[House Hearing, 117 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]




 
                          THE RISE IN VIOLENCE
                     AGAINST MINORITY INSTITUTIONS

=======================================================================

                                HEARING

                               BEFORE THE

                   SUBCOMMITTEE ON CRIME, TERRORISM,
                         AND HOMELAND SECURITY

                                 OF THE

                       COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY

                     U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                    ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS

                             SECOND SESSION

                               __________

                      THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2022

                               __________

                           Serial No. 117-56

                               __________

         Printed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary
         
         
         
         
         
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]         
         
         


               Available via: http://judiciary.house.gov
               
               
               
               
               
                            ______

             U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE 
48-066                  WASHINGTON : 2022 
              
               
               
                       COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY

                    JERROLD NADLER, New York, Chair
                MADELEINE DEAN, Pennsylvania, Vice-Chair

ZOE LOFGREN, California              JIM JORDAN, Ohio, Ranking Member
SHEILA JACKSON LEE, Texas            STEVE CHABOT, Ohio
STEVE COHEN, Tennessee               LOUIE GOHMERT, Texas
HENRY C. ``HANK'' JOHNSON, Jr.,      DARRELL ISSA, California
    Georgia                          KEN BUCK, Colorado
THEODORE E. DEUTCH, Florida          MATT GAETZ, Florida
KAREN BASS, California               MIKE JOHNSON, Louisiana
HAKEEM S. JEFFRIES, New York         ANDY BIGGS, Arizona
DAVID N. CICILLINE, Rhode Island     TOM McCLINTOCK, California
ERIC SWALWELL, California            W. GREG STEUBE, Florida
TED LIEU, California                 TOM TIFFANY, Wisconsin
JAMIE RASKIN, Maryland               THOMAS MASSIE, Kentucky
PRAMILA JAYAPAL, Washington          CHIP ROY, Texas
VAL BUTLER DEMINGS, Florida          DAN BISHOP, North Carolina
J. LUIS CORREA, California           MICHELLE FISCHBACH, Minnesota
MARY GAY SCANLON, Pennsylvania       VICTORIA SPARTZ, Indiana
SYLVIA R. GARCIA, Texas              SCOTT FITZGERALD, Wisconsin
JOE NEGUSE, Colorado                 CLIFF BENTZ, Oregon
LUCY McBATH, Georgia                 BURGESS OWENS, Utah
GREG STANTON, Arizona
VERONICA ESCOBAR, Texas
MONDAIRE JONES, New York
DEBORAH ROSS, North Carolina
CORI BUSH, Missouri

         AMY RUTKIN, Majority Staff Director and Chief of Staff
              CHRISTOPHER HIXON, Minority Staff Director 
                                 ------                                

        SUBCOMMITTEE ON CRIME, TERRORISM, AND HOMELAND SECURITY

                    SHEILA JACKSON LEE, Texas, Chair
                    CORI BUSH, Missouri, Vice-Chair

KAREN BASS, California               ANDY BIGGS, Arizona, Ranking 
VAL DEMINGS, Florida                     Member
LUCY McBATH, Georgia                 STEVE CHABOT, Ohio
MADELEINE DEAN, Pennsylvania         LOUIE GOHMERT, Texas
MARY GAY SCANLON, Pennsylvania       W. GREGORY STEUBE, Florida
DAVID CICILLINE, Rhode Island        TOM TIFFANY, Wisconsin
TED LIEU, California                 THOMAS MASSIE, Kentucky
LOU CORREA, California               VICTORIA SPARTZ, Indiana
VERONICA ESCOBAR, Texas              SCOTT FITZGERALD, Wisconsin
STEVE COHEN, Tennessee               BURGESS OWENS, Utah

                     KEENAN KELLER, Chief Counsel 
                    JASON CERVENAK, Minority Counsel
                    
                            C O N T E N T S

                              ----------                              

                      Thursday, February 17, 2022

                                                                   Page

                           OPENING STATEMENTS

The Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee, Chair of the Subcommittee on 
  Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security from the State of Texas     2
The Honorable Burgess Owens, a Member of the Subcommittee on 
  Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security from the State of Utah.    25
The Honorable Jerrold Nadler, Chair of the Committee on the 
  Judiciary from the State of New York...........................    32
The Honorable Andy Biggs, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on 
  Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security from the State of 
  Arizona........................................................    45

                               WITNESSES

Dr. Seth G. Jones, Senior Vice President, Harold Brown Chair and 
  Director of the International Security Program and 
  Transnational Threats Project, Center for Strategic and 
  International Studies
  Oral Testimony.................................................    49
  Prepared Statement.............................................    51
Dr. David K. Wilson, President, Morgan State University
  Oral Testimony.................................................    56
  Prepared Statement.............................................    58
  Supplemental Material..........................................    74
Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker, Colleyville, Texas
  Oral Testimony.................................................    79
  Prepared Statement.............................................    82
Dr. Demetrick Pennie, Retired Police Sergeant, Dallas Police 
  Department
  Oral Testimony.................................................    88
  Prepared Statement.............................................    90
Mr. Pardeep Singh Kaleka, Executive Director, Interfaith 
  Conference of Greater Milwaukee
  Oral Testimony.................................................    93
  Prepared Statement.............................................    95
Mr. Brandon Tatum, Former Tucson Police Officer, Founder and CEO, 
  The Officer Tatum
  Oral Testimony.................................................    98
  Prepared Statement.............................................   100
Ms. Margaret Huang, President and CEO, Southern Poverty Law 
  Center
  Oral Testimony.................................................   105
  Prepared Statement.............................................   107

          LETTERS, STATEMENTS, ETC., SUBMITTED FOR THE HEARING

Materials submitted by the Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee, Chair of 
  the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security 
  from the State of Texas, for the record
  An article entitled, ``Op-Ed: Terrorists Won't Stop Our 
    HBCUs,'' AFRO American Newspapers............................     8
  A joint letter enitled, ``TMCF, UNCF Released Joint Statement 
    on Recent Terrorist Threats to HBCUs and on FBI Breifing,'' 
    United Negro College Fund and the Thurgood Marshall College 
    Fund.........................................................    11
  Testimony from Farah Brelvi and Asifa Quraishi-Landes, Interim 
    Co-Executive Directors, Muslim Advocates.....................    13
  A letter from the American Council on Education................    19
  A letter from the National Action Network......................    22
An article entitled, ``Black Children's Lives Matter, Too,'' Wall 
  Street Journal, submitted by the Honorable Burgess Owens, a 
  Member of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland 
  Security from the State of Utah, for the record................    28
Statement from Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and National Director, 
  Anti-Defamation League, submitted by the Honorable Jerrold 
  Nadler, Chair of the Committee on the Judiciary from the State 
  of New York, for the record....................................    36
Materials submitted by the Honorable Andy Biggs, Ranking Member 
  of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security 
  from the State of Arizona, for the record
  An article entitled, ``Years of turmoil and complaints led the 
    Southern Poverty Law Center to fire its founder Morris 
    Dees,'' Washington Post......................................   126
  An article entitled, ``Why Is The Southern Poverty Law Center 
    Targeting Liberals?'' New York Times.........................   135
  An article entitled, ``The Reckoning of Morris Dees and the 
    Southern Poverty Law Center,'' The New Yorker................   139
  An article entitled, ``A Demogogic Bully,'' City Journal.......   151
  An article entitled, ``Has a Civil Rights Stalwart Lost Its 
    Way?'' Politico Magazine.....................................   162
  An article entitled, ``Something strange is going on at this 
    civil rights institution. It must be investigated,'' 
    Washington Post..............................................   171
  An article entitled, ``Arson determined for LDS church fire in 
    Arizona,'' Deseret News......................................   174
  An article entitled, ``Cromwell PD: Bullet holes found in local 
    church could be connected to Southington shooting 
    incidents,'' WTNH............................................   176
  An article entitled, ``Jefferson County church shooting: Teen 
    missionary playing basketball shot multiple times, suspect at 
    large,'' AL.com..............................................   177
  An article entitled, ``Gunman opens fire at Nevada church, 
    killing one,'' CNN...........................................   179
  An article entitled, ``Syracuse Latter-day Saint chapel 
    defaced, vandalized,'' Gephardt Daily........................   181
An article entitled, ``2020 Third-Highest Year on Record for 
  Antisemitic Incidents in Pennsylvania.'' Philadelphia Anti-
  Defamation League, submitted by the Honorable Mary Gay Scanlon, 
  a Member of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland 
  Security from the State of Pennsylvania, for the record........   198
Materials submitted by the Honorable Ted Lieu, a Member of the 
  Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security from 
  the State of California, for the record
  A letter to Attorney General Garland and FBI Director Wray, 
    dated February 4, 2022.......................................   218
  A letter from the American Council on Education, dated February 
    14, 2022.....................................................   220
Materials submitted by the Honorable Andy Biggs, Ranking Member 
  of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security 
  from the State of Arizona, for the record
  An article entitled, ``Cori Bush says she won't stop saying 
    `defund the police'' despite pressure from other Democrats,'' 
    The Hill.....................................................   228
  An article entitled, ``Rep. Jeffries on his fight to ban police 
    chokeholds & activists' push to defund law enforcement,'' CNN   230
  An article entitled, ``Jerry Nadler Thinks the NYPD Budget 
    Should Be Cut, and He's Getting Ready if Trump Disputes 
    Election Results,'' West Side Rag............................   231
  An article entitled, ``Candidate Profile: Mondaire Jones For 
    Congress,'' Patch............................................   236
Materials submitted by the Honorable David Cicilline, a Member of 
  the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security 
  from the State of Rhode Island, for the record
  Statement from the Sikh Coalition..............................   246
  A letter from the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education 
    Fund.........................................................   251
Materials submitted by the Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee, Chair of 
  the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security 
  from the State of Texas, for the record
  An article entitled, ``Text messages of Ahmaud Arbery's killers 
    contained racist slurs, prosecutor claims,'' Associated Press   260
  A letter to Attorney General Garland and Director Wray, dated 
    February 3, 2022.............................................   265
  An article entitled, ``Two of the men convicted of killing 
    Ahmaud Arbery used racist slurs in messages, a witness 
    testifies at their federal hate crime trial,'' CNN...........   267

                  ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS FOR THE RECORD

Response to questions from Seth G. Jones, Senior Vice President, 
  Harold Brown Chair, and Director of the International Security 
  Program and Transnational Threats Project, Center for Strategic 
  and International Studies, submitted by the Honorable Cori 
  Bush, Vice-Chair of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and 
  Homeland Security from the State of Missouri, for the record...   276
Response to questions from Margaret Huang, President and CEO, 
  Southern Poverty Law Center, submitted by the Honorable Cori 
  Bush, Vice-Chair of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and 
  Homeland Security from the State of Missouri, for the record...   278
Response to questions from David K. Wilson, President, Morgan 
  State University, submitted by the Honorable Cori Bush, Vice-
  Chair of the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland 
  Security from the State of Missouri, for the record............   279


