Honoring the sacrifices many have made for our country in the name of freedom and democracy is the very foundation of Veterans Day.
We love the ability of the people to influence the actions of decision-makers, of lawmakers and presidents to be removed from or elevated to office by the will of voters, and of the community to connect amongst diverse populations through the ballot box.
A quality education grants us the ability to fight the war on ignorance and poverty.
The promise of the American Dream requires that we are all provided an equal opportunity to participate in and contribute to our nation.
It's impossible for us to forecast what's going to happen ten years from now and make a decision today to say what we're going to do.
We all have a large stake in preserving our democracy, but I maintain that those without power in our society, the black, the brown, the poor of all colors, have the largest stake not because we have the most to lose, but because we have worked the hardest, and given the most, for what we have achieved.
Full participation in government and society has been a basic right of the country symbolizing the full citizenship and equal protection of all.
I was motivated to join in large part because my family needed the money. I would like to say how patriotic we were, but really what motivated me was the excitement my mother would get in receiving a check for my older brother.
I, for one, would think both about how far we have come as a country and how much further we need to go to erase racism and discrimination from our society.
There were no weapons of mass destruction and Saddam Hussein was not involved in the September 11th attack.
This country was founded upon the principle that we are all endowed with certain inalienable rights to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness - those rights are what make America great, and they belong to each and every one of us.
As a Korean War Veteran I know too well the troubling nature of war. This is why I will always support a diplomatic answer before military intervention.
Encouragement of higher education for our youth is critical to the success of our collective future.
Regardless of the nature of their crime or any rehabilitation that may have occurred, these ex-felons cannot participate in the decision-making process of this great Nation.
Well, I really think that shatters the myth of white supremacy once and for all.
As a Korean War veteran, I know firsthand and understand the sacrifices made by our men and women in uniform.
Our immigration policy should be driven by what is in the best interest of this great country and the American people. Comprehensive immigration reform will strengthen U.S. security and boost economic growth.
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 was indeed a vital instrument of democracy, ensuring the integrity and reliability of a democratic process that we as a Country hold so dear.
The Klan had used fear, intimidation and murder to brutally oppress over African-Americans who sought justice and equality and it sought to respond to the young workers of the civil rights movement in Mississippi in the same way.
Meanwhile, our young men and women whose economic circumstances make military service a viable career choice are dying bravely in a war with no end in sight.
Now is the time for the U.S. and the nations of Western Europe who engaged in the slave trade throughout this hemisphere to come forward in a positive way to assist in undoing the harm that was caused by their past colonial policies in the hemisphere.
Mississippi gets more than their fair share back in federal money, but who the hell wants to live in Mississippi?
I don't want to respond to rumors that have no basis at all... But I am willing to respond to questions that the public and the press should know.
Hurricane season routinely strikes the Caribbean harder than the U.S.
As a nation we should commit ourselves not only to the fight against terrorism, but to economic justice, defeat of the AIDS epidemic and vestiges of discriminatory policies of all kinds.
