Rep. Jasmine Crockett pulled no punches when speaking about oppression in a U.S. House session on Wednesday.
Crockett delivered the fiery remarks during a House Oversight and Accountability Committee markup session about the “Dismantle DEI Act,” in response to fellow Congress member Rep. Clay Higgins, who advocated that the bill is a “strong response to the oppression of our rights, liberties, and freedoms.”
The Texas congresswoman contested the Louisiana Republican’s use of the word “oppression,” and explained what the word really means.
“You consistently said over and over the word ‘oppression,’ and every time that you said it, it was almost as if I was hearing nails on a chalkboard because it seems like you don’t understand the definition of ‘oppression,’” Crockett began.
Adding, “And I’d ask you to just refer to Google to help you out. Oppression is the prolonged cruel or unjust treatment or control. And so, as I sit here as a Black woman who practiced civil rights, let me tell you the reason that my colleagues wanted to make sure you understood the same Black history that your side of the aisle wants to delete out of classrooms is because you can then misuse words like ‘oppression.’”
Crockett then launched into a passionate history lesson about slavery in the U.S. after stating that “there has been no oppression for the white man in this country.”
“You tell me which white men were dragged out of their homes. You tell me which one of them got dragged all the way across an ocean and told that ‘You are going to go to work. We are going to steal your wives. We are going to rape your wives.’ That didn’t happen. That is oppression,” Crockett said.
Crockett also cited some present-day demographics to take her argument further. She indicated that 62 percent of elected positions in the U.S. are held by white men, despite the fact they only make up 30 percent of the country.
This chick doesn’t belong in Congress. https://t.co/qqaGdEpxvH
— Dr. Carol M. Swain (@carolmswain) November 20, 2024
“I can’t even tell you how many white men have served in this chamber. But I can tell you that I am only the 55th Black woman to be elected to Congress. And so when you want to talk about history and pretend as if it was so long ago, it wasn’t,” she said. “Because again, I am just No. 55.”
She referenced data showing that companies with more diverse workforces tend to “generate greater profits” and “are more likely to outperform their competitors.”
“Diversity works, and until you can show me data that says otherwise, I think that we need to go back to being a country that listens to experts and gets out of our feelings and recognizes again that racism is real in this country, and until we stop pretending that it’s not, we will not solve the problems that we are consistently facing. And that will bring real unity that we seek when we’re looking for a more perfect union,” Crockett said.
A clip of Crockett’s remarks that only shows her speak about enslaved people taken captive from Africa circulated on X and drew harsh and inflammatory responses from MAGA critics and conservatives in general.
As we continue to try to get the full truth out about what’s happening in this country, I encourage you to watch @cspan.
— Jasmine Crockett (@JasmineForUS) November 21, 2024
On yesterday a colleague had a bill in markup entitled “dismantle DEI.” In explaining why the bill was needed, multiple white R men argued that they are…
“People like Jasmine Crockett are a cancer to American society. All of these people are THRILLED they don’t live in Africa and know this is the greatest country in the history of the world, but they’ll still pretend to be victims,” one person wrote on X.
“This chick doesn’t belong in Congress,” another person wrote of Crockett.
“She doesn’t realize how racist and totally unbalanced she sounds, does she? What an idiot,” another X user commented.
The Dismantle DEI Act of 2024, initially introduced by Republican Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, aims to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives from the federal government. Vance introduced the Senate version of the bill before President-elect Trump tapped him as his vice presidential pick.
During Wednesday’s committee hearing, Rep. Michael McCloud, a Texas Republican, endorsed the bill, stating, “DEI is a huge step backwards for our country.” He also suggested that DEI efforts “codify discrimination,” and “undo generations of progress.”
Watch Crockett’s full remarks below:
