What Delia C. Ramirez said, and what was done

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the extraordinary life and legacy of Beatrice Lumpkin, who passed away June 14, 2026, at the age of 107 years. Bea was the living, marching, fighting embodiment of solidarity forever.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Jae Jin Pak and Timotheus Gordon, Jr., two leaders who cofounded the Chicagoland Disabled People of Color Coalition and who serve as research associates at the Institute on Disability and Human Development at the University of Illinois Chicago.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor the Chicago Young Lords and their protests of 1969, the first marches for Puerto Rican self-determination in Chicago's history.”

“Mr. Speaker, I am proudly on this House floor going to talk about what brings me to this place. Yes, I am the Congresswoman of Illinois' Third Congressional District.”

“Mr. Speaker, I will yield to some of my colleagues who will recognize and uplift the stories of the immigrant communities they represent and hold President Trump and Republicans accountable for the continued attacks on our immigrant communities.”

“Mr. Speaker, I want to echo something that Ms. Tokuda said that I often remind my colleagues at Homeland Security as they continue to vilify immigrants: Unless you are indigenous, or you were forced to come here, you, too, are an immigrant.”

“Mr. Speaker, who are we as a nation? I thank Congresswoman Jayapal for powerfully reminding us that we cannot talk about having ideals and being a country that stands up for children and opportunity, and continue to dismiss those who contribute every single day in making that reality.”

“Mr. Speaker, I now yield to the gentlewoman from Michigan (Ms. Tlaib), one of my colleagues who has been at the forefront, really pushing back on all the terror that we are seeing around the country, whether it is in detention, whether it is in the abductions that are happening on the ground, or if it is at check-ins and making sure that people feel safe to go to court.”

“We are a nation of immigrants, and, unfortunately, many of our colleagues have forgotten that. I do wonder if their grandparents when they came to this country, whether they were 5, whether they were 12, whether they were 17, if they were alive today, what would they say about their grandchildren that forgot the struggle and the challenges and what they needed when their grandparents came to this country.”

“Today, I rise to honor Dr. Gladys Fatima Marquez. Gladys is a high school bilingual English language learners teacher with over 20 years of classroom experience. She is also on the National Education Association's executive committee.”

“Mr. Speaker, I also rise to honor Shaiska Malca, a constituent of the Illinois Third Congressional District and an educator, children's book author, and entrepreneur. Shaiska is a proud Panamanian immigrant and vice president of the DuPage Hispanic Alliance.”

“Mr. Speaker, as we get closer to the end of the Special Order hour, I want to go back to the children because in the previous Special Order hour, my colleagues to the right talked a lot about children.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Laura Garza, an immigrant leader who has dedicated her career to remind us that workers' rights are immigrant rights. Born in Monterrey, Mexico, Laura Garza has made Chicago, where she has organized and built coalitions for over 30 years, her home.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor and celebrate Jaquie Algee, a powerful and loving champion for justice, humanity, and solidarity. As the daughter of civil rights activists from the south who marched alongside Dr.”

“May Kevin rest in power. I thank him for showing us the power of love, the power of a boy who just wanted to be reunited with his parents one last time.”

