What Ayanna Pressley said, and what was done

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of my family--my husband, Conan, and our daughter, Cora--and the city of Boston and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to honor the life of Pastor Byron Christopher Sumner.”

“Mr. Speaker, in 1852, Frederick Douglass, an abolitionist, orator, and formerly enslaved man, delivered one of America's most famous speeches: ``What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?'' He addressed a nation celebrating freedom while denying it to millions.”

“Mr. Chair, I rise with a heavy heart to remember the women who have died because they were denied essential abortion care after the devastating Dobbs decision unleashed abortion care bans across our country.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Juneteenth, marking 161 years since the full enforcement of the Emancipation Proclamation. The Juneteenth flag was created by Boston's own Ben Haith and insists that the story of our Nation is incomplete without the ongoing work of liberation.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the Lebanon War Powers Resolution. More than 3,000 innocent people have been killed in Lebanon by the Israeli military and over a million are displaced.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Boston firefighter Robert ``Bobby'' Kilduff, Jr. Bobby was a marine veteran, a proud third-generation firefighter, and a dedicated father to two beautiful children.”

“Chelsea and I grew up together in Chicago and attended Francis W. Parker School. She was my classmate and friend for 14 years. I admired Chelsea's effortless brilliance, basked in her artistic talents and her infectious laugh, and was most of all inspired by her kindness.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life and legacy of Brother Andrew Joseph, Jr., a father, husband, advocate, and a good man. We first met several years ago at a protest demanding an end to police violence.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate my district director, Eric White, a scrappy kid from Rozzie, a 23 year old when he first came to work for my city council office.”

“Mr. Speaker, pursuant to clause 2(c) of rule XV, I rise to provide notice of my intent to offer a motion to discharge the Committee on Rules from further consideration of House Resolution 965.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to make a motion to discharge H.R. 1689 to require the Secretary of Homeland Security to designate Haiti for temporary protected status. This is a commonsense policy that will save lives and benefit the American public.”

“Mr. Speaker, I support this motion, and I urge my colleagues, including the 218 Members from both sides of the aisle who signed this discharge petition, to vote ``yes.'' I yield back the balance of my time.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in unequivocal support of this vote. I am immensely grateful to the Members who supported my discharge petition on both sides of the aisle and the broad, intergenerational and multiracial coalition of justice seekers throughout the country who power this movement, and my indefatigable staff, my A team, who power this work.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to remember Emmanuel Damas, who was 56 years old, a father, brother, son, valued community member, and neighbor of the Massachusetts 7th. Like so many, Emmanuel came to this country seeking safety from the violence, instability, and crisis in Haiti, only to be abducted by ICE and transferred far from his family.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of our dedicated TSA workers throughout the country, including in the Massachusetts 7th, who take pride in their essential work and call Boston Logan International Airport their employer.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak to survivors of sexual violence in my district, across the country, and around the world. As a survivor of sexual violence myself, their stories matter.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise on behalf of the grieving families of the servicemembers killed. I rise on behalf of the little girls in Iran killed by bombs raining down on their schools.”

“Madam Speaker, the state of our Union is traumatizing our children. Today, I refuse to give an audience to a man who breaks promises and steals childhoods, but instead, I rise to address the children directly.”

“Mr. Speaker, on January 20, 2026, I convened a Congressional Field Hearing in my district on Haitian TPS Termination. Senator Markey and Representative Moulton also participated along with community stakeholders.”

“Mr. Speaker, as part of the Congressional Field Hearing on Haitian TPS Termination held in the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District, experts from the community were invited to discuss the importance of extending TPS for Haitian nationals.”

“Mr. Speaker, as part of the Congressional Field Hearing on Haitian TPS Termination held in the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District, members of the community were invited to discuss the importance of extending TPS for Haitian nationals.”

“Rian Immigrant Center (``Rian'') is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization located in Boston, Massachusetts and serving immigrant and refugee communities across the Commonwealth, primarily through our Immigration Legal Services program.”

“Mr. Speaker, as part of the Congressional Field Hearing on Haitian TPS Termination held in the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District, witnesses from the community were invited to discuss the importance of extending TPS for Haitian nationals.”

“Mr. Speaker, as part of the Congressional Field Hearing on Haitian TPS Termination held in the Massachusetts 7th Congressional District, constituents from the community were invited to discuss the importance of extending TPS for Haitian nationals.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in defense of communities across America terrorized by the dangerous, rogue, and violent actions perpetrated by ICE agents. Millions have seen the videos of ICE shooting and killing Renee Good, a poet and mother who was unarmed and trying to drive away.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate the Massachusetts Seventh's very own Super Bowl champions, the Randolph High School Blue Devils. Showcasing electric offense and stifling defense, the Blue Devils shut out West Boylston at Gillette Stadium, capping off an undefeated season with another championship.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the life and legacy of Alice Wong. Alice was a civil rights and disability justice activist who called the question that changed the conversation.”

