heart and my prayers go out to her friends and family. Maudel was

Speaker 3: truly the godmother of East Bay progressive politics. The former City of Berkeley vice mayor and eight-term council member was born and

Speaker 2: raised in Jefferson, Arkansas. As the granddaughter of slaves, she was passionate about justice and civil rights. After moving to Berkeley in the 1940s, she became active in the anti-war movement, fought on behalf of unions, advocated for HIV and AIDS awareness, care, and treatment, and helped organize the free Mandela movement. She was also the first elected official in the United States to advocate for needle exchange programs. During her tenure as a Berkeley elected official, she was instrumental in creating multiple city commissions, including the Berkeley Commission on Labor. when she retired mind you at 92 years of age she was the oldest elected official in California at that time in 2007 the Berkeley City Council renamed City Hall in her honor she not only urged me

Speaker 3: to get involved in politics but also inspired my predecessor Congressman Ron Dellums to run for Congress her understanding of the importance of investing in people, won the solid support of voters in her district and across the country. I met Waddell in the early '70s while I was a student at Mills College. She widened my perspective on global politics during our travels around the world. She reinforced the idea that we are all part of a global family, and what happens here in the United States affects our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world and vice versa. Maudel was a personal friend, mentor, and confidant. Maudel actually was a health aficionado. She was committed to educating seniors and the entire community on the benefits of healthy living. She loved shopping for fresh fruits and vegetables, and you would often find her cooking nutritious meals at the West Berkeley Senior Citizens

We

Speaker 3: loved to walk Lake Merritt and

Speaker 2: the Berkeley Marina together, where she talked to me about acupuncture and natural remedies like cayenne pepper and warm water for colds and the importance of exercise. Maudel was a woman of great faith. During the '70s, we enjoyed attending the church for tomorrow, which formerly was the church for today. We went there together. And this is where I realized that her passion for service and justice was driven by her commitment to what she called doing the Lord's work on this earth

She was a

Speaker 2: woman who understands that she had to have a comprehensive agenda. It just couldn't be a single issue like health care, seniors, or peace and justice. But it had to be about being committed to comprehensive and positive changes that seek to improve the lives of all Americans. Maudel worked at the Berkeley Co-op Credit Union. She engaged all of us in the 70s, mind you, in financial literacy and urged me as a young single student to buy a house because she reminded me over and over again that one's equity in one's home was the primary path to the middle class and that that was the main way that I could get the resources to take care of my kids and send them to school

Speaker 3: a lesson we should teach our own children today. Several years ago I tried to name the Berkeley Post Office after Maudel. While this body has a tradition of supporting post office bills in a bipartisan way, Congressman Steve King from Iowa came

Speaker 2: to this floor and tried to tarnish her character. He brought groundless accusations and this body voted against, mind you, against naming the post office in my district after this great icon

I

Speaker 2: hope one day in her memory, Representative King will apologize to Maudel and her family and the city of Berkeley for such an unfair and unwarranted attack. She was deeply hurt by it, kept her head high, and lived to see the Berkeley City Hall named after her. Maudel refused to accept arbitrary limitations. It's one of the best things we all respected about her. Maudel is one of the best examples of how one person can make a difference. She was a fearless and inspirational woman who tirelessly fought to make this world a fair and just place. She spoke for the voiceless and was such a staunch defender of our basic civil rights. I believe, like many, that Mardell's legacy of over 70 years of service to Berkeley, the East Bay, the nation, and the world will inspire many to speak for the voiceless and to stand up for justice, both here in America and around the globe. I will deeply miss her wise counsel, love, and support