                          THE RISE IN VIOLENCE

                     AGAINST MINORITY INSTITUTIONS

                              ----------                              


                      Thursday, February 17, 2022

                        House of Representatives

        Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security

                       Committee on the Judiciary

                             Washington, DC

    The Subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10:06 a.m., via 
Zoom, Hon. Sheila Jackson Lee [Chair of the Subcommittee] 
presiding.
    Present: Representatives Jackson Lee, Nadler, Bass, 
Demings, McBath, Dean, Scanlon, Cicilline, Lieu, Cohen, Biggs, 
Tiffany, Fitzgerald, and Owens.
    Staff Present: John Doty, Senior Advisor and Deputy Staff 
Director; Arya Hariharan, Chief Oversight Counsel; David 
Greengrass, Senior Counsel; Moh Sharma, Director of Member 
Services and Outreach & Policy Advisor; Jacqui Kappler, 
Oversight Counsel; Cierra Fontenot, Chief Clerk; Keenan Keller, 
Chief Counsel; Mauri Gray, Deputy Chief Counsel; Natalie 
Knight, Counsel; Veronica Eligan, Professional Staff Member/
Legislative Aide; Jason Cervenak, Minority Chief Counsel for 
Crime; Ken David, Minority Counsel; Andrea Woodard, Minority 
Professional Staff Member; Kiley Bidelman, Minority Clerk; and 
Carter Robertson, Minority USSS Detailee.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Good morning. The Subcommittee will come 
to order.
    Without objection, the Chair is authorized to declare 
recesses of the Committee at any time.
    Again, good morning to everyone, and welcome to today's 
hearing on The Rise in Violence Against Minority Institutions.
    I would like to remind Members that we have established an 
email address and distribution list to circulate exhibits, 
motions, or other written materials that Members might want to 
offer as part of our hearing today. If you would like to submit 
materials, please send them to the email address that has been 
previously distributed to your offices, and we will circulate 
the materials to Members and staff as quickly as we can. Your 
vital information is important to the historical record of this 
Committee hearing.
    I would also ask all Members to please mute your 
microphones when you're not speaking to the hearing's business. 
This will help prevent feedback and other technical issues. You 
may unmute yourself anytime you seek recognition.
    I now recognize myself for an opening statement.
    Today's hearing on the rise in violence against minority 
institutions will continue this Subcommittee's inquiry into 
domestic terrorism and investigate the rise in attacks directed 
against minority institutions and places of worship across the 
Nation.
    For too many years now, every ethnic group in the United 
States has been touched by the increase in domestic terrorism 
and hate crimes, many in the tragic form of mass shootings. I 
know that if I opened up this moment to Members, each of my 
Members on this Committee might cite some incident in their 
community.
    Just recently, in Harris County, northeast Atascocita and 
northwest Cypress, anti-Semitic and racist messages were posted 
at the doors of homeowners. It's everywhere.
    These tragedies and their circumstances are all too 
familiar to each of us: The shooting spree at a Walmart in El 
Paso, Texas, which left 22 dead and 24 more injured; the 
rampage of Philadelphia's Tree of Life synagogue, where 11 
people were killed; the racist attack on the Sikh Temple of 
Wisconsin, which left six people dead; the brutal murder of 
nine worshippers in the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal 
Church in Charleston, South Carolina; three Muslim college 
students executed in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, supposedly 
over parking but tinged with hostility to the young people's 
look; and the spa shooting in Atlanta that killed eight people, 
including six women of Asian descent. In each instance, the 
perpetrator had previously exposed--espoused racist and xeno-
phobic beliefs against minorities.
    Last year, this Subcommittee held a hearing on the rise of 
domestic terrorism in America to discuss the surge of White 
supremacy and right-wing extremism and to discuss Federal law 
enforcement's failure to address domestic terrorism and acts of 
violence driven by racially motivated hate and, of course, 
animus toward religious minorities.
    It appears that trends have not changed and the rise in 
violence continues. Once again, we watched in horror on January 
15 of this year as a gunman stormed into a synagogue, this time 
in Colleyville, Texas, taking four people hostage and holding 
them for almost 12 hours. Miraculously and, in part, due to 
training the congregation received following other anti-Semitic 
attacks, those who were held hostage managed to escape, 
including under the leadership of their rabbi.
    Then, as Black History Month began, more than 20 
historically Black colleges and universities across the country 
became the targets of repeated bomb threats, even starting as 
early as January, which paralyzed these vital institutions of 
higher education, disrupting learning by forcing them to 
suspend classes, striking fear in the hearts of young students, 
faculty and staff, parents and the communities that surround 
and support them, reopening wounds of these--of those who 
recall the threats, bombings, burnings, and lynchings of the 
not-too-distant past. We have to take these threats to young 
people and institutions of learning, minority institutions, 
very, very seriously. Because what is a threat can become 
devastation tomorrow. What is a threat today can become 
devastation tomorrow?
    The threats which began in January, including at Prairie 
View A&M University, not far from my district in Prairie View, 
Texas, intensified in frequency in February, and the number of 
schools targeted grew in number by the day. Howard University, 
which sits not far from this Nation's capital, have received at 
least five bomb threats in the past 2 months, the most recent 
being communicated on Monday. This is unacceptable.
    At least one caller claimed to be affiliated with a violent 
neo-Nazi group known to have participated in the racist Unite 
the Right rally in Charlottesville in 2017, which resulted in 
the barbaric death of Heather Heyer. Both the FBI and ATF are 
currently investigating the bomb threats, as they should, which 
limits the amount of information we can receive or discuss. 
However, we do know these crimes are being investigated as 
racially motivated, and we look to soon having full 
investigations by both the FBI and the ATF.
    Threats of violence and intimidation against minority 
institutions are intended to incite fear and anxiety among 
diverse communities, are deeply rooted in the fabric of the 
United States history. Let it be very clear that attacks on 
students and institutions are attacks on communities and 
families and surrounding areas.
    In the turbulent years of post-civil war reconstruction, at 
least 2,000 Black people were lynched, along with thousands who 
were harassed, beaten, and threatened simply because they chose 
to live as they should as free men and women. When 
reconstruction ended, southern States regained control of their 
governments and enacted Jim Crow laws that legalize 
discrimination, with many elected officials being Members of 
the Ku Klux Klan, making White supremacy the law of the land.
    During this same period, Chinese immigrants endured hateful 
acts of racism as White workers begin to see them as 
competition first for gold and later for scarce jobs. Racism 
and xenophobia against Chinese Americans, Asian Americans led 
to the Chinese Exclusion Act in 1882, which banned Chinese 
laborers from entering the United States for 10 years and 
prohibited Chinese immigrants already here from becoming 
citizens. By 1924, the United States had taken steps to shut 
down nearly all immigration from Asia and to enact a quota 
system that severely restricted immigration from eastern and 
southern Europe.
    In the 1920s and 1930s, the Klan maintained its anti-Black 
doctrines, added to its vile rhetoric anti-Jewish, anti-
Catholic tenets, all in the name of White supremacy and racial 
purity. The Klan maintained a strong foothold in politics and 
continued harassing and killing African Americans with 
impunity. According to the Equal Justice Initiative, more than 
4,084 racially motivated lynchings occurred in 12 southern 
States between 1887 and 1950.
    As African Americans struggled for equal rights under the 
law, the Klan murdered and threatened civil rights workers, 
bombed churches, and beat and spat upon nonviolent protesters, 
like Congressman John Lewis and the Freedom Riders. By 1975, 
Klan Members had bombed almost 70 buildings in Georgia and 
Alabama, burned 30 Black churches in Mississippi, murdered 10 
people in Alabama.
    Sadly, the views and acts of hate committed by White 
supremacists reverberate throughout American history. We still 
hear their echoes today as men holding tiki torches march and 
chant, ``Jews will not replace us.''
    When Members of the Proud Boys, a far-right organization 
identified by the Southern Poverty Law Center as a hate group 
and classified by the FBI as having White nationalist ties, 
burned Black Lives Matter flags in front of two historically 
Black churches in the Nation's capital, we remember the burning 
crosses placed in yards as warnings.
    When young Black scholars are threatened with the 
possibility of bombings, we remember four little girls who died 
in their church, the 16th Street Baptist Church, in Birmingham 
was bombed in 1963.
    These racist beliefs of the past are taking hold and, 
again, threatening our places of refuge and safety, such as 
HBCUs, churches, synagogues, and temples, which renewed fervor 
in the new age. We cannot allow this to continue.
    Extremist ideology is not abstract danger. It harms 
Americans from a wide swath of backgrounds, including our 
frontline law enforcement officers, and we never know when or 
where it will strike again. We salute their service, especially 
those who made the ultimate sacrifice in keeping our 
communities safe from domestic extremist terrorism, and we're 
reminded of January 6th and the brave law enforcement officers 
who stood the guard to protect us, to protect the United 
States, and protect the citadel of democracy.
    FBI Director Christopher Wray declared that 2019 was the 
deadliest year for domestic extremist violence since the 
Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. In 2020, the FBI Uniform Crime 
Reporting Program reported 8,263 hate crimes, including 11,129 
offenses. Of these incidents, 62 percent were motivated by 
racial or ethnic bias, 20 percent were motivated by bias 
against persons' sexual orientation, 13 percent were motivated 
by victims' religion.
    However, the FBI's reporting of hate crimes is thought to 
be a severe undercount since it relies on local law enforcement 
to voluntarily submit data. We must do better to collect the 
data and Act upon it. The Federal government possesses vast 
statutory authorities and resources to prevent attacks, 
prosecute those who commit them, fortify targeted institutions 
from further attacks, and arm citizens with the knowledge of 
how to protect themselves. Yet, we are failing the American 
people who do not do more to face this threat.
    The bipartisan Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act, of which 
I'm a cosponsor, is one measure that would strengthen the 
Federal government's effort to respond to domestic terrorism. 
This legislation would authorize the Department of Homeland 
Security, Department of Justice, and the FBI to analyze, 
investigate, monitor, and prosecute domestic terrorism jointly, 
promote information sharing among Federal law enforcement 
agencies, and take preventative measures focusing Federal 
resources on the most significant threats.
    I look forward to hearing from our distinguished guests, 
Witnesses who will speak directly to the continuing violence, 
threats of violence, and trauma being inflicted upon minority 
communities across this country. Fear cannot be an option in 
this Nation. Healing must be. We must bring people together, 
and we must pass legislation here in the United States Congress 
to be signed by the President that helps to heal the Nation and 
protect the Nation as well from the scourge of domestic 
terrorism.
    I hope that our discussion today will lead us to solutions 
that address the deficiencies in our domestic terrorism 
strategy to keep all Americans safe. We must get to the bottom 
of racial antagonisms and as well as religious antagonisms and 
others that keep us separated.
    Without objection, I will submit into the record the 
following documents: An op-ed by our colleague, Congressman 
Kweisi Mfume entitled, ``Terrorists Won't Stop Our HBCUs.'' 
Representative Mfume is an alumnus of Morgan State and 
represents Morgan State which sits in his district. He has also 
served as Chair of the Board of Regents at the university for 
over a decade and has expressed to me his deep concern for the 
attacks on HBCUs and has really contributed in his request to 
this hearing. We thank him very much for his leadership, and we 
look forward to working with him even though he's not a Member 
of this Committee.
    A joint letter from the United Negro College Fund and the 
Thurgood Marshall College Fund; written testimony from the 
Muslim Advocates; a letter from the American Council on 
Education; a letter from the National Action Network.
    We'll have all of these submitted into the record, without 
objection.
    [The information follows:]



      



                     MS. JACKSON LEE FOR THE RECORD

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    Ms. Jackson Lee. I now recognize the gentleman from Utah, 
Mr. Owens, for his opening statement.
    Mr. Owens, welcome, and thank you very much.
    Mr. Owens. Thank you, Chair Jackson Lee, Chair Nadler, and 
Ranking Member Biggs. Thanks for the opportunity for me to 
share my statement this morning.
    I have to apologize in advance, I have to leave early, so I 
want to thank the Witnesses now for their participation.
    The violent crime rate in America is rising and that is 
simply not acceptable. Americans of all races, class, and 
social economic conditions have been affected. Too many 
Americans are scared and worried about their safety and that of 
their children, neighbors, and our law enforcement officers.
    So, while the increase in violence against historically 
Black colleges and universities, HBCUs, are concerning, and 
I'll add, the increase in violence against Asian Americans, 
Jewish Americans, and police officers are also concerning, it's 
puzzling to me that we as a Crime Subcommittee of the Judiciary 
Committee aren't doing more to examine this frightening 
increase in violent crime.
    My first point is that this overall rise in crime has 
killed or harmed more minorities and Black Americans than the 
unfortunate bomb threats at the HBCUs. According to a new study 
by the University of California, Davis, the recent rise in 
violent crime across the United States has been concentrated on 
low-income communities of color, which have also been--
disproportionately experienced the impact of school closures 
during this pandemic.
    To further illustrate this point that violence in America 
harms minority communities, I request unanimous consent to 
submit for the record a recent Wall Street Journal article 
entitled, ``Black Children's Lives Matter, Too,'' by Sylvia 
Bennett-Stone. Ms. Bennett-Stone is a Black mother whose 19-
year-old daughter, Krystal, was killed by a stray bullet in 
2004 as she made the fatal decision to stop and fill her car 
with gas. As Ms. Bennett-Stone says, too many communities 
throughout our Nation have become like war zones.
    [The information follows:]



      

