[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E43-E44]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

REINTRODUCTION OF LEGISLATION TO AWARD THE CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL TO
HUMANITARIAN AND SPORTING LEGEND MUHAMMAD ALI

______

HON. ANDRE CARSON

of indiana

in the house of representatives

Thursday, January 16, 2025

Mr. CARSON. Mr. Speaker, as we kick off the first session of the new
Congress, I am proud to reintroduce legislation to award the
Congressional Gold Medal to Muhammad Ali in recognition of his numerous
contributions to our great Nation. I believe it is long past time to
recognize an American civil rights activist, humanitarian and sporting
legend with Congress' highest honor. Unfortunately, Congress failed to
act before The Champ's death in 2016, at the age 74, so I ask my
colleagues to join me now in honoring an American hero, on the eve of
what would have been his 83rd birthday. Over the course of his
illustrious career, Muhammad Ali produced some of our Nation's most
lasting sports memories. From winning a Gold Medal at the 1960 Summer
Olympics, to lighting the Olympic torch at the 1996 Summer Olympics,
his influence as an athlete and a humanitarian spanned over fifty
years.
Despite having been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in the 1980s,
Ali devoted his life to charitable organizations. Ali, and his wife
Lonnie, were founding directors of the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center
and Movement Disorders Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona and helped raise over
$50 million for Parkinson's research. In addition to helping families
cope with illness, Ali led efforts to provide meals for the hungry and
helped countless organizations such as the Make-A-Wish-Foundation and
the Special Olympics.
Muhammad Ali's humanitarian efforts went beyond his charitable
activities in the United States. In 1990 Muhammad Ali travelled to the
Middle East to seek the release of American and British hostages that
were being held as human shields in the first Gulf War. After his
intervention, 15 hostages were freed. Thanks to his devotion to
diplomatic causes and racial harmony, Ali was the recipient of many
accolades, including being chosen as a ``U.N. Messenger of Peace'' in
1998 and receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005 from
President Bush.
Through his unyielding dedication to his sport and to struggling
populations around the world, Muhammad Ali still serves an example of
service and self-sacrifice for generations of Americans. The
Congressional Gold Medal is a fitting commemoration of his life and
work, for which he is deservingly known as ``the Greatest.''
Mr. Speaker, I hope my colleagues will join me in recognizing one of
our Nation's most lasting and influential figures by signing on to this
important legislation. Mr. Speaker, I would also like to include in the
Record a recent op-ed published in the American Bar Association Human
Rights Magazine.

[From the American Bar Association Human Rights Magazine, Nov. 25,
2024]

The Fight for Muhammad Ali in Congress = The Fight Against Islamophobia

(By Rep. Andre Carson)

The fight for fairness is not a one-time battle; it is an
ongoing struggle that can be exhausting and frustrating.
While sometimes there is a knockout punch that leads to a
sudden victory, more often, it is a marathon requiring
patience, dedication, and endurance.
This is especially true of legislative victories throughout
American history. From the long marches of Selma to
Montgomery, Alabama, to the hundreds of bus boycotts and sit-
ins that finally helped push the Civil Rights Act and Voting
Rights Act across the finish line, progress can be
painstakingly slow.
Even the fight to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with a
national holiday took 15 years from the first bill introduced
by Rep. John Conyers and Sen. Edward Brooke to passage and
enactment of a revised bill authored by Rep. Katie Hall, the
first Black woman elected to represent Indiana in Congress.
Yet even after President Ronald Reagan signed the bill into
law in 1983, the holiday was not recognized in all 50 states
until 2000.
Similarly, Rep. Julia Carson, the second Black woman from
Indiana elected to serve in Congress, introduced a bill in
2006 to award the Congressional Gold Medal to Muhammad Ali.
Despite her efforts, that bill never received a committee
hearing, let alone a floor vote. Since her death and my
election to Congress, I have taken up this mantle,
reintroducing the bill eight times--from the 111th Congress
in 2009 to the current 118th Congress. Despite widespread
support from groups across the country, the bill has still
not made it to a vote.
Muhammad Ali, ``The Greatest,'' was a true American hero.
After winning a gold medal for the United States at the 1960
Summer Olympics, Ali converted to Islam in 1961 and soon
became the world heavyweight champion at the age of 22. In
1964, he rejected his birth name, Cassius Clay, which he
called his ``slave name,'' and formally adopted the name
Muhammad Ali.
In 1967, as a conscientious objector, Ali refused to be
drafted into the military because of his religious and moral
opposition to the Vietnam War. Convicted of draft evasion, he
appealed his case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court,
which overturned the conviction in 1971. After reclaiming his
world heavyweight title, Ali dedicated his post-boxing career
to serving as a global ambassador for peace, civil rights,
human rights, and fairness for everyone.
Ali has long held a special place in the hearts of Indiana
Hoosiers, especially mine. He first visited the Indiana Black
Expo's Summer Celebration in 1987 as an activist and returned
in 1996 to support my grandmother, Julia Carson, in her first
run for Congress, which she won. In 2003, Ali returned to
Indianapolis when he served as grand marshal of the Indy 500
before a crowd of 300,000 cheering fans.
My grandmother and Muhammad Ali inspired me early in life
to become civically active and stand up for my beliefs. Both
were born in Louisville, Kentucky, from humble beginnings and
used the prejudice they faced as motivation to succeed. They
fought tirelessly to accomplish their goals and became
champions in their respective fields--Ali in the boxing ring
and my grandmother in the halls of Congress. They shared a
passion for defending their beliefs and were never afraid to
fight for what was right.
Muhammad Ali deserves a Congressional Gold Medal, yet
despite all his contributions, we have not been able to
secure the 290 cosponsors needed to get a vote on my current
bill, H.R. 709 So far, we have just 91.
Why is it that someone as universally beloved as Ali, a man
whose life and legacy have inspired so many around the globe,
has yet to receive the recognition he deserves