“Mr. Speaker, the wealth of our Nation is the health of our people. Yet Republicans are doing everything in their power to make families sicker. They want to deny children food, ban abortion care, and obstruct the extension of the Affordable Care Act subsidies.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this legislation. Every parent wants to keep their child safe, wants their child to grow without pain, to sleep through the night without fear or suffering.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this year's massive $900 billion military spending bill. This legislation gives more money to the so-called Department of War than to our Department of Education, Transportation, and Health and Human Services combined.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Green for yielding and for his moral clarity and always for his leadership, especially during these deeply consequential times. Mr. Speaker, every parent hopes that no harm, heartbreak, or hardship finds their child.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Ramirez for yielding. I appreciate her leadership. It is so important that we do not allow the hostile acts of this administration to be normalized.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to denounce the terror campaign this administration has launched against our immigrant neighbors. At the direction of the Trump White House, masked Federal agents are ripping children away from their parents' arms.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Bishop William E. Dickerson II and Lady Luella Dickerson, who are role models in love and service, on their 36 years of selfless service and spiritual stewardship as founding pastor and lady of the Greater Love Tabernacle in Dorchester.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise to honor the life and legacy of the Honorable Judge Leslie Harris, a father, husband, grandfather, mentor, and champion for justice in Massachusetts. Raised in Chicago, he journeyed to Boston, where he earned advanced degrees, planted roots, and dedicated his life to public service.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of my dear friend and brother, former Newton Mayor Setti Warren, a trailblazer, the first popularly elected Black mayor in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of every elder who can't afford their prescriptions and every parent who went to work hungry so their child could eat.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to welcome His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to the United States of America as he accepts the prestigious and well-deserved Templeton Prize, one of the world's most prestigious awards in Religion and Science.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Garcia for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this legislation. This bill seeks to create 14-year-old prisoners in the adult criminal legal system.”

“Don't just take my word for it, Mr. Speaker. There is a large coalition opposing this bill. Scientists tell us that young people's brains are not fully developed until their twenties.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to condemn the cruelty of the Hyde Amendment and reintroduce the EACH Act to end it once and for all. It is 2025. In 1976, when I was a mere 2 years old, a Congressman from Chicago was livid at the thought that a woman could be in control of her own body, especially a Black or Brown woman.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in vigorous opposition to the CLARITY Act. This bill gives a green light to self-enriching crypto schemes where officials at the highest levels of power, including in the White House, have generated hundreds of billions of dollars in personal profit.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the traumatic loss of life around the world and to reaffirm a simple truth: Our destinies are tied. Too often, in moments of crisis, we are bombarded with abstract numbers and detached headlines describing casualties and missiles, but behind every number is a name.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today on behalf of our neighbors and community members, our immigrant brothers and sisters who are being targeted and abducted, taken from their homes, torn away from their babies, and disappeared on their way to church, work, and school.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share the story of Adriana Smith. Adriana Smith was a 30-year-old nurse from Georgia and the mother of a vibrant 5-year-old boy.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in vigorous opposition to this bill that is callous and cruel and clueless about what the American people are dealing with. We are talking about generations of harm, lives lost because of defunded cancer research, pregnant mothers denied essential healthcare, school lunch programs gutted, and our babies hungry if this bill is passed.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of investing in every child's future. Six years ago, I joined Senator Booker to introduce baby bonds legislation to disrupt the cycle of intergenerational poverty, close the racial wealth gap, and ensure every 18-year-old has the financial opportunity to go to college, buy a home, or start a business.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today in vigorous opposition to occupant Trump's hostile attacks, hostile and insecure attacks on Black history. Black history is American history. Dictators try to shutter museums, censor history, and whitewash the truth, but we know the truth.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank Ranking Member Waters for her leadership, under which we have advocated to create an economy that works for all people, not just Elon Musk and wealthy billionaires.”

“Madam Chair, I rise today to honor Women's History Month. As a practice, I do celebrate Women's History Month every month, but today I take the floor to talk about a living legend, Ms.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise to call out the recklessness of those in this administration entrusted with our national security. I did not think I would see a day where someone with the highest security clearance is using a phone messaging app to treat matters of national security with such blatant disregard, celebrating with emojis in a group chat as they unlawfully authorize military actions.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to remember Kyre Ambrose, an incredible young man and talent who, in his far-too-short life, touched the lives and hearts of many. Kyre was a source of joy and love to his family, his community, and the audiences he performed for, where he shared his calling, his true artistic genius, his dancing with all of us.”

“Madam Speaker, good morning and happy Black History Month. Black history is American history, so I rise today to give a history lesson. I think, at moments of inflection for our country, history provides a critical contextualizing.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the life of Christian Jose Fidalgo Barros, who was called to be with his Lord in Heaven far too soon. After Christian's first birthday, he was diagnosed with a rare form of high-risk neuroblastoma cancer.”

“Mr. Speaker, how cruel it is that Republicans in Congress would deny them that small comfort? In these dire situations, families forego treatment which has no hope of saving their baby's life and instead spend time comforting them and saying good-bye.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to call out harm and hypocrisy. This bill, H.R. 28, is couched as a bill that protects children when it does the exact opposite.”

“Madam Speaker, for too long, our Nation's criminal legal system has been wrought with systemic injustices and biases and has prioritized cruelty at the expense of rehabilitation and justice.”