                        MR. OWENS FOR THE RECORD

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    Mr. Owens. My second point, violent crimes is harming all 
classes of Americans throughout our country. In the last few 
years, hate and violent crimes have increased against African 
Americans, Asian Americans, and Jewish Americans. I must say at 
this point, something very concerning to me is that we're 
finding that a majority of Asian Americans attacks have been 
done by Black Americans. So, hate is hate no matter what color 
the perpetrator is, and we have to figure out a way to stop 
this.
    Overall, FBI data for 2020 points a 25 percent increase in 
murders from the previous year and the largest increase since 
the FBI began keeping these records in 1960. Quite simply, 
violent crime is spiking. Here are some headlines from the last 
48 hours highlighting this problem: ``New York City seeing 
spike in violence against Asian Americans,'' Yahoo News; ``35-
year-old woman stabbed to death in Manhattan apartment in 
seemingly random act,'' ABC News. By the way, the victim in 
this crime was an Asian American. ``Seattle mayor calls for 
more police with violent crime hitting highest in 14 
years:`Status quo is unacceptable,' '' FOX News. Again, it is 
no wonder that Americans of all races, classes, and 
socioeconomic situations are concerned.
    My third and final point is that the solutions to our crime 
problems will require input and help from across the board, 
including families, communities, and institutions of faith, but 
the solutions must include respect for our law enforcement 
officers. Instead of showing up for our law enforcement 
officers and solving recruitment and pay problems, we have 
Members of this Committee who have called for defunding the 
police.
    Here are a few statistics about the heroic efforts of our 
police officers. According to the FBI, 59 officers have been 
killed in the line of duty between January 1 and September 30 
of 2021. This marks a 50 percent increase in the number of 
police officers killed when compared to the same period the 
previous year.
    Again, according to FBI reports, records, nationally 60,105 
law enforcement officers have been assaulted while performing 
their duties in 2020. This represents an increase in 4,000 
assaults from the previous year. Just last month, January 2022, 
over 30 police officers were shot and five killed in the United 
States. This is a 67 percent increase from last January.
    Madam Chair, I repeat, the threats of violence at HBCUs are 
concerning, but we are ignoring the bigger problem. Congress 
must do its part in addressing the spike in crime. I therefore 
call on the Committee to hold hearings on the following topics: 
The correlation between defunding the police and the spike in 
violent crimes; the problems of law enforcement leaving the 
profession and violent attacks on police; and, finally, the 
number of children who were killed by violence in their 
neighborhoods. According to NPR, over 1,000 children were 
killed or injured by gunfire in 2021.
    As I've mentioned numerous times before this Committee, my 
dad taught at an HBCU, Florida A&M in Tallahassee, 40 years. 
I'm concerned about anything that negatively impacts our 
institutions of learning. This national crime spike is 
impacting every institution and families of every background. 
Unfortunately, poor, Black families are disproportionately 
bearing the brunt of this evil.
    I thank you, and I yield back.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. I thank the gentleman.
    Mr. Cohen. Madam Chair, may I ask my friend, Mr. Owens, a 
question--
    Mr. Owens. Yes.
    Mr. Cohen. --if he would yield?
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Cohen, would you--
    Mr. Owens. Yes, please do, uh-huh.
    Mr. Cohen. Thank you.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. --restrain so that we can allow Mr. Nadler 
to give his testimony?
    Mr. Cohen. I think it's pertinent that we ask this question 
at this point.
    Mr. Biggs. Madam Chair, a point of order? A point of order?
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Biggs.
    Mr. Biggs. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you. My point of 
order is this, we're in the opening statement phase of this 
Committee hearing. It's not appropriate for Members to then 
question other Members about their opening statements. If he 
wishes to--if the gentleman from Tennessee wishes to ask a 
question to Mr. Owens, I respect that. I know Mr. Owens is 
willing to answer that question. It would be more appropriate--
    Ms. Jackson Lee. A point of order, Mr. Biggs.
    Mr. Biggs. Thank you.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. All right. Mr. Cohen, if you would be kind 
to indulge us to allow the opening statements at this time.
    Mr. Cohen. I yield, but I don't--I yield.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you, Mr. Cohen.
    The Chair now recognizes the Chair of the Full Committee, 
the gentleman from New York, Mr. Nadler, for his opening 
statement.
    Chair Nadler. Thank you, Madam Chair.
    Domestic terrorism is at its highest level since the FBI 
began tracking it in 1994. Ten years ago, a domestic terrorist 
killed seven Sikh Americans in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Five years 
ago, militia members bombed the mosque in Bloomington, 
Minnesota. Last summer, a gunman killed six people of Asian 
descent at a spa in Atlanta. Last month, a gunman took five 
Jewish Americans hostage in their Texas synagogue. Just days 
ago, 17 of America's prized historically Black colleges and 
universities were locked down by bomb threats.
    Now, when we take stock of these horrific crimes and when 
we consider the impact of this violence on the survivors, it 
can be tempting to give way to despair. At base, domestic 
terrorism isolates us, not just by inflicting violence in our 
communities, but also by defining individuals who are members 
of those communities as ``other.''
    Domestic terrorists want to focus--force us into that 
frame, a narrative of us and them. That narrative has cost us 
so much in recent years. Recent events have also taught us a 
great deal. Among other lessons, when it comes to fighting back 
against this sort of violence, we are all in the fight 
together.
    Three of our Witnesses today are leaders in the communities 
I just mentioned, and I'm grateful they are here to share their 
experiences. By testifying today, you help to ensure that this 
Committee and the American people understand the unseen impact 
of domestic terrorism, of hatred on our families and 
communities. All of our panelists can speak to the strength of 
communities that have stood up to this violence, as well as to 
the millions of Americans affected by domestic terrorism and 
hate who are not represented here.
    As we examine the particular problem of violence directed 
at minority institutions, we would be wrong to assume that 
these incidents can be considered in a vacuum. Similarly, when 
studying these incidents, we should not be taken by the 
simplistic view that a crime was committed, that a culprit was 
caught, and that all is well. That is not how hate crime works.
    Domestic terrorism has a corrosive impact, not just on the 
survivors or the local community affected, but on minority 
communities across the country. Anyone who has experienced hate 
understands that acts of terror or hate-based violence are 
never limited to just one community or just one group of 
people. Those who have experienced such hate know it is only a 
matter of time until the perpetrators move on to another 
target, and the next target could be your family, your house of 
worship, or your neighborhood.
    Domestic terrorism invades our safe spaces and makes us 
feel like strangers in our own country. For communities that 
have been treated unfairly by law enforcement or by the 
government, the security measures designed to keep people safe 
can cause even more anxiety and the greater feeling of unease 
or otherness.
    Too many communities in recent years have felt the pain and 
fear of hate-filled violence. For many--hate-fueled violence. 
For many, it has deepened existing wounds that have developed 
over centuries of bigotry and hate directed at them.
    For example, Jewish Americans have experienced a 
generational trauma that is the legacy of thousands of years of 
anti-Semitism. Every anti-Semitic Act feels part of an ongoing 
story, and many other minority communities have a similar story 
to tell.
    Domestic terrorism is planned and carried out by groups and 
individuals who recruit by sowing distrust in our public 
institutions, spreading lies to divide Americans, and casting 
blame on minority groups. They target the spaces we should feel 
safest: Our houses of worship, our community pillars, and our 
places of learning.
    Though ideology and motivation differ from person to person 
and group to group, in 2020, White supremacists, extremists and 
militia members, and other violent far-right extremists were 
responsible for 66 percent of all domestic terror plots, and 
none of us should be shy about taking the fight to the worst 
perpetrators of these crimes.
    The threats facing minority institutions are varied and the 
solutions are complex. We must begin by understanding the 
challenges we face by examining a range of proposals to how 
best to respond.
    Last year, I was proud to join Congressman Brad Schneider 
in introducing H.R. 350, the Domestic Terror Prevention Act of 
2021. This legislation would require DOJ, DHS, and the FBI to 
create offices that would monitor, investigate, and prosecute 
cases of domestic terrorism, focusing their resources on the 
most pressing threats. I hope that this bill can be part of 
this solution.
    I thank the Chair for holding this very important hearing. 
I look forward to hearing from our Witnesses.
    Before I yield back, I ask unanimous consent that a 
statement from Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and National Director 
of the Anti-Defamation League, be entered into the record.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Chair, without objection, so ordered. 
Thank you very much for your opening statement.
    [The information follows:]



      

                      CHAIR NADLER FOR THE RECORD

=======================================================================


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    Chair Nadler. Thank you, and I yield back the balance of my 
time.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you. I thank the gentleman.
    I now recognize the Ranking Member, the gentleman from 
Arizona, Mr. Biggs, for his opening statement.
    Mr. Biggs. I thank you, Madam Chair, and I'm grateful that 
you're holding this hearing today.
    I want to express--I do express my gratitude to all the 
Witnesses who are here. We appreciate it. I look forward to 
hearing your important testimony today.
    Today's hearing is entitled, ``The Rise in Violence Against 
Minority Institutions.'' I think that's an important topic. I 
State clearly, unequivocally that placing bombs or making bomb 
threats or any threat of violence or violent Act against a 
historically Black college or university or any institution is 
unacceptable. It must be investigated, it must be prosecuted, 
and if warranted and after due process, an appropriate 
adjudication made. These things I don't think anybody on this 
Committee, or hopefully not within the sound of my voice, would 
disagree with this.
    It is my understanding that the bomb threats that were 
recently made at historically Black colleges and universities, 
several of them, are actually being investigated now, and I am 
hopeful that those who were responsible will be identified and 
brought to justice. I think that's--if we're going to get a 
handle on this, you have to create the deterrent by bringing 
those folks in, and we want to deter further activity as well 
as punish those who were responsible for this.
    There are other issues related to violent crime, as my 
colleague from Utah has mentioned, in fact, as the Chair in her 
statement brought forth a very broad, contextual statement 
about violent crime in America.
    Just yesterday, I and my Republican colleagues sent the 
Chair a letter requesting that the Subcommittee hold a hearing 
to investigate the recent reports that ICE released an illegal 
alien with ties to terrorism from custody for the reason that 
he might catch COVID-19. Now, that's an outrageous thing, and 
this Committee should immediately hold a hearing on the matter. 
I call upon the chair and I look forward to working with the 
Chair to schedule that hearing as soon as possible.
    Now, when I turn my attention to today's hearing, we see 
crime rates, particularly violent crime rates, accelerating all 
over this Nation. During the last 2 years, the United States 
has seen a spike in violent crime, and some may directly 
attribute it to the COVID outbreak and responses to that, and I 
don't discount that, but let's consider the numbers.
    In 2020, the United States tallied more than 20,000 
murders, the highest total since 1995 and 4,000 more than in 
2019. Preliminary FBI data for 2020 points to a 25 percent 
surge in murders. This would be the largest single year 
increase since the agency published numbers--began publishing 
numbers in 1960.
    Despite the rises in crime, some on this committee, some of 
my colleagues across the aisle continue to push efforts to 
defund the police. Just last week a Member of this Subcommittee 
doubled down on calls to defund the police, and this follows 
the Chair stating in 2020 that there should be substantial cut 
to the New York City Police budget.
    So, when you cut police budgets, is there any surprise that 
violent crime escalates? In New York City, the NYPD's data 
shows that overall crime rate rose 11.2 percent in October 2021 
compared to October 2020. This jump in crime continues after 
New York City defunded its police department by $1 billion, and 
now they're talking about restoring some of that.
    In Los Angeles County, homicides increased 23 percent from 
555 in 2020 to 683 in 2021. The increased homicide rate 
occurred after Los Angeles defunded its police department by 
$150 million.
    No one should be surprised when we have prosecutors who 
refuse to prosecute crimes that violent crimes goes up. Just 
one example, and there are many, but this is one example, comes 
from San Francisco, where District Attorney Chesa Boudin 
assumed office in January 2020. Boudin announced, soon after 
his election, that he was not going to seek the death penalty 
in any future cases. He would not pursue three strikes cases 
and he would deemphasize the prosecution of drug cases and 
property offenses.
    Since January 2020, gun violence and homicide have 
dramatically increased in San Francisco, where homicides have 
increased 31 percent during Boudin's first year in office. 
According to San Francisco Police, vehicle break-ins increased 
between 100 and 750 percent, depending on the neighborhood. So-
called smash-and-grabs at retail stores have become a 
commonplace.
    Is anyone surprised when we release dangerous criminals 
awaiting trial that violent crime goes up? As we all know in 
Waukesha, Wisconsin, Darrell Brooks was released on a $1,000 
bond after running over a woman with a vehicle. He was released 
on bail, despite having a lengthy criminal history, including a 
charge for aggravated battery, an outstanding warrant in Nevada 
after skipping bail for a sex-related crime as well.
    On November 21, 2021, Brooks drove his car through a 
Christmas parade injuring over 50 individuals and killing six, 
one of whom was an 8-year-old child. Brooks now faces eight 
counts of intentional homicide, six counts of hit and run 
involving death, two felonies for skipping bail, two counts of 
domestic abuse charges, and 61 counts of recklessly endangering 
safety for each injured person at the Christmas parade.
    Some of you may be asking what all of this has to do with 
today's hearing about violence against minority institutions. 
The answer is simple. When you defund the police and enact 
policies to embolden criminals, it often is the minority 
communities that pay the most egregious price. Shooting 
homicides are concentrated in underserved, impoverished 
minority communities, and I argue that hits hardest on the 
families that have lost loved ones as a result of violent 
crime. The social institution of the family remains the most 
important in society, but it is damaged by violence.
    I mentioned smash-and-grab stores--at retail stores. It's 
not isolated to San Francisco. It is often occurring all over 
the country, many times to minority owned businesses. Couple 
this with the mayhem and destruction, minority owned businesses 
suffered as a result of the 2020 riots, and these small 
businesses continue to struggle to get by, especially nested in 
the context of the COVID pandemic.
    If we really want to tackle this issue, I suggest we need 
to make sure that our police are adequately funded. We need to 
remove dangerous policies that allow violent criminals to hurt 
innocent victims. I think that we need to continue to talk 
about the nature of community, the nature of family, the nature 
of individual responsibility to make sure that all of us are 
seeking to have strength in our communities, peace in our 
communities, that each person may actually achieve and fulfill 
the full measure of the creation that God gave to each one of 
them.
    That's my hope. I hope we come away from this hearing with 
shared perspectives. I know that we won't agree on everything, 
but I hope that we find the common areas that we can agree on 
and work to make this country better for every person in the 
country.
    With that, Madam Chair, thank you, and I yield back.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. I thank the Ranking Member, and just a 
moment for the Chair's prerogative. Let me thank both Mr. Owens 
and Mr. Biggs for their presentation. Let me be very brief to 
emphasize to our Members, who I welcome to this hearing, that 
this hearing should not be diminished. The crisis of attacks on 
institutions out of racist attitudes and anti-religious 
attitudes and anti-Semitic attitudes should not be diminished.
    You may be somewhat premature in your statements as it 
relates to this Committee's agenda. I would also say that there 
are diverse opinions on this Committee and in this Congress. 
Some in this Congress believe January 6th was a tourist event, 
others do not.
    We know that the President and Vice President are viewers 
of strong support of law enforcement, as there are Members on 
this Committee who have those views, and we respect all those 
views. This is a crucial and important and lifesaving effort to 
protect those who have been subjected to bomb threats across 
this Nation, and I for one don't think we should stand for it 
and be silent about it.
    We will go forward with this hearing, but we appreciate 
your comments, and you should look forward to hearings that 
will be addressing those questions as well.
    It is now my pleasure to introduce today's Witnesses.
    Dr. Seth G. Jones is a Senior Vice President at the Center 
for Strategic and International Studies. He leads a bipartisan 
team of over 50 resident staff and a network of nonresident 
affiliates dedicated to providing independent strategic 
insights and policy solutions that shape national security.
    He also teaches at Johns Hopkins University's School of 
Advanced International Studies and the Center for Homeland 
Defense and Security at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School. He 
also served as the representative for the commander, U.S. 
Special Operations Command, to the Assistant Secretary of 
Defense for Special Operations.
    Dr. David K. Wilson, the tenth President of Morgan State 
University, has more than 30 years of experience in higher 
education. Dr. Wilson holds four academic degrees: A Bachelor 
of Science in political science and a master of science in 
education from Tuskegee University, a master of education in 
educational planning and Administration from Harvard 
University, and a doctor of education in Administration 
planning and social policy also from Harvard. He came to Morgan 
State from the University of Wisconsin, where he served as 
chancellor of both the University of Wisconsin Colleges and the 
University of Wisconsin-Extension.
    Rabbi Charlie Cytron-Walker has been the rabbi at 
Congregation Beth Israel in Colleyville, Texas, since 2006. He 
graduated from the University of Michigan in 1998, and attended 
Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion at its 
Jerusalem and Cincinnati campuses, receiving his rabbinical 
ordination in 2006 and a Master of Arts in Hebrew letters in 
2005. He is a past President of the Southwest Association of 
Reformed Rabbis and serves on the steering Committee of Peace 
Together.
    Dr. Demetrick ``Tre'' Pennie holds a doctor of education in 
higher education from Texas Tech University. He earned a 
bachelor's in criminal justice from Midwestern State University 
and a master's in counseling from Prairie View A&M University 
in 2006. He served 4 years in the U.S. Army, is a 22-year 
retired police sergeant with the Dallas Police Department, and 
currently serves as President and executive director at the 
National Fallen Officer Foundation.
    Mr. Pardeep Singh Kaleka is a former police officer who is 
currently the Executive Director of the Interfaith Conference 
of Greater Milwaukee. He is also a clinician who works as a 
deradicalization interventionist to help individuals and 
families to help them exist the life of violent extremism. I 
think it is to resist the life of violent extremism. He 
cofounded Serve2Unite following the murder of his father during 
the attack at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin. His organization 
works to build positive coalitions among communities and to 
address conflict and reconciliation through a public health 
lens.
    Brandon Tatum served 6 years at the Tucson Police 
Department and is the author of ``Beaten Black and Blue: Being 
a Black Cop in an America Under Siege.'' Mr. Tatum received a 
Bachelor of Art from the University of Arizona, is currently 
working toward a master's from Grand Canyon University. As a 
police officer, he became a SWAT operator, field training 
officer, general instructor, and a public information officer.
    Margaret Huang has been an advocate for human rights and 
racial justice for nearly 3 years--three decades, and currently 
serves as the President and CEO of the Southern Poverty Law 
Center. She previously served as the Executive Director of 
Amnesty International USA. She received a Master of 
International Affairs from Columbia University and a Bachelor 
of Science in foreign service from Georgetown University. She 
currently sits on the board of directors for the Progressive 
Multiplier Fund.
    We are delighted to have all of you as Witnesses today. We 
welcome you as distinguished Witnesses and important fact 
Witnesses, and we thank you for your participation.
    I will begin by swearing in our Witnesses. I ask our 
Witnesses to turn on your audio so that you can be loud and 
clear, and make sure that I can see your face and your raised 
hand while I administer the oath.
    Do you swear or affirm under penalty of perjury that the 
testimony you're about to give is true and correct to the best 
of your knowledge, information, and belief, so help you God?
    Can I hear the Witnesses, please?
    Let the record show the Witnesses answered in the 
affirmative, each and every one.
    Thank you so very much.
    Please note that your written testimony will be entered 
into the record in its entirety. Accordingly, I ask you to 
summarize your testimony in 5 minutes. To help you stay within 
that timeframe, there is a timing light on your screen. When 
the light switches from green to yellow, you have 1 minute to 
conclude your testimony. When the light turns red, it signals 
that your 5 minutes have expired.
    I do want to acknowledge to our Members that those who will 
be giving victim testimony will be given a little time to be 
able to finish, I think you should know that, out of courtesy 
to the victimization that they experienced. So, thank you very 
much for understanding.
    It is now my time to recognize Dr. Jones, again, for 5 
minutes. You may begin, Dr. Jones.