“Mr. Speaker, again, I want to rise to point out the hypocrisy of those who would claim to care about our children while turning a blind eye to the scale of child suffering inflicted by Trump and Netanyahu's unlawful, unaccountable military operations in Lebanon.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to join human rights defenders across the world to call for the immediate and unconditional release of Ruth Eleonora Lopez, who has been held in pretrial detention for over 1 year without any due process and without access to her family or even her lawyer.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and celebrate the educators of Chicago High School for the Arts, known across our city as ChiArts, located in Illinois' Third.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Marcos Ceniceros for his unwavering commitment to labor rights, racial and economic justice, and workers' solidarity. Born and raised in Chicago by immigrant parents from Mexico, Marcos witnessed firsthand the struggles and resilience of working-class families fighting for a better life.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Sonia Cortez, whose career and leadership have reshaped our school communities in Illinois' Third Logan Square community. As a young girl in Puerto Rico, Sonia learned at an early age the transformational power of education.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Felicia Davis Blakley for her service to community, her commitment to women and families, and her fierce leadership. A self-described girl from the South Side, Felicia has worked at the intersection of public policy and community equity and inclusion for over three decades.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Joy Aruguete, whose steadfast leadership has been a cornerstone of the nonprofit affordable housing and community development sectors in Chicago and, frankly, nationally.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to share Steven's story. Who is Steven some may ask? Steven is a constituent, and he is a 14-year-old boy, an eighth grader with autism, who spent 66 days incarcerated in Dilley Immigration Processing Center.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor a fierce advocate for justice and a tireless champion for gun violence prevention, Elizabeth Ramirez. On a tragic night almost 15 years ago, Elizabeth's son, Harry Rodriguez, was fatally shot, giving his life to protect his family members when a masked assailant opened fire during his 23rd birthday celebration.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my constituent, Dr. Jessica Esquivel. Jessica is a queer, Afro-Latine, particle physicist, disruptor, author, and visionary who has made it her personal mission to ensure the success of underrepresented communities in the sciences.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mary Santana, a visionary whose leadership has built transformative, creative spaces that uplift our young people in Illinois-03 and beyond. Mary is the founder and executive director at the Miracle Center, an organization that reflects her belief that community, creativity, and care have the power to change lives.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Ahmed Rehab, a fearless advocate and leader. Ahmed's career reflects his courage, clarity, and conviction. For more than two decades, Ahmed has defended our civil rights and protected our Muslim and immigrant neighbors and communities.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and the legacy of Ofelia Torres Hidalgo, a fighter, a leader, a devoted daughter, and an inspiration to Illinois' Third Congressional District.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor an unapologetic faith-rooted leader, Reverend Ciera Bates-Chamberlain. Born and raised in Chicago's South Side, Reverend Bates-Chamberlain is the founder and executive director of Live Free, where she mobilizes Black churches to improve public safety and transform the justice system.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Judge Chantelle Porter, my constituent and a fighter for justice. Her career is a testament to her brilliance, her leadership, and her commitment to young people.”

“Mr. Speaker, as I hear my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, what I hear is the same racist, misogynistic trash, different decade. Republicans are invoking historical policies intended, let's be clear, to disenfranchise Americans, especially working people, women, students, indigenous people, and anyone who can't afford the burden of a new bill.”

“Mr. Speaker, 16 years ago, the Supreme Court overturned a longstanding precedent that protected working families' voices in our democracy. By embracing this idea that corporations are entitled to the same speech rights as people, the Supreme Court opened the floodgates to unchecked corporate influence in governance and billionaire political spending.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Eric Sirota for his work to expand tenants' rights and reshape the housing landscape. As director of housing justice at the Shriver Center on Poverty Law and now as the director of a tenant advocacy clinic, Eric uses litigation advocacy to advance housing equity in Illinois and beyond.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the legacy of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., by commending a liberation leader, Frank Chapman. Frank's political education began in St.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor my constituent, Juliet De Jesus Alejandre. Juliet is a triracial Latina who honors her African and indigenous ancestry with roots in Ecuador and Puerto Rico.”

“Madam Speaker, the Republican Party is quickly becoming the party of child suffering. Under their leadership and because of their policies, children are sick from cuts to Medicaid and the end of the ACA subsidies.”

“Mr. Speaker, from the start of the Trump administration, this Republican-led Congress has willingly given up our powers and authority: our power of the purse, our oversight authority, our legislative authority, and now, our war powers.”

“Mr. Speaker, we are less than 10 days away from Christmas, a day in which many celebrate the birth of Jesus, a refugee. In regard to the hypocrisy of those who would quote Scripture asserting the preciousness of children while they pursue new, cruel punishments for child refugees, I find that not just hypocritical but despicable.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my constituent, Omar Martinez Gonzalez. Omar is an advocate fighting for the resources that immigrant, Black, Brown, and underserved communities need and deserve to prevent, treat, and end the HIV/AIDS epidemic.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mario Vega for his work to create spaces that uplift our young people and build safe and thriving communities. Mario has transformed his own personal experiences, growing up in Chicago, to realize safety in our communities by investing in our city's young people.”

“Mr. Speaker, during this holiday season, which has been so difficult for so many families, I rise to recognize the joy and hope that Rita Kollias facilitates in DuPage County in Illinois' Third Congressional District.”

“Mr. Speaker, as a Chicagoan, I know firsthand the terror that Trump's mass deportation agenda and the Department of Homeland Security's immigration raids are having on our communities.”

“Mr. Speaker, I agree with the Congresswoman. Mr. Speaker, I now yield to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. McGarvey). Mr. McGARVEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.”

“Mr. Speaker, as you can hear from my colleagues here, we are living the reality of this nightmare across the country. That is why we are here to push back.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank the Congresswoman for her remarks. May we remember, I think she said $96.7 billion is what undocumented immigrants give in tax revenue every single year.”

“Mr. Speaker, the bottom line is this: What is happening today in our communities is not an accident, it is not new. DHS is not rogue. From its establishment, DHS has always been empowered to violate our rights under the pretense of securing our safety.”

“Mr. Speaker, I would like to start my Special Order hour by honoring someone who has been monumental in my life. I rise today to honor the life and legacy of my pastor and friend, the one and only Reverend Fernando Siaba.”

“Mr. Speaker, I also rise today to honor someone else. Today, I want to honor Marisol Velez, known as Pinqy Ring. She is a rooted, revolutionary Puerto Rican emcee from Chicago, decolonizing minds as a rapper, as an educator, as a mentor, and as a speaker.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Underwood for her hard work, her courage, her commitment, and for speaking truth to power in the people's House. Mr. Speaker, when I look around at every single chair here, I think about the fact that Members of Congress, every one of us represents about 700,000 people, but together we represent every single person that lives in this country.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor my constituent Cecilia Mendoza, a defender and advocate for our constitutional rights. Cecilia's passion for justice is reflected across her entire career, from her beginnings as a community organizing intern with the Illinois Hunger Coalition, to her work as an immigration service coordinator with Family Focus, and eventually to her role as the associate director of Government Relations with the National Immigrant Justice Center.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Marisol Velez, known as Pinqy Ring. She is a rooted, revolutionary Puerto Rican emcee from Chicago, decolonizing minds as a rapper, educator, mentor, and speaker.”

“Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to honor the life of Daniel ``Pogo'' Pogorzelski, a proud Polish-American uplifting his heritage, community, and the city that I love. The son of Polish immigrants, Pogo's pride in his heritage and love for his community drive him to fight for a thriving, multiracial, and multicultural Chicago.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Carolina Carchi, an inspirational Latina who has gone above and beyond to help her ``classmates''; ``companeros de escuela'' succeed. Raised in West Humboldt Park by immigrant parents from Mexico and Ecuador, Carolina once again demonstrated her exceptional courage and perseverance as she was battling leukemia as a child.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the legacy of Paul Levy, a Chicagoan who cultivated unique spaces for artists and entrepreneurs to strengthen partnerships, build community, and thrive.”

“Mr. Speaker, I want to start by clarifying something that was said on the Record. The sponsor of the resolution is stating that Chuy Garcia has won his primaries with 100 percent of the vote.”

“Mr. Speaker, while we need to hold each other to high standards--we do--we also need to reform a system that too often makes it nearly impossible to ensure working people like Chuy Garcia, like me, and so many others here, are well represented in the face of moneyed interests set on their destruction.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor President April Verrett, a fighter for working people and a fierce advocate for worker power. She is at the forefront of building a labor movement that unapologetically fights for all workers, no matter where they live and no matter what they do.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Maria Correa, a constituent of the Illinois Third Congressional District, a ``poderosa''; ``powerful'' Latina who remembers her roots, and a community leader in the fight for immigrant rights.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Maria del Carmen Casimiro, who exemplifies the entrepreneurial spirit and the strength and resilience of immigrant communities. Since 1993, Maria's small business in Illinois' Third Congressional District has been an anchor for Latino families in the changing communities of Logan Square and Avondale.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life of Juan Lopez. (English translation of the statement made in Spanish is as follows:) I rise today to honor the life of Juan Lopez--a Honduran, a Catholic leader, a human rights defender, an environmental activist--a year after his brutal assassination.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of Karen Lewis, a tenacious organizer, a teacher, and truth-teller. Long before she became known to many as the president of the Chicago Teachers Union, or CTU, Karen dedicated 20 years to serving Chicago students as a chemistry teacher including at Lane Tech College Prep High School in Illinois' Third.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life and the legacy of Marion Stamps, a Chicago civil rights icon and tenant organizer. Marion moved to Chicago in 1963 at a time when public housing residents were denied the full measure of dignity that they deserved.”

“Mr. Speaker, of course I rise in opposition to H.R. 275. Before I get into the conversation of the bill that we are debating today, I want to respond to this whole thing about transparency that I continue to hear my colleagues talk about.”

“Mr. Speaker, last week, I joined Representative Chuy Garcia, Representative Jonathan Jackson, and Representative Danny Davis at the ICE Processing Center in Broadview to investigate ICE's inhumane and unlawful detention of immigrant families and our constituents.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank the Congressman for his comments. That is democracy. Today we are talking about how we preserve democracy under the circumstances that we are living in.”

“Masked, plainclothes officers have been entering communities and abducting people to process them for deportation. This is extremely dangerous for several reasons. The first is the risk of confusion for those being detained and arrested, as well as for bystanders.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank the Congresswoman for her leadership, for her integrity, and for her principled leadership in times such as this. We are so grateful for her.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank the Congressman for his words. Mr. Speaker, I don't know about Congressman Johnson, but perhaps in Georgia or in other parts of the country this may be happening.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 519 introduced by Congresswoman Kelly Morrison and the Minnesota delegation. I join my colleagues in condemning the attack that took the lives of Speaker Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and wounded Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate a creative designer, community cultivator, and artist--my constituent, Denise Ruiz. Denise is a queer Boricua from the Humboldt Park community of Chicago and is the founder and director of The Honeycomb Network, a community empowerment space proudly calling Barrio Boriken home.”

“Mr. Speaker, in this Puerto Rican and Immigrant Heritage Month, I rise to recognize one of Chicago's own, Justina Machado, a celebrated actress and proud ``daughter,'' ``hija'' of Chicago's northwest side.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate an educator, a force for justice, an unapologetic champion of our Chicago communities, and my friend, Stacy Davis Gates. Stacy is a high school social studies teacher, a South Sider, a wife, and a mother.”

“Putting Chicago's children at the center of everything she does, she has worked to build a collective of community, and she has elected to create opportunities for our communities, at times confronting corporate and charter interests head-on.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my friends and constituents, Madeline Talbott and Keith Kelleher, for a lifetime of labor organizing, community solidarity, and deep love. Madeline Talbott spent 37 years building ACORN and Action Now with thousands of dues-paying members, helping to found the Fight for $15 in Chicago: a campaign that grew nationally and eventually brought $15 an hour to over 22 million workers across the country.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate my constituent from Wheaton, Victor Gomez, for his achievement as one of 2025 Illinois State Teachers of the Year. An educator in East Leyden High School, Victor Gomez is a passionate teacher, who for 6 years has transformed the lives of his students.”

“Mr. Speaker, fascism always demands a public enemy. Through lies and scapegoating, the Trump administration has tried to make immigrants the enemy. They have tried to convince us that the problem isn't their abuses of power or the unchecked greed of multinational corporations but it is immigrants.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate longtime Chicago leader, organizer, and my dear friend, Amisha Patel, for her nearly three decades of civic engagement and community organizing.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today during National Fair Housing Month to honor Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, my constituent, my friend, and the former 35th Ward alderman, for his legacy of leadership to realize safe, affordable housing for all.”

“Mr. Speaker, in commemoration of National Fair Housing Month, I rise to recognize my constituent, affordable housing resident, and community advocate, Deborah Suggs. For over 50 years, Deborah has called home the Marian Park Apartments, a Wheaton affordable housing community serving seniors and families.”

“I had the pleasure of meeting Deborah at one of my townhalls, where I saw firsthand her passion to fight for herself, her family, her community, and our district.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to oppose the SAVE Act. The bottom line is that the SAVE Act suppresses the votes of women; Black, Brown, and indigenous people; veterans; and working-class Americans.”

“Mr. Speaker, I take to the floor today to raise the alarm for the people of Illinois' Third Congressional District. Today, I am standing here for the 197,569 people, including 94,806 children and 22,000 seniors, whose Medicaid is at risk of being taken from them.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Kennedy) for his comments. Mr. Speaker, I have the opportunity and honor to serve with the gentleman on the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.”

“Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the comments of Congresswoman Tlaib. The gentlewoman is absolutely right. Our constituents do, in fact, deserve better. As I go back to the district and I look at the emails and the phone calls that are coming through, our constituents are asking: What are you doing to defend me?”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank the Congresswoman for her remarks. She is absolutely right. Our constituents deserve better. I will talk a little bit about what is at stake.”

“As I am wrapping up, I will say that there are many reasons to be concerned, but it is also important to remember that there are reasons to celebrate.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate Women's History Month by uplifting my dear friend, a powerful organizer, Erendira ``Ere'' Rendon. Ere has dedicated her life to fighting for the dignity and liberation of immigrant communities.”

“At a time of unserious efforts to establish English as the official language of the United States, I rise today to celebrate my constituent, Angelica Garcia Santos, in a language proudly spoken in Illinois' Third Congressional District. (English translation of the statement made in Spanish by Mrs.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate Women's History Month and to celebrate the rich contributions of Ukrainians in Illinois-03 by uplifting my constituent, Dr. Mariya Dmytriv-Kapeniak, for her work to honor our shared humanity.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today as we celebrate Black History Month to uplift two of my constituents and pillars of the Hanover Park community, Eva and Herb Porter.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate Black History Month by uplifting Chicago's own urban historian, the one, the only Shermann ``Dilla'' Thomas. Dilla reminds us that our past can teach us something important about our present.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to uplift Black History Month by celebrating my constituent, a lifelong teacher and a local historian in DuPage County, Ms. Glennette Tilley Turner.”

“Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to honor Rich Kohng, assistant vice president for civic engagement at Illinois Third's own North Park University, for his lifelong commitment to civic justice and civil rights.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a dedicated educator and my constituent from Bensenville, Illinois, Laura Avila-Peterson. Laura's commitment to fostering civic engagement ensures that her students are prepared to be active, informed participants in our democracy.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and the legacy of Jose ``Cha Cha'' Jimenez, a beloved community organizer and activist, founder of the Young Lords, and one of the architects behind Chicago's original Rainbow Coalition.”

“Mr. Speaker, I thank the Congressman for yielding me time. Mr. Speaker, it is hard to keep myself composed when I hear people speak their hypocrisies that actually generate profits for them when they talk the way they do and then also use the word ``God'' somehow in their speech.”

“Madam Speaker, today, I rise to honor a powerful force in the fight for justice, equality, and true democracy, the Illinois Poor People's Campaign. In one of the wealthiest nations in the world, the Poor People's Campaign dares to believe that poverty can be eradicated.”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Pastora Emma Lozano of the United Lincoln Methodist Church in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood. Born in Texas and later making Chicago her home, Pastor Lozano's lifelong commitment to advocacy has left an undeniable mark on our communities and our Nation.”