[[Page E44]]

from Congress? Is it because this recognition is going to a
Muslim man? Or because a Muslim man is offering it?
As the longest-serving Muslim member of Congress and the
dean of our small but mighty Muslim caucus, I have asked
these questions many times. Some point to Ali's draft
evasion, labeling him as controversial. But the Supreme Court
overturned that conviction. Others suggest race might be a
factor. Yet, there are many other Black recipients of the
Congressional Gold Medal, including Nelson Mandela, General
Colin Powell, Roy Wilkins, and Rosa Parks.
Since 1776, only 184 Congressional Gold Medals have been
awarded. It is an interesting list, including individuals
like George Washington, Charles Lindbergh, Howard Hughes,
Robert Frost, Bob Hope, Walt Disney, Winston Churchill, Frank
Sinatra, and Billy Graham, plus iconic athletes like Jesse
Owens, Jackie Robinson, and Larry Doby. Given this roster of
distinguished Americans, why not add Muhammad Ali, a man who
represents the very best of our country?
Could it be that my colleagues are reluctant to honor a
principled Muslim man who lived his faith with deep
conviction and practiced Islam every day despite the attacks
he endured? Even after his passing, Muhammad Ali continues to
inspire generations around the world more than 60 years
after winning an Olympic gold medal for the United States.
Islamophobia, like racism, antisemitism, and homophobia, is
a pernicious poison that can infect people without their
realizing it. It can manifest itself with discomfort or
outright resistance to honoring someone like Ali based on
fear, ignorance, or flawed and unfair procedures.
For example, the current procedures established by the
Republican majority make it extremely difficult to pass a
Gold Medal bill. Before the committee of jurisdiction can
hold a hearing or a markup, 290 cosponsors are required. In
practice, most bills passed by either chamber do not need
hundreds of cosponsors for consideration. Additionally, only
five Gold Medal bills can be considered per session under
these restrictions. The ``quiet part'' is that while few
would want to vote against Ali on the floor, most have not
cosponsored the bill, blocking it.
How could it have been easier for Muhammad Ali to win an
Olympic gold medal at age 18 than be awarded the
Congressional Gold Medal for his lifetime of service to civil
rights and humanitarian causes? Is it Islamophobia?
Few will admit to Islamophobia, but actions speak volumes.
In this session alone, two of the three members of our Muslim
caucus were sanctioned by votes on the House floor. Rep.
Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), the only Palestinian-American to ever
serve in Congress, was censured by a vote of 234 to 188 for
speaking up for Palestinian rights. She was wrongfully
accused of promoting a false narrative about the suffering in
Gaza, even though over 40,000 innocent Palestinians, mostly
women and children, have already been killed. Rep. Ilhan Omar
(D-MN), the first Somali-American elected to Congress, was
stripped of her seat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee
by a vote of 218 to 211 for similarly speaking up for
Palestinian rights. These votes did not grab the headlines
they should have, but they revealed a disturbing reality:
two-thirds of Muslim members of Congress were sanctioned for
standing up for their communities. This is a dangerous trend.
Unlike systemic disenfranchisement and discrimination
against racial minorities and immigrants, Islamophobia is
particularly painful because it persecutes an individual's
religion. Our faith is so personal and, for many of us, very
private. So, being subjected to this irrational hatred
because of our religion is hard, especially in a country
founded on religious freedom.
Globally, we are witnessing hijab bans, oppression of
Muslims, and fear-based politics that fuel violence, with
incidents increasing at an alarming rate. This hits close to
home when tragic events, like the stabbing of a six-year-old
Muslim boy in Illinois last year, remind us of the
consequences of ignorance, hatred, and violence. My heart
broke when this child was killed by his neighbor, who was
angry at Palestinians over the Israel-Gaza war.
We must call out Islamophobia--whether it is blatant, like
the Muslim Ban under the Trump administration, or subtle,
like the opposition to legislative recognition of Muhammad
Ali. We must not be silent. We must be vigilant in stopping
this irrational fear from blocking progress and fairness.
Only then can we build political consensus and experience the
dream our Founders envisioned, where life, liberty, and the
pursuit of happiness are available to every American, not
just some.
There are some encouraging legislative developments: This
past summer, we opened the first-ever Interfaith Staff Prayer
Room in the Capitol Complex under the auspices of the House
Chaplain's Office. The addition of the prayer room was the
result of legislation I authored and was enacted as an
amendment to the FY2022 Legislative Branch Appropriations
Bill. It provides dedicated physical space for congressional
staff and interns of all faiths to pray and meditate at work.
While there has always been a small interfaith place for
members of Congress to use, there was nothing available for
staff working in crowded cubicles with no privacy. This
legislative change has made a positive difference, especially
for Muslim staffers, who now have a private place for daily
prayers. This small victory shows that progress is possible--
we just have to keep running the race together and never give
up.
Please note: The views expressed herein have not been
approved by the House of Delegates, the Board of Governors,
the Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice or the Human
Rights Editorial Board of the American Bar Association and,
accordingly, should not be construed as representing the
policy of the American Bar Association. They are the views of
the individual authors themselves in their personal
capacities.

rep. andre carson--Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from
Indiana's 7th district

Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN) was first elected in 2008. He is
the first Muslim appointed to the House Permanent Select
Committee on Intelligence, where he serves as the ranking
member of the Subcommittee on the Central Intelligence
Agency. He also serves on the House Transportation and
Infrastructure Committee and the Select Committee on
Strategic Competition with the Chinese Communist Party.

____________________