                   TESTIMONY OF SETH G. JONES

    Mr. Jones. Thank you very much, Chair Jackson Lee, Ranking 
Member Biggs, and distinguished Members of the Subcommittee. My 
opening remarks are going to be divided into three sections. 
The first outlines the contours of domestic terrorism and the 
database that I'll be talking a little bit about, the second 
will actually focus on those trends, and the third are some 
implications for consideration for Congress.
    Let me begin with the first area. What I'm going to focus 
on is domestic terrorism, defined by the deliberate use or 
threat of violence by non-state actors to achieve political 
goals and to create a broad psychological impact. Violence and 
the threat of violence are critical components of the 
definition we use in our CSIS database, and this definition is 
largely consistent with the official U.S. Government definition 
of domestic terrorism under 18 U.S. Code 2331.
    In focusing on domestic terrorism, I do want to highlight 
that we're not including all aspects of hate speech or hate 
crimes. Those are obviously deeply concerning, but what we're 
just focusing on is violence and the threat of violence. Our 
data set includes, I think, all cases, the universe of cases 
that we have identified since the early 1990s.
    We have worked consistently over the years with the Federal 
Bureau of Investigation, where I served briefly several years 
ago: The Department of Homeland Security, Department of 
Defense, and the National Counterterrorism Center. So, we've 
shared our data and had useful back and forth.
    So, let me get briefly to the second area, which is trends. 
The years 2020-2021, according to our data set, had the highest 
numbers of domestic terrorist attacks and plots in our data 
set. In 2021, there were 73 attacks and plots in the United 
States. It was slightly down from 2020.
    This broad recent trend in domestic terrorist activity 
began around 2014, so from 2014-2021, there have been an 
average of about 31 fatalities per year. The number of 
fatalities in 2021 are kind of an average number. We've seen 
years with much larger numbers of fatalities, including 1995, 
Oklahoma City; 2001, September 11. The numbers of fatalities 
certainly are concerning.
    Terrorist attacks and plots spanned 18 States, including 
Washington, DC. Many of these events took place in metropolitan 
areas, but these cities were dispersed across the U.S. I think 
it's worth highlighting some of the targets and tactics as 
well.
    The types of weapons we're seeing used varied somewhat by 
perpetrator. For White supremacists and like-minded attackers, 
we saw a primary focus on firearms; for anarchists, 
antifascists, and others, we saw a primary focus on melee 
weapons, so knives and blunt instruments. So, some variation in 
the types of weapons that domestic terrorists are using.
    In terms of targets, what's interesting is, according to 
our data, government, military, and police locations and 
personnel are the most frequently targeted by domestic 
terrorist attacks, regardless of perpetrator orientation. We do 
see very concerning attacks against minorities and minority 
institutions, not just the attack this year, but also a number 
of them: The Patrick Crusius murder of 22 people focused 
predominantly on immigrants at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas; in 
2019, the Robert Bowers attack at the Tree of Life synagogue in 
Pittsburgh in 2018. So, we have seen a very concerning focus on 
a range of individuals based on their racial, ethnic, 
religious, political makeup, including misogynistic attacks as 
well in the U.S.
    So, very briefly, on implications particularly for 
Congress, I continue to believe that the U.S. Government needs 
to provide much more comprehensive data on terrorist attacks, 
plots, and I support the FBI and other agencies providing 
annual or biannual reports to a range of committees in the U.S.
    Then lastly, strongly support continuing to support State, 
local, and other enforcement agencies, so they're appropriately 
resourced to identify and respond to attacks ``left of boom.''
    So, with that, I will conclude my opening remarks, and 
obviously happy to take questions later.
    [The statement of Mr. Jones follows:]
    
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    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you very much, Dr. Jones.
    Dr. Wilson is now recognized for 5 minutes.

                  TESTIMONY OF DAVID K. WILSON

    Mr. Wilson. Thank you very much, Madam Chair Lee, Ranking 
Committee Member Biggs, other Members of the Subcommittee. I'm 
David K. Wilson, the 10th President of Morgan. Morgan is an 
8,500-student high-research university here in Baltimore, 
Maryland.
    Madam Chair, the purpose of this gathering today is to 
address the bomb threats made to Morgan and to more than 20 
other HBCUs this year alone. I have to start by saying that as 
a young Black boy growing up in rural, segregated Jim Crow 
Alabama on a sharecropping plantation who was not permitted to, 
of course, attend school full time until I was in the seventh 
grade, I have experienced firsthand this type of trauma and 
this type of racial violence, if you will. This is why I have 
devoted my entire career to providing educational leadership to 
campuses, to enable them to nurture the intellectual growth of 
Black students and not to stifle it.
    It is so unfortunate that there is so much hatred in our 
Nation today being held by those who are trying to simply 
prevent HBCUs from educating a disproportionate number of Black 
students. Yes, the vast majority of these more than 100 
institutions have been around since the mid-19th century, and 
from their inception they have just simply been targets of 
domestic terrorism.
    I have outlined in my written testimony example after 
example, dating back to the destruction of Wilberforce 
University in Ohio, of LeMoyne-Owen College in Tennessee, of 
Wiley College in Texas, of my own alma mater, Tuskegee 
University, that saw 75 Klansmen march through the campus and 
through town, if you will, because they did not want Black 
physicians to be at the John A. Andrew Hospital ministering to 
the needs of veterans. The list goes on and on and on. Even at 
my own national treasure Morgan State University, our students 
had to fight, fight just to integrate shops right across the 
street from us. They too were victims of domestic terrorism for 
years, but they did not give up.
    Members of the Subcommittee, this is not 1865, it is not 
1923, it is not 1962; this is 2022, but these domestic acts of 
terror persist across HBCUs. Yes, there is much too much 
ignorance, much too much misunderstanding that exists today 
about these historic institutions in American higher education.
    Our HBCUs are not some radical terror camps which 
apparently is wrapped up in the distorted imagination of 
domestic terrorists. Our campuses are not places, if you will, 
where our students are taught to hate this country or to engage 
in activity to destroy the fabric of our democracy.
    Quite the contrary, HBCUs have always had their foundation, 
if you will, as one that prepares, inspires, motivates, and 
encourages our students to live out the American Dream, to 
become the engineers and the elected officials--many of you 
attended our institutions--to become the doctors, the lawyers, 
the architects, the engineers, and the judges. That's what our 
institutions have been about, and we have been about that 
because we too believe very strongly in the American Dream. We 
believe that we contribute the talent to make this country more 
competitive internationally.
    So, I just humbly ask the Nation today: Is this not the 
heart of what a truly functioning, inclusive democracy should 
be? Well, I believe the answer is clear to all who is willing 
to see it. Our HBCUs are part and parcel of America. We are 
national treasures. We deserve the utmost veneration, we 
deserve the utmost respect, and we deserve the utmost 
protection.
    So, as I bring my remarks to a close, I would simply like 
to say that HBCUs have created the Black middle class in this 
country. We will always be the truth tellers. We will always be 
the innovators. As we come through this bitterly polarized era 
of American history, our campuses are fully prepared to be the 
single group of institutions, if need be, that can ultimately 
keep our democracy from an untimely and unwarranted demise.
    We will not let anything cloud our focus. Our students, if 
you will, deserve to feel safe and be safe. We will never, 
ever, ever be deterred from what our ancestors gave their blood 
for, and it was to ensure that these campuses were holding high 
the ideals in the U.S. Constitution and educate students to 
grow the future and, indeed, lead the world.
    Thank you, Madam Chair.
    [The statement of Mr. Wilson follows:]
    
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    Ms. Jackson Lee. Dr. Wilson, thank you for that powerful 
testimony. Your time is expired, but your message continues to 
reverberate. Thank you so very much for your testimony today.
    It is my privilege to now yield 5 minutes to Rabbi Cytron-
Walker. Rabbi, you're recognized for 5 minutes, and welcome.

            TESTIMONY OF RABBI CHARLIE CYTRON-WALKER

    Rabbi Cytron-Walker. Chair Jackson Lee, Vice-Chair Bush, 
Ranking Member Biggs, I want to thank you for the opportunity 
to share my thoughts with you this morning. I'm honored to have 
Chair Nadler join us this morning, and I am pleased to see 
Representative Demings, who was so gracious when I testified 
for the first time ever just last week before her Subcommittee.
    I believe and often teach that Judaism is filled with 
contradictions because life is filled with contradictions, and 
today I am filled with mixed and even contradictory emotions. 
On the one hand, I am truly horrified that in our society today 
religious leaders must devote themselves to security training. 
How to harden our facilities is both a necessary conversation 
and an anathema to religious ideals of hospitality and loving 
the stranger.
    At the same time, I'm filled with gratitude. I'm grateful 
to be here. This feeling hasn't gone away. I'm grateful to be 
anywhere. I'm grateful to be anywhere because a terrorist chose 
a Jewish synagogue, because he thought the Jews control the 
world. He thought that he could take Jews hostage, call up an 
influential rabbi, and she would snap her fingers and give him 
what he wanted. He truly believed the Jews control the media, 
the Jews control the government, the Jews control everything.
    Tragically, this is just one aspect of anti-Semitism that 
has been so harmful to the Jewish people throughout history. 
Over the centuries, entire Jewish communities have been 
destroyed because people believe that Jews drank the blood of 
non-Jewish children. Entire Jewish communities have been 
destroyed because people believe that Jews wanted to torture 
communion wafers. Entire Jewish communities have been destroyed 
because people believe that Jews were responsible for all the 
bad things in life, that we are the root of all evil.
    As absurd as it sounds, every single outrageous lie about 
the Jewish people has been shared in various forms by people 
from all walks of life in recent years. It's sad, it is 
ridiculous, and it is maddening that I was taken a hostage 
because of it. Far too many Jews have died because of it. This 
anti-Semitism isn't distant history. This is a month ago. This 
is now. This is years of increased harassment and attacks 
against my people.
    The potential of an anti-Semitic incident is what led me to 
attend around half a dozen security related seminars over the 
past 6 years. It's a part of why we developed a security action 
plan and strengthened our relationship with local law 
enforcement. It motivated me to apply for and receive a grant 
from the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, for which we have 
such appreciation.
    The chances that something could have happened were so 
small. Even so, we knew it was a possibility and we wanted to 
be as prepared as possible. Thankfully, we had taken so many 
constructive steps, and yet I don't know if anyone could have 
ever been fully prepared.
    On the morning of January 15, when the gunman arrived, it 
was me and one volunteer in the building. I was running late. I 
was finishing my preparations, and in the midst of trying to do 
a million different things, I had a stranger come to the door. 
I have, of course, thought about that moment to great deal. I 
welcomed a terrorist into my congregation. I live with that 
responsibility.
    It's important for you to understand that this was not a 
matter of me opening the door just because I value hospitality. 
I do value hospitality. The Torah scroll that we read from each 
week was gifted to our congregation thanks to hospitality. I 
strive to live that value every day. Like so many 
congregations, CBI strives to be a house of prayer for all 
people, and at the same time, I also value security.
    In a small congregation I was rabbi and tech support and 
gatekeeper. When our Member asked if I knew the person at the 
door, I was distracted, but I still did a visual inspection and 
after a brief word, he appeared to be who he said he was, a guy 
who spent a night outside in sub 40-degree weather. After 
talking with him more, his story added up.
    Of course, I was wrong. I was so wrong. I share this 
because despite all the plans and funding and courses, I still 
opened the door. Because of all the plans and funding and 
courses and literally dozens of small things that just happened 
to go right, to go our way, we were able to escape.
    No one, no one should fear gathering or pray--no one should 
fear gathering to pray or celebrate or mourn or connect in 
their spiritual home. No one should experience such hatred and 
violence. No one should experience anything remotely like what 
I had to.
    In 1947, back in 1947, perhaps the leading rabbi of that 
time, Rabbi Stephen S. Wise told the Senate Labor Committee 
that equality of opportunity for Jews can be truly secured only 
in a genuinely democratic society. He continued: Accordingly, 
we seek to fight every manifestation of racism, to promote the 
civil and political equality of all groups and persons in 
America, and to support measures designed to safeguard civil 
liberties to build a better America.
    We regard ethnic discrimination directed against any group 
as a single and indivisible problem as one of the most urgent 
problems of a democratic society. Nothing more gravely 
threatens American democracy today than the fact of its 
incompleteness. Democracy to be secure must be complete, and 
incomplete democracy is an insecure democracy.
    Members of the Committee, I would add that the converse is 
equally true. An insecure democracy is an incomplete democracy, 
and too many communities in our democracy today feel insecure. 
Tragically, we live in a world where houses of worship need 
protection, where too many of all backgrounds are victims of 
hate crimes. I believe that both Democrats and Republicans want 
to change that reality.
    Changing our reality all at once is too much to ask. That's 
why Rabbi Tarfon taught that we aren't obligated to complete 
the work, but we can't neglect it. I'm not here today asking 
you to complete the work, but we need your help. Please hear 
the diverse group of witnesses who have come before you today. 
We are all struggling. We all need practical and intelligent 
solutions to help all of us feel safe and secure.
    It is truly an honor for me to speak with you today. I'm so 
grateful for the opportunity.
    [The statement of Rabbi Cytron-Walker follows:]
    
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    Ms. Jackson Lee. Rabbi, again we embrace you, we mourn with 
you, and we hear your call to action. Thank you for your 
testimony today, equally powerful.
    It's my pleasure now to recognize Dr. Pennie for 5 minutes. 
Dr. Pennie, welcome.

               STATEMENT OF DR. DEMETRICK PENNIE

    Mr. Pennie. Thank you, Chair Jackson Lee, Chair Nadler, and 
Ranking Member Biggs, and other distinguished Members of the 
Committee for allowing me to speak.
    On behalf of the National Fallen Officer Foundation, I am 
honored to appear before this Committee to speak on a topic 
that's so near and dear to my heart, protecting our police and 
our communities. As a law enforcement advocate, I speak on 
behalf of the hundreds of police families across this Nation 
that have lost loved ones in the line of duty when I say enough 
is enough.
    According to FBI statistics in 2021, 73 police officers 
were shot and killed in the line of duty, the highest number of 
police officers murdered in 20 years. The FBI also noted that 
the rise of anti-police sentiment has led to a rash of attacks 
on police. Last year alone, there were 86 premeditated ambush-
styled attacks on police officers, in which 26 of those 
officers died.
    These tragedies can no longer be ignored or tolerated in 
our civilized society. So, why is this happening? Well, one 
reason why they're happening is because of widespread online 
radicalization, the indoctrination of individuals online using 
negative content to incite violence and create division.
    So, because of this, not only have we had America's 
citizens travel abroad to join extremist groups like ISIS, some 
have even been radicalized here at home and have taken up arms 
against our police and the American people. On July 7th, 2016, 
the world watched in horror as a lone gunman ambushed police 
officers in downtown Dallas, Texas, during a Black Lives Matter 
rally.
    During that attack, 12 police officers were shot, and five 
of them were killed. The investigation found that the shooter 
was radicalized online and was obsessed with police-involved 
shootings in the Black community.
    In 2017, I filed a Federal lawsuit against Facebook, 
Google, and Twitter for failing to manage their platforms, and 
allowing domestic extremist groups to recruit, radicalize, and 
incite violence against our police. That case is known as 
Pennie v. Twitter.
    Although the companies admitted to knowing that their 
platforms were being used for nefarious activities, the courts 
were reluctant to move against the immunity protections offered 
under section 230 of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, and 
nothing was ever done. Five years later, the problem has 
worsened, and our police officers have seemingly been caught in 
the middle of corporate profitability and government 
limitations.
    In fact, we continue to see these platforms being used in 
the same manner facilitating attacks on our law enforcement and 
our government itself. During the George Floyd riots of 2020, 
social media was being used not only to facilitate the rise, 
but also to help radical groups organize and fundraise off that 
narrative.
    The riots led to more than $2 billion in property damage, 
several hundred police officers being injured, and 19 citizens 
being killed, among them were 77-year-old St. Louis police 
captain, David Dorn, whose murder was broadcast live on 
Facebook. It was reported that more than 17,000 people were 
arrested during the George Floyd riots, but to this date, only 
very few prosecutions have been reported.
    In fact, the tide was seemingly turning in the opposite 
direction as progressive D.A.'s across this country are now 
prosecuting police officers for responding to those same riots. 
Unfortunately, today, there appears to be more advocacy in the 
court system for the criminals than there are for the victims.
    Last year, 27 of our Nation's largest cities have saw a 
drastic increase in homicides. I'm from one of those cities, 
Houston, Texas. Since 2019, Houston has seen a 73 percent 
increase in homicides. In fact, over the last year, judges in 
Houston-Harris County have released 113 defendants charged with 
capital murder back onto our streets, and those same offenders 
have contributed to more than 150 murders while out on bond.
    It's no secret that America has become unsafe on the heels 
of social justice movements, bail reform initiatives, and 
intentional efforts to defund our police across the country. 
Their policies have not reduced crime. To the contrary, they've 
augmented crime, especially in our Nation's inner-city 
communities.
    The solution is simple to solve the crime problem. We have 
to keep our violent criminals behind bars, punish bad behavior, 
and hold social media companies accountable.
    [The statement of Mr. Pennie follows:]
    
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    Ms. Jackson Lee. Witness time has expired. The Witness time 
has expired.
    Thank you very much.
    Mr. Pennie. Thank you.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. --for your testimony.
    Mr. Kaleka, you're recognized now for 5 minutes.

               STATEMENT OF PARDEEP SINGH KALEKA

    Mr. Kaleka. Thank you so much, Chair Nadler, Chair Jackson 
Lee, Ranking Member Biggs, and distinguished Members of the 
Subcommittee. My name is Pardeep Singh Kaleka. I'm a former 
police officer, educator, and trauma clinician. I currently 
serve as the Executive Director of the Interfaith Conference of 
Greater Milwaukee. Today, however, I come before you as a 
member of the Sikh-American Community, whose life was forever 
changed by the 2012 assault on the Gurudwara, our Sikh house of 
worship, in Oak Creek, Wisconsin.
    On Sunday, August 5th, 2012, my family was on our way to 
the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin when my daughter confessed that 
she had forgotten her notebook for Sunday school. I admit that 
I was a little bit irritated, but we returned to our house, 
found that notebook, and headed back out again.
    When we arrived at the Gurudwara, the parking lot was 
filled with police vehicles. My immediate concern was for my 
mother and father who were always the first to arrive and 
prepare for services. While in the parking lot, I received a 
call from someone inside the building who told me that my 
father had been shot. That conversation was interrupted by a 
call from my mother who whispered that she was hiding with 
others inside the building.
    My concern turned into urgency to find out if our loved 
ones were safe or not. Eventually, it was confirmed that my 
father, Satwant Singh Kaleka, was among six worshippers who was 
killed at that attack, along with Paramjit Kaur Saini, Sita 
Singh, Ranjit Singh, Prakash Singh, and Suveg Singh Khattra. A 
seventh individual, Baba Punjab Singh, passed away in 2020 due 
to complications from the injuries he sustained that day. If my 
daughter had not forgotten her notebook, we could have been 
also killed.
    Rather than turning inward in anguish and anger, we chose 
to believe that this country, its ideals, and its promise are 
worth fighting for. For example, not long after we began a 
campaign with the Sikh Coalition to ensure that anti-Sikh 
sentiment would be tracked and reported to the FBI.
    Once the Bureau began cataloging anti-Sikh hate crimes, 
their reports have shown what every Sikh-American already 
knows, that we are among the top five most frequently targeted 
faith communities in America.
    When we learned that the shooter, Wade Michael Page, had 
extensive ties to a White supremacist movement, I befriended 
Arno Michaelis, a former White supremacist and the founder of 
the Milwaukee chapter of the hate organization that Wade Page 
belonged to.
    Over the past 10 years, Arno and I have traveled to 
countless cities, consulted with local, State, and Federal law 
enforcement agencies, and spoke to thousands of people on how 
to prevent hate in their own communities. I also work as a de-
radicalization clinician with Parents4Peace and as a consultant 
with Not in Our Town.
    These organizations are on the front lines providing 
counseling and treatment plans to engage entire communities and 
help individuals turn away from hate.
    Despite these best efforts, hate continues to threaten too 
many minority communities in our country. A Black church was 
attacked in South Carolina, synagogues were assaulted in 
Pennsylvania, California, and Texas. Masjids have been targeted 
for vandalism, arson, and violence across the country. 
Individuals from these communities and still others are 
increasingly targeted in hate crimes year after year after 
year.
    All of this fear and hate and danger comes from a toxic mix 
of racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and White 
supremacy. As we meet this challenge, I urge you to ensure that 
the policies that you implement to protect marginalized 
communities cannot be turned against us.
    Post-9/11 surveillance and profiling erode a trust within 
law enforcement and law enforcement that harmed Black and Brown 
families, all while White supremacist extremism went largely 
unchecked. We must shift our framework to counter extremism 
from one fixated on security and law enforcement to one rooted 
in public health and community engagement.
    We must further invest in our communities and empower the 
advocates who are leading at the local level. We have to de-
radicalize those who are entrenched in hate and invest in 
early-stage interventions that work to cure the pain that often 
precedes acts of violence in our society.
    Our way to do this is by ensuring that what is taught in 
our schools is both accurate and represents a rich tapestry 
that makes up America. Another way is to hold social media 
platforms accountable for violent hate speech. There are also 
bills that Congress could pass today. The Justice For Victims 
of Hate Crimes Act would instantly improve how we charge hate 
crimes. We can then further improve our data tracking around 
these crimes. Passing the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act 
would more effectively combat White supremacist extremism. 
Finally, we can do better to facilitate access to Federal 
resources like the nonprofit security grant to protect sacred 
places like our Gurudwara in Oak Creek.
    We can do all these things and more, but only if we are 
willing to work together in the pursuit of prevention and 
safety through a whole-of-society approach. As a father who is 
fighting to make the world a better place for my children, that 
is my wish. That is why, above anything else, I am here.
    Thank you so much.
    [The statement of Mr. Kaleka follows:]
    
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    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you for your testimony and your 
important message. It is important that we hear it.
    Mr. Tatum, you're now recognized for 5 minutes.

                   STATEMENT OF BRANDON TATUM

    Mr. Tatum. I just want to, first, say thank you Jerry 
Nadler, Sheila Jackson Lee, Ranking Member Biggs for having me. 
This is a true honor and a testimony in our country that we've 
come a long way, and that a person of color like myself have 
access to speak, and I think it speaks volumes at how far we've 
come, and I think that it's time in our country that we don't 
turn back to the things that many want to retain in our 
history. We should keep continue to move forward.
    First, things that I want to say is that it's very 
important for us to be able to define acts of terrorism and be 
able to investigate them thoroughly. We have to understand that 
there's a lot of hoaxes that have been perpetuated over the 
last several years, and I want us to, in addition to, focusing 
on the hate crimes, and I think that every single person that 
is here understands that it is a problem in our country and 
that we need to address it vigorously. We also need to identify 
the influx of people who are coming out and creating situations 
and lying about hate crime and violence in certain situations 
to gain traction in their particular movement.
    There has been a tremendous increase--like I said, it's 
written in my statement, and we have seen it happen all too 
often on college campuses. Unfortunately, many of them are 
perpetuated by minorities in our communities. Young ladies who 
have made statements that there were writings and racial slurs 
perpetuated on campus, some nooses and other things that are 
associated with hate crimes, come to find out that they were 
all perpetuated by the person who reported it. So, in addition 
to our research, and our efforts to combat terrorism in 
institutions, we also need to look at and help verify whether 
these things are true or not.
    I want to talk about another issue that will speak to the 
very grounds of people in our country who have been 
demoralized. I think that it's the lack of retaining God in our 
consciousness. I really would love to see people who are in 
leadership in our government continue to retain God, and not 
throw God away and Act as if God wasn't the help and the 
foundation of this country.
    The reason that we are where we are today in our country is 
because the Judeo-Christian values that we have retained. I 
think that people have been demoralized in their apt to commit 
these crimes and be hateful towards one another because the 
absence of God.
    I'll add as well, when it comes to law enforcement, many 
people who are on this Zoom call right now have been 
perpetuating hatred towards law enforcement officers and has 
led to the police officers being dejected. They are not 
engaging. They are not being proactive, and many of these 
efforts, or many of these lack of efforts on behalf of police 
officers who are scared to do their job, fearful of terrorist 
activity against them, and also fearful a judgment--prejudgment 
and being called a racist and working in a racial institution, 
these officers are not able, or they are not proactively 
policing, which will deter a lot of these actors from going 
into synagogues, from acting out in violence.
    The ones who are standing in the gap for us to protect our 
citizens are the police officers. When you diminish them, they 
are no longer going to be there. They're retiring, they're 
quitting, and we cannot get enough officers in the field to 
combat this. I want everybody on here to understand that, that 
our law enforcement officers are incredibly important if we are 
going to fight against this influx of terrorism and terrorist 
behavior. The last thing that I will say is that we do need to 
also include the institution of the family.
    Many of these minority communities are falling apart and we 
see a lot of degradation because of the institution of the 
family that's under attack. So, in addition to the college and 
universities and other Black businesses, I also think we should 
focus on the Black family in inner-city minority families, 
because the stronger the family becomes, the better prepared 
they are, the better people are put out into society, and the 
better equipped they are in not becoming victims in the society 
that we live in.
    I want to first end this by saying thank you. I really 
appreciate the opportunity to have my voice being heard, and 
I'm here to answer any questions subsequent to my testimony. 
Thank you.
    [The statement of Mr. Tatum follows:]
    
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    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you.
    Ms. Huang, you are recognized for 5 minutes.

                  STATEMENT OF MARGARET HUANG

    Ms. Huang. Good morning, Chair Jackson Lee, Ranking Member 
Gibbs, Chair Nadler, and all the Members of the Subcommittee. 
My name is Margaret Huang, and I'm President and CEO of the 
Southern Poverty Law Center and the SPLC action fund.
    The recent bomb threats against almost two dozen 
historically Black colleges and universities, or HBCUs, over 
the last 2 weeks have been deeply impactful, threatening a 
collective sense of security and safety.
    These hateful threats, apparently timed to coincide with 
the beginning of Black History Month, are reminiscent of this 
country's long history of White supremacist attacks on Black 
leaders and Black churches, attacks with the explicit goal of 
terrorizing Black communities to assert control.
    Of the 107 HBCUs in the United States, 44 are located in 
the five States of the Deep South where the Southern Poverty 
Law Center has significant presence and a commitment to social 
justice. These States are Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, 
and Mississippi.
    These threats impact both our community and our staff. We 
have staff members who are proud HBCU alum, and many others who 
have children and family members who are students, faculty, or 
graduates of HBCUs.
    It's been almost 60 years since the Ku Klux Klan members 
bombed the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, 
killing four schoolgirls, yet we are still grappling with 
hateful acts targeting racial and religious minorities. At a 
time when many States are passing laws restricting teaching 
about racism, it is clear that more needs to be done to teach 
our young people the unvarnished truth about American history, 
both the good and the bad.
    To help the Subcommittee understand the context for the 
racist attacks on the HBCUs, my written testimony describes how 
the current extremist threat is being mainstreamed, how to 
prevent hate crimes, and address online radicalization, the 
importance of evidence-based violence prevention initiatives, 
and the need to ensure that our students have digital literacy 
skills taught in an inclusive, educational environment.
    When our educational and religious communities are targeted 
for violence and vandalism, it is imperative that the needs of 
survivors are prioritized. Our instinct is to increase physical 
security for our houses of worship and community institutions, 
higher walls, more cameras, more bullet-proof glass, and even 
armed guards, but these steps must be coupled with a commitment 
to fund, research, and prevention initiatives to address hate 
and the long-term contributions to extremism.
    Passage of the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act would be a 
key advance in this effort. Press reports indicate that the FBI 
has focused its investigation on six radicalized tech savvy 
youth suspects. One of the young offenders reportedly claimed a 
connection with the Atomwaffen Division, a terroristic, Neo-
Nazi organization that we have been tracking over the past 5 
years.
    The possible connection to extremist groups underscores the 
needs for parents, educators, and communities to be attuned to 
signs of radicalization, and to help inoculate young people 
against being drawn into an extreme and hateful path. We're 
pleased that the DOJ, DHS, and the FBI have launched criminal 
investigations into this case, but more must be done.
    My testimony includes several policy recommendations for 
Congress and the Administration.
    First, words matter. It's impossible to overstate the 
importance of elected officials and community and business 
leaders using their public platforms to condemn these threats 
to HBCUs and other communal institutions.
    Second, oversight matters. We appreciate the attention of 
this Committee, Congress, and the Biden Administration that you 
have devoted to addressing White supremacy and extremism in all 
forms. This must continue.
    Finally, investments matter. We urge you to make 
investments in countering disinformation, developing prevention 
strategies, and offering antibias education. Disinformation and 
conspiracy theories are galvanizing attacks on our democracy 
and government institutions. Teachers must be able to teach the 
full truth, including about the hard history of slavery, 
racism, and White supremacy in the United States.
    These investments can help secure a future in which all can 
gather, worship, and live free of terrorists and extremist 
threats in a Nation as good as its highest ideals. We look 
forward to working with you as you continue your focus to 
ensure our treasured HBCUs are safe spaces for all.
    Thank you, and I look forward to your questions.
    [The statement of Ms. Huang follows:]
    
    
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    Ms. Jackson Lee. Let me thank you so very much and all the 
Witnesses for their testimony. We will now proceed under the 5-
minute rule with questions, and I begin by recognizing myself 
for 5 minutes.
    Again, just a brief moment of Chair's privilege to indicate 
the cruciality and importance of this hearing and the Witnesses 
who have come here today to speak to the dangers that they have 
experienced should be the highlight of this hearing.
    As indicated, hearings regarding other issues are pending, 
and we will address those issues. Also, we'll make note that 
the Members that I know on this Committee are not the cause of 
violence against law enforcement officers, and I would take 
issue with any statements to that effect.
    Let me begin by saying to you, Dr. Wilson, and my time is 
short, but I do want to frame the danger of bomb threats to the 
psychic and the operation of a historically Black college where 
there has been generational trauma. If you can concisely give 
us that for the record, I want to make sure people understand 
that.
    Dr. Wilson, if you would, please.
    Mr. Wilson. Thank you, Madam Chair. Indeed, the 
psychological impact that the continuation of these threats is 
having on our young minds cannot be understated. Our students 
are here at Morgan and across the HBCU world are on the 
campuses when they first saw the murder of Trayvon Martin and 
they were 8 or 9 years old. Then following that, they saw a 
series of other individuals whose lives were cut down who also 
were in their age group, and who looked like them. Then, all of 
a sudden, you had the pandemic, and then George Floyd, and they 
were shutted out of these spaces for a year and a half, and we 
have the largest enrollment here in Morgan ever, because the 
students wanted to come to campuses where they could exhale, 
where they could actually reacquaint themselves with the kind 
of emotional well-being that the campus actually provides, and 
then all these bomb threats.
    You wouldn't believe just how taxed our counseling center 
and resources have been just to minister to the incredible 
needs of these students. It's off the chart. I don't mean to, 
in any way, move beyond and describe this, Madam Chair, in any 
way, but it actually is.
    We are seeing so many students who are almost coming to the 
brink, because they can't bear it anymore. As president, I have 
to say to them, this is not who we are. This is not our 
country. This is not our Nation. I have to really try and keep 
that together.
    Our faculty--I'm speaking in terms of Morgan--but it's the 
same whether it's [inaudible] or Howard or Morehouse or Spelman 
or North Carolina A&T.
    So, I hope the Committee will not take lightly the 
incredible psychological and emotional damage that these 
threats are perpetrating on our young lives.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Dr. Wilson, thank you.
    Dr. Jones, bomb threats can result in bombs and violence. 
Is that not true?
    Mr. Jones. That is true, yes.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. So, the idea of a more stronger Federal 
presence should be taken seriously, and bomb threats should not 
be taken lightly based upon your collective data and statistics 
about racism and anti-Semitism and other anti, Dr. Jones?
    Mr. Jones. Yes. Bomb threats, particularly when they 
involve an actual plot to conduct an attack or to threaten to 
conduct an attack, is a serious effort, and one that we would 
consider an Act of terrorism. That's the intent to terrorize a 
population and should be taken extremely serious for the 
reasons we just heard. That's the psychological impact.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you. The Nation should not stand 
ideally by when there is racism, anti-Semitism, bias against 
LGBTQ, gender bias, anti-Muslim, and anti-Sikh.
    Mr. Kaleka, my sympathies for the loss of your father, the 
injury of your fellow members of the Sikh community. I was very 
much aware of that as a member of the Homeland Security 
Committee and in Congress at that time. Tell me the terrorizing 
impact that comes from the hatred that was obviously generated 
against the Sikh community?
    Mr. Kaleka. Thank you so much, Congresswoman. Yeah, it took 
all of us and 10 years to try to heal from that, and I think 
that's the effect of communal trauma. We used to understand 
trauma and trauma-related disorders as being individual or 
something that you needed to go through by yourself.
    We're very much understanding it now to be communal, and 
these types of attacks, whether it's on law enforcement, 
whether it's on the Jewish community, this does have a type of 
communal traumatic effect, and it causes on everyone within 
those communities to heal from within and help the communities 
from outside to help those communities heal.
    So, we were blessed to be surrounded by great communities, 
great interfaith partners who helped us heal. So, we're still 
in the midst of that, and we're still concerned about our 
fellow Jewish brothers and sisters, our Muslim brothers and 
sisters, our law enforcement community, everyone. I think the 
heart of this goes to we need to prevent targeted violence 
against all these communities.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Let me just quickly go, Rabbi, and my 
fellow Texan, I welcome you again. I think the point that I 
want to really focus on with you as my last question, I really 
want to focus on that anti-Semitism and racism and all the isms 
can result into actual, physical violence. We're holding this 
hearing not for edification, but for the understanding that 
threats can result in physical violence.
    You lived it. You started in your testimony by saying 
you're grateful to be anywhere. Can you associate the attacks 
on the Jewish community and anti-Semitism, the rise of that, to 
actual violence and loss of life?
    Rabbi Cytron-Walker. Well, thank God, we, in our situation, 
I said at our healing service afterwards that we didn't have to 
say Kaddish, we didn't have to say the prayer for mourning. It 
was unbelievably--we're so fortunate on so many levels.
    Our words matter. We have seen this time and again, and its 
words, whether they are anti-Semitic. It doesn't matter the 
group that is targeted. We're in a situation that's--the more 
people get exposure to that negativity; the more people can 
pass it on.
    Everybody's not going to go and do a violent act, but if 
you have a larger pool of people, then you have a larger group 
of people that are going to take the next step towards 
extremism, and the next step towards extremism, and you're 
going to have a larger pool of people willing to actually do 
something horrible.
    When it comes to that idea that our words matter and that 
all of us bear responsibility, each and every one of us, from 
across the political spectrum, from every group, we need to be 
able to tone down the rhetoric. We need to be able to support 
one another. We're not enemies here. We're one Nation that are 
all trying to come together and solve our problems, and we've 
got big problems to solve, but so our words do matter because 
violence is not what any of us want to experience, but it 
absolutely can happen.
    Again, yeah. Thank you. I appreciate the question.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you. I thank you very much for your 
answers.
    Mr. Biggs, I recognize you now for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Biggs. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just want to make sure 
that everyone understands here. I don't think there's anybody 
on this Committee testifying as a Witness or here as a Member 
of Congress that is minimizing the threats to the HBCUs. I 
mean, there's no one here that isn't taking that seriously.
    I think we're talking about also, however, a broad context 
of all issues that we must take very seriously, and, so, I hope 
no one thinks that.
    I appreciate, Dr. Jones, and one of the things he talked 
about, because he said there's a broad range of racial, 
religious, and misogynistic attacks that take place. I can't 
help but remember my own--my own faith, my own denomination 
driven from five States and finally from New York to Ohio to 
Missouri to Illinois, and ultimately to the safety of the Rocky 
Mountain interwest--Intermountain West.
    I was just pondering this as we're preparing for this 
hearing. So, that persecution of my own people--now that's a 
long time ago. Then I look at the last three months, four 
months, and actually 10 years ago in my own community in 
Phoenix, one of our churches burned, vandalized. Then, I don't 
know what the motivations were for any of these next attacks 
I'll mention, but we need to be cognizant that this is 
happening and I think that's what this hearing does.
    So, in December of 2021, in Alabama at an LDS church, a 
shooting takes place by--on members of the church, a shooting 
in July of 2018, vandalism in Connecticut, shooting up a church 
in Connecticut in 2021, end of 2021. I believe it was December. 
Syracuse, Utah, 2021, vandalism of that church.
    This is happening against all groups that associate with 
one another, faith-based groups, religious groups, whatever it 
is.
    So, I think it's important for us to realize that and not 
rationalize any of this away. I think it's important to get 
that, but I want to ask Dr. Pennie and Mr. Tatum, in the summer 
of 2020, we saw a lot of rioting in the streets, resulting 
destruction, looting of small businesses in urban communities, 
in urban communities.
    What communities are most affected negatively by that type 
of activity? Let's go with you, Dr. Pennie, first, and then Mr. 
Tatum.
    Mr. Pennie. Yes, sir. Thank you so much. Look, this is what 
we need to make sure we clarify. When these policies are being 
passed to defund the police and narrative that are destructive 
to any society as a whole, you have to understand that our 
majority/minority communities are suffering the most, and we 
saw the same idea in the early 90s. I grew up in the 18th 
congressional district, which is the Chair's district, and I 
witnessed my own cousin get killed in front of me at the age of 
16.
    Those negative ideas create this same level of violence 
that we continue to perpetuate now during this time. Twenty-
something years later, there's no reason for us to continue to 
create this kind of divide, but the reality is as you have 
certain congressional leaders, certain leaders in our society 
that want to press this idea of defunding the police and 
segregating the police from their communities, all they're 
doing is making the people that live in these communities more 
and more victims. That's all they're doing is victimizing us 
over and over again.
    I'd like to say, just please consider that this is a 
reality for people that are actually in the inner-city. I'm in 
these communities every day. I don't just sit up here and talk. 
I'm in there every day, and I want to encourage you to come out 
there and meet with some of them, because this is real life, 
and these people are living it.
    Mr. Biggs. Thank you. Mr. Tatum.
    Mr. Tatum. I share the same sentiment being former law 
enforcement officer, and I've seen the rhetoric affect law 
enforcement across the country, and law enforcement officers 
aren't just White. So, there's minorities that work in law 
enforcement that feel the brunt of rhetoric, and I agree with 
the rabbi when he said that words matter.
    We have to stop being divisive. We can walk and chew gum at 
the same time. I believe that we can empower our law 
enforcement officers, we can fund them, we can support them, we 
can judge them fairly, and we will see a difference in the way 
police officers are patrolling our communities and they're 
keeping them safe.
    I'm thankful to God that our law enforcement officers are 
there when these instances of hate happen, so they can bring 
these individuals to justice and protect to see them be able to 
negotiate an individual out of murdering multiple people who he 
had hostage and taking him into custody without harm is 
impressive. I think that we want to see law enforcement 
officers participate in these certain situations. Also, I would 
argue that terrorism can happen within.
    There is interracial terrorism that we see in our country 
today, a lot of what Black violence are, what Black people see 
when they experience violence are within their own community.
    I grew up in Black communities and, to be honest, I was 
more afraid of other people who were Black who hated me, who 
wanted to kill me, who was involved in gang violence than I was 
of a White supremacist or someone of that nature.
    So, we do have to expand what we're saying, not diminish, 
but expand what we're saying to protect young Black people who 
are experiencing these same level of hate within their own 
community and also extend the olive branch to support law 
enforcement so that law enforcement officers are equipped to 
help and we can all be better for it.
    Mr. Biggs. Madam Chair, I see my time is expired. I would 
ask the Chair to--I have 12 articles that I know you aren't 
going to want me to read the titles of all 12, but I'd like to 
submit them into the record, and I will have my staff provide 
those to you right after the Committee hearing.
    [The information follows:]



      

                        MR. BIGGS FOR THE RECORD

=======================================================================


[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Biggs, you know that we welcome those 
articles. Without objection, so ordered.
    You're very kind to have them by list, and we thank you so 
very much for your questioning.
    At this time, I'm pleased to recognize the Chair of the 
Full Committee, Mr. Nadler for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Nadler.
    Chair Nadler. Thank you, Madam Chair.
    Dr. Jones, are extremists used in COVID-19 anxiety and the 
government's response to their strategic advantage? If they 
are, is it limited just to propaganda and recruitment, or are 
you also seeing it as a motivation for violent attacks?
    Mr. Jones. That's a great question, Mr. Nadler, and thanks 
for participating in the hearing.
    The data that we have shown that COVID-19 is certainly 
being used to motivate individuals to extremist beliefs. It's 
particularly helpful on the radicalization process. What we 
don't see a lot yet is evidence that is being used to actually 
commit domestic terrorist attacks, or plots, for that matter.
    So, radicalization definitely is that concerning, 
absolutely. We don't see it yet manifesting itself into 
actually attacks yet. The data does not yet show that.
    Chair Nadler. Thank you.
    Mr. Kaleka, you were very involved in your community's 
recovery from the Oak Creek tragedy, and you diligently worked 
on de-radicalization efforts, interfaith coordination, and law 
enforcement outreach.
    Given your background as a former law enforcement officer, 
what changes do you think law enforcement departments should 
consider so they are more responsive to domestic violent 
extremist threats against minority communities?
    Mr. Kaleka. Thank you, Chair Nadler. Yeah. When we think 
about March 2020 and what was going on at that time and the 
heightened tensions, we brought together community 
stakeholders, we brought together law enforcement officers, and 
the local activists to have conversations and meet one another.
    We've been continuing to provide bridges of dialogue of 
conversation, even if people didn't get along. Since that time 
that we've been healing and going into sort of de-
radicalization work, we have to get much further upstream. If 
you're waiting for somebody--and there's been numerous 
incidents--I can count three right now of ones that I know that 
we prevented from happening. Part of that was to get further 
upstream and not wait till the gunman or the suspect shows up 
to the synagogue, the Masjids, the Gurudwara, or the church.
    If we don't get further upstream, it's too late at that 
point. It's too late for law enforcement, unfortunately, at 
that point. I speak this as respectful of the capacity of law 
enforcement officers, but even law enforcement officers know 
that. We need to get much further upstream and stop it at the 
house. Stop it at the faith communities. Stop it with somebody 
who can say something at that point.
    Chair Nadler. Thank you. Rabbi Cytron-Walker, Deuteronomy 
says you must love the stranger for you were strangers in the 
land of Egypt. You let your attacker in because he told you he 
was hungry, and he spent the night in the cold. How does the 
concept of generosity to strangers shape your role as rabbi, 
and do you believe the threat of domestic terrorism might erode 
that identity?
    Rabbi Cytron-Walker. Oh, yes. It's my hope that it's--
first, thank you for the question, Chair Nadler, and that idea 
of love the stranger, care for the stranger is something that 
is of value that I continue to try to live. It's a part of who 
we are. I think that the threat of domestic terrorism, I think 
the threat against the Jewish community is very much, for many 
people, creating a sense of fear and concern and it is a real 
challenge.
    So, at the same time, the chances of a terrorist attack are 
so remote that I pray that we don't give in to that fear. I do 
believe that we have to be prepared. I think that all those 
security trainings were very important, but I still teach and I 
still preach love your neighbor. I still teach and I still 
preach that we need to care for the stranger. We need to 
embrace that value of hospitality that is so much a part of our 
tradition.
    Chair Nadler. Do you believe that fear of domestic terror 
attacks has affected how we all treat one another and if so, 
how?
    Rabbi Cytron-Walker. I think that, at least in my 
community, within the Peace Together community that we've 
really worked hard to establish, the threat of domestic terror 
has actually brought a number of us more together in the 
community and, that is, on the interreligious and nonreligious 
side. It is also what led us to develop really positive 
relationships with the police department.
    There are a number of Jews of color that, throughout our 
country, that see a security officer outside their house of 
worship and are a little bit concerned because of it, because 
they are concerned that they might be treated with suspicion, 
but overall, within our community, I can say that the 
relationship, the closeness between the local police 
department, the local government, and the interreligious and 
nonreligious communities has been incredibly strong.
    My hope, and my prayer would be that every community would 
be able to have those relationships because we don't, right? We 
don't. We have to acknowledge that reality. So, but that is one 
of the things that really helped to sustain us and continues to 
sustain us in the aftermath.
    Chair Nadler. Thank you. My time is expired.
    I yield back.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. The gentleman's time has expired.
    Mr. Biggs, you're still here. Just wanted to be assured 
that you don't have another Member at this time that may have 
come in. Mr. Biggs?
    Mr. Biggs. Madam Chair, I am looking, and my staff is 
looking. We had four Members on earlier, but I think they 
might've all departed and so I might be a lonely, lonely 
Republican on this hearing today.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Well, we will look out for those Members, 
and we thank you for your presence.
    It's my pleasure now to yield to the gentlelady from 
Florida, Mrs. Demings for 5 minutes.
    Mrs. Demings. Thank you so much, Madam Chair. Thank you so 
much to our Witnesses today.
    Let me, as a former law enforcement officer, as you well 
know, my Committee Members, of 27 years, I'm not quite really 
sure what to think of what a lot of what I've heard so far.
    Let me just get one thing out of the way. There is an 
effort on this Committee to try to hijack this important 
hearing about the safety of our students and the safety of the 
people that we are supposed to represent and assist law 
enforcement in protecting.
    Let me say it for about the millionth time: We are not 
going to defund the police. We're going to fund the police, and 
we can have the backs of our police officers and the 
communities in which we serve, too.
    The communities most at risk from crime want more security, 
not less. We know that when you do get out and talk to them, 
that's why we're working to get police departments more 
resources, not less. It's why we need to expand the nonprofit 
security grant program, which I am working on in my other 
Committee through Homeland Security.
    From what I've heard today, from some of my colleagues on 
the other side of the aisle, I am sure that I will be able to 
get many more of them to sign on to that legislation.
    Our number 1 priority has to be the reduction of violent 
crime. I have been saying that for over three decades, but let 
me be clear: That also includes escalating threats by 
extremists targeting Black Americans and Jewish Americans and 
Sikh Americans and others.
    I have to wonder, let me say this: I have worked alongside 
the brave men and women in blue that many of my colleagues talk 
about. I have seen them risk their lives over and over again to 
keep all, not just a few, all communities safe.
    What I know from my experience is that those police 
officers, those rank-and-file officers, would be extremely 
concerned about the safety of students and threats against 
students in their communities.
    Madam Chair, I invite my colleagues to get to truly know 
some of the law enforcement officers, some of the rank-and-file 
officers that they talk about and claim to know.
    Dr. Wilson, thank you for your leadership at Morgan, and 
thank you for your powerful testimony advocating on behalf, 
laser-focused on advocating on behalf of those students who are 
just trying to get an education and are dependent on us to make 
sure that they can.
    Last week, you wrote an opinion piece for Word in Black 
entitled, ``HBCU Strong: Bomb Threats Will Not Deter Us.''
    Dr. Wilson, how would you say the history--because we know 
the history. I mean, we know it, but let's try to get better 
moving on. How would you say the history shapes the campus 
environment today?
    I know you talked a little bit earlier, but could you talk 
a little bit more about how your students are handling these 
threats, and how are you addressing the issues? Please, tell me 
how having to now take away resources to respond to threat 
after threat after threat has really affected what should be a 
safe learning environment?
    Mr. Wilson. Thank you very much for the question, 
Congresswoman Demings.
    Let me repeat that the psychological trauma that has been 
brought on by the threats is very, very severe here at Morgan 
and across the HBCU campuses. I do not say that in a vacuum. I 
certainly have been in conversations with the other HBCU 
presidents and chancellors, and what you see at Morgan is no 
different than what you will see on the other campuses where 
these threats have also been made.
    Our number 2 priority, of course, is a long history of 
underfunding of these institutions, and there's a reason why I 
said, quote, ``they are the innovators in American higher 
education, because they've had to,'' unquote, take what they 
had to make what they needed for the students when they walked 
across the stage and they got the sheep skins to be in a 
position to dance on the world stage with anyone, any place, 
anytime, and anywhere.
    When you add the bomb threats and you add, if you will, the 
impact of the pandemic and when you add all the other things 
that these students have seen in a relatively short period of 
time, what these underfunded resource institutions must do is 
then to take resources from other operational areas and then 
shift them to the psychological, emotional well-being area and, 
therefore, it limits our ability to continue to advance the 
genre of institutions.
    That's the way I would explain that in a relatively short 
period of time, Congresswoman Demings.
    Mrs. Demings. Thank you so much, Dr. Wilson.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. The gentlelady's time has expired.
    Mrs. Demings. I yield back. Thank you.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you so very much.
    My pleasure to now yield to the gentlelady from California 
for 5 minutes, Ms. Bass.
    Ms. Bass. Thank you, Madam Chair. I do want to note as the 
Ranking Member said, the Republican Members have left the 
hearing, and I think that that is emblematic of the refusal to 
talk about this subject. I'm saddened that in every one of 
their questions, they wanted to focus on crime in general, and 
I think you could walk away saying that the real problem is 
actually African-Americans. That's the real problem.
    Violence and racial violence really isn't an issue at all, 
and the denial of what is going on in this country and what has 
gone on in this country historically is certainly evident in 
their performance today. I guess they don't think it's 
important, which is why they're not here.
    So, let me thank you, Madam Chair, for holding this 
hearing. I'm sad to say that this is a particularly important 
topic for my home city. The liberal bastion of Los Angeles 
actually saw the most hate crimes of any major U.S. city over 
the past year, and the third highest of any U.S. city since the 
1970s.
    These crimes of hatred were most common against African-
Americans, but we also saw a large increase in hate crimes 
against Latinos, Asians, the LGBTQ community, Jewish Americans, 
and the hate and fear is not confined to any one community.
    Even in the Beverly Hills neighborhood, we saw homes 
littered with anti-Semitic flyers filled with hateful 
propaganda, and we really cannot stand by while hate-filled 
extremism pollutes our communities and further traumatizes our 
neighborhoods.
    We have seen anti-Semitic literature spread not just in 
Beverly Hills, but throughout Los Angeles and many of the 
surrounding cities.
    I wanted to ask Mr. Kaleka, and I also wanted to thank you 
for being a Witness today in spite of what you have gone 
through. My district is the home to the Sikh leadership 
headquarters. I wanted to know how you, when you're forced to 
confront anti-immigrant sentiment, religious discrimination, 
and related violence, how you deal with young Sikh Americans?
    I think in the African-American community, we're used to 
having those conversations with our children, but I would like 
to know how it is for you and how young Sikh Americans are 
handling this?
    Mr. Kaleka. Thank you so much, Congresswoman. Early on, 
this is going to be the 10th anniversary of the shooting, and 
early on, I saw a lot of our community sort of segregate itself 
because of fear of being outside. Arno Michaelis who joined me 
and was the leader of the Skinhead organization a long time ago 
is now working with me, and we're in Orlando together today and 
going to be at the Holocaust resource center. One of the things 
that I got approached with early on was, why do you keep 
bringing White people into our Sikh Temple? Don't you know 
we're scared, we're afraid? This was a lot of the leadership, 
right?
    The rabbi knows this, right? A lot of the leadership who 
was a little bit older said, ``Hey, Pardeep, you know, we're 
traumatized. Don't do that. Don't bring White people in here, 
especially don't bring White people with skinheads.'' I said, 
``listen, America--America's promise we all came here for a 
better life, and we do have an obligation or responsibility to 
this country, and if I let you sit in your segregation because 
you're fearful, the next doctor will not happen, the next law 
enforcement will not happen, the next person who's about to go 
out and be the next Congressperson will not happen.''
    So, I think we owed it to our debt in America to make sure 
that we get out of our--we nourish the younger generation. So, 
that was really my motivation. That continues to be my 
motivation. I speak at a lot of Sikh Temples all over the 
place, and I let them know, hey, you know what? At this point, 
somebody let us know that we weren't worth being in this 
country.
    Ms. Bass. I want to ask you another question, but before I 
do, let me just say that, Madam Chair, I do hope that you have 
another hearing where we talk about community violence. I think 
that is an important topic to have, but I do want to mention 
that's not the topic of this hearing and if we continue the 
attempts to deny that radical extremism, especially White 
supremacy exists in our country, it's not going to move us 
further by just acting as though it doesn't exist.
    Mr. Kaleka, in your final moments, can you talk about what 
Congress might learn, what support the Federal, State, and 
local governments can provide to military and law enforcement 
to reduce their vulnerability to extremist recruitment?
    Mr. Kaleka. Thank you so much, Congresswoman. I'll make it 
short. Terror affects all of us. It affects us all, and it's a 
community issue [inaudible] takes seriously. It's something 
that we need to fund. We need to get the right people doing the 
right job and we need to work side by side, and hand in tandem 
with law enforcement. So, I think we all need to work on this 
together.
    Ms. Bass. Thank you. I yield because I'm out of time, Madam 
Chair.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. The gentlelady's time has expired.
    The gentleman is recognized. Mr. Fitzgerald is recognized 
for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Fitzgerald.
    Mr. Fitzgerald. Thank you, Madam Chair.
    Pardeep, as you know, I represent part of southeastern 
Wisconsin. It was 10 years ago when that tragedy happened and 
have been, I guess, monitoring the Sikh community and the 
strides you've made.
    I want to certainly acknowledge that you guys have done the 
outreach and have done the work that I'm sure is having an 
impact in the community. So, thank you for being here today.
    The one point I wanted to make, I know that a lot of issues 
are being raised, and this is a hearing, and that's what 
Members of Congress are supposed to be doing is kind of 
listening versus offering any solutions. I haven't heard any 
real strong solutions today, other than, to continue to work on 
these all-encompassing issues. This is not simple stuff by any 
means.
    I do want to address one thing and another item, and I 
would ask Dr. Pennie maybe to comment on it, because it seems 
to be kind of the cycle that continues, and whether it is a 
hate crime or for my many years in the State legislature, we 
had penalty enhancers that were related to crimes committed 
with whether it be a handgun or some other very specific item 
that would change the overall view of a crime.
    One of the issues we continue to struggle with is--and law 
enforcement sees it all the time where somebody's arrested and 
then they're prosecuted and then ultimately, they're back out 
on the street in a short period of time. I know--listen, I have 
a father who's in law enforcement for 50 years and a son who 
was in law enforcement, and this was one of the topics that was 
most frustrating was just to have repeat criminals that 
continue to be part of the system and rap sheets as long as 
your arm in the crimes they commit.
    Dr. Pennie, do you have a comment on that part of the 
issues we're facing?
    Mr. Pennie. Absolutely. Look, it is a revolving door when 
dealing with violent offenders. Look, I don't want to negate 
any other part of this discussion, right? I want people to 
understand that I am educated. I was a college professor for 
several years. I'm a Doctor of Education. I actually wrote my 
dissertation on mitigating the outcome for shooting attacks on 
college and school campuses.
    So, we are acknowledging that there is a situation that 
needs to be addressed in these communities, and these schooling 
at college campuses as it relates to dealing with radicalized 
behavior, but I say that because years ago when I approached 
Congress about revising CDA 230, the platform that gives these 
social media platforms the ability to recruit--to allow these 
radical groups to recruit and radicalize on their platforms, 
nobody wanted to revise it. Nobody wanted to appeal it.
    I was talking in an echo chamber. So, here we are five 
years later, and people want to acknowledge that we do have a 
problem with social media.
    So, we really want to get to resolving some of these 
issues, we have to start there. We have to start with how our 
young people are being recruited and radicalized. That's number 
1.
    Number 2, going back to dealing with these violent 
offenders, we have to address the individuals that are 
victimizing us in our communities. If we keep putting these 
people out, they're going to continue to escalate crime over 
and over again. These police officers are doing more work than 
anybody else because they're arresting people, they're putting 
them in jail, these people come out, they offend other people, 
they commit new murders, and officers have to get out here and 
go find these same people all over again.
    We're doing double work. We have to do better. We have to 
do a better job, and if we can get politicians to step out of 
the way to allow us to do our job, we'll gladly do it.
    Mr. Fitzgerald. Mr. Tatum, do you have a comment in 
relationship to what we were just discussing?
    Mr. Tatum. Yes, sir. Thank you for the question. I think 
that it's invaluable for us to understand that there's not a 
single person that I've heard testify that will Act as if 
there's not an issue. If someone's calling and threatening the 
HBCU, that is a problem. As a former law enforcement officer, I 
hope that they go to jail, and they spend time in jail. The 
problem is, what is the solution to the problem? How do we get 
to the underlying issues?
    So, it just--racism just don't happen out of thin air. 
Prejudice and hatred towards people just don't occur out of 
thin air. It is breed--it is bred in our society through 
certain mechanisms. I believe that we do need to take a strong 
stance in making sure law enforcement officers are able to 
arrest people who are radicalized, who hate White people, who 
hate Black people, who hate Jewish people, and put them in jail 
and they stay there.
    The problem is that we--in our society, we are focused more 
on caring for the suspect than we do the victims. 
Rehabilitation is a thing that we need to address. However, 
these individuals need to go to jail, and they need to stay in 
jail instead of getting out and perpetuating more and more 
crimes. We need the funding for technology and innovation for 
law enforcement officers to be able to catch individuals who 
are causing these bomb threats.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. The gentleman's time is up. The 
gentleman's time is up.
    Mr. Fitzgerald. Madam Chair.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you so very much. The gentleman's 
time is expired.
    It is my pleasure now to recognize the gentlelady from 
Georgia, Congresswoman McBath, for 5 minutes.
    Mrs. McBath. Thank you, Chair Lee, and thank you so much 
for holding this very critical and important issue today.
    I'd also like to thank our Witnesses for joining us to 
share your stories and to shed more light on this crisis.
    I just have to say, it's important that we're absolutely 
clear about what this hearing is about today. Domestic terror, 
no matter the source, no matter the target, is inconsistent 
with the principles of liberty and equality on which our great 
Nation was founded. I know that our Republican colleagues who 
have been talking about other problems today, both real and 
imagined, and that simply just distracts from a real problem 
that deserves our full attention today.
    As an alumna of Virginia State University, graduating from 
a historically Black university has been one of my greatest 
honors of my lifetime. There, I not only earned an excellent 
education, I also grew up as a woman, as a person. I found a 
sisterhood in Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and took part in one 
of the greatest educational opportunities afforded me in 
preparation for my work as a Member of Congress.
    Historically Black colleges and universities, along with 
other minority institutions, have been the bedrock of higher 
education for millions of Americans of color for almost 200 
years, and they have offered Americans opportunities and 
futures when so many other doors were shut.
    These recent bomb threats to HBCUs are not just a threat to 
the African-American community, they're also a threat to the 
academic and economic futures of Americans, African Americans. 
In my home State of Georgia, three institutions have received 
bomb threats in recent weeks. These include Spelman College, 
Fort Valley State University, and Albany State University. 
These hate crimes are meant to disrupt the stability and 
permanence of HBCUs.
    These attempts to intimidate us, they're not going to 
succeed. HBCU graduates like me, students, and communities, we 
will continue to thrive and continue to flourish as we have 
almost done for two centuries.
    I thank the FBI investigators for taking these threats so 
seriously. These are threats that are racially motivated, 
they're violent extremism, and they're hate crimes. I call on 
them to ensure that these investigations are thoroughly and 
comprehensively completed.
    Dr. Wilson, last week you wrote an opinion piece for Word 
In Black titled, HBCU Strong: Bomb Threat Will Never (sic) 
Deter Us. You wrote, and I quote, ``Those founders knew that 
the journey laid before them would be a rough one, the terrain 
arduous and rugged, the rivers deep and unrelenting. Moreover, 
they fully recognized that they were putting their very lives 
online as they marched for, fought for, and, sadly for many, 
died for the right to live free and to create institutions that 
would educate their sons and daughters.''
    Can you put into context for us the recent series of bomb 
threats against HBCUs in the broader story of racism and hate-
based violence against African Americans in this country?
    Mr. Wilson. Congresswoman McBath, this is just a 
continuation of that struggle that you so eloquently outlined. 
Of course, what we have as a connective tissue among all the 
HBCUs is the way that we were birthed. Whether it's Morehouse 
or Tuskegee or Hampton or Morgan or Prairie View, it's almost 
the same kind of story.
    So, what I was saying for the university community, indeed 
to the Nation, that if you were to look just at Morgan, one of 
our visionary founders was the late Reverend Samuel Green, who 
is depicted in the movie Harriet, and he was born a slave in 
Dorchester County, and it was against the law to learn how to 
read and write, but his owner basically taught him to read and 
write.
    Then there was a Fugitive Slave Act in existence that said, 
okay, but if you go north of the Mason-Dixon Line and you're 
caught, then you could be returned to your owner or you could 
be jailed. Well, he was caught beyond the Mason-Dixon Line, and 
he was sentenced to 10 years in a Baltimore City penitentiary. 
He served 5 years. When he came out in 1862, he basically had 
more desire to found institutions that would be about creating 
literacy for those sons and daughters that were about to be 
freed.
    So, our students and the faculty and staff and alumni here 
at Morgan and across the HBCU space, we have to understand this 
resilience. We have to understand that we really are about 
simply saying to our great country, we are not a truly 
functioning democracy if, for example, our laws and practices 
are designed to marginalize and keep everyone from fully 
participating. Our ancestors knew that, and they fought so hard 
to enable our Constitution to live up to those ideals. So, we 
try and motivate and inspire in spite of the challenges that 
are brought on by the struggle.
    Mrs. McBath. Thank you so much. I'm out of time. I yield 
back.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. The gentlelady's time has expired.
    I now recognize Mr. Tiffany for 5 minutes. Mr. Tiffany?
    Mr. Tiffany. Thank you, Madam Chair. I would like to yield 
my time to Representative Biggs from Arizona.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Your time is now yielded to Mr. Biggs. 
You're recognized for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Biggs? You've been yielded to by Mr. Tiffany for 5 
minutes.
    Mr. Biggs. Yeah, I was talking away without unmuting, Madam 
Chair.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. All right.
    Mr. Biggs. That just happens now and then on these Zoom 
issues, so I apologize for that.
    I was saying that I appreciate the testimony of the 
Witnesses. I appreciate that we have covered a broad spectrum 
of things. I do find it interesting that some of the concerns 
people have mentioned have been characterized as real and 
imagined. I thought that was interesting, because I think 
everybody here is sincere in attempting to try to resolve 
issues that I think are important.
    One of the things, Rabbi, you mentioned, and I have to say, 
Mr. Kaleka, you mentioned it, Mr. Jones mentioned it, and Dr. 
Wilson, President Wilson, all mentioned this notion of speaking 
and communicating and trying to resolve some issues by how we 
communicate with each other and get to the bottom of these 
things.
    I thought it was an inflammatory statement that somebody 
made saying that Republicans are trying to hijack this 
Committee hearing. I don't think that's the case at all. I 
think what we're trying to do is same thing that I believe, in 
all sincerity, that the Witnesses are trying to do and my 
colleagues on the other side, and that's to move the ball 
forward and try to find solutions to violence, whether it be 
race-based violence at historically Black colleges and 
universities, whether it be anti-Semitic violence or anti-Sikh 
or any other kind of group, and I mentioned my denomination, 
its period of victimization. I think this is really critical.
    I hope that we're not spending our time talking past each 
other. I hope that we're talking to each other and 
communicating and understanding with sincere hearts what's 
being said today.
    So, I want to talk about one of the suggestions that was 
made by Dr. Pennie and was echoed as well by Mr. Tatum, and it 
goes like this: Section 230, so we talk about radicalization, 
because radicalization, if we're going to resolve some of these 
issues, we have to get to how are people, particularly young 
people, being radicalized and why they would view themselves 
inside and view others as outside and attack them for whatever 
reason.
    You've mentioned section 230 of the Communications Decency 
Act. What do you--what role do you think that these platforms 
are playing, Dr. Pennie and Mr. Tatum, in the radicalization of 
people who then do things like plant bombs--or not--in this 
case not plant bombs but seek to terrorize historically Black 
colleges and universities because, for whatever reason? But, 
maybe it's hate, I don't know. We're still investigating. I've 
got to know what you think section 230, how that impacts, 
something like that. Dr. Pennie.
    Mr. Pennie. Absolutely. I think it's important for people 
to understand what section 230 is. Basically, what it's a 
policy that essentially shields these social media companies 
from liability from what a third-party posts on their platform.
    So, let's remember, now, this Communications Decency Act 
was passed back in 1996. We're in two thousand--we're in 2022. 
So, there are some real issues that need to be addressed. These 
social media platforms, they understand that. They use it to 
their ability to allow these radical groups--and a lot of this 
content is being--whether you want--look, that's a whole other 
issue, whether we want to talk about it or not, but we're being 
influenced by foreign entities.
    They know the difference between rubles being paid on their 
platforms and United States currency. They know the difference, 
but they're not saying anything. They're allowing individuals 
to fund rhetoric and content in our community--in our country 
that's being used to incite our people to violence.
    Look, just for clarification. Guys, I went to an HBCU 
university, right. I'm from the Black community. I love people. 
I'm a member of a prominent Jewish organization. I'm a member 
of a prominent African-American organization. The issue that 
our Democrat colleagues are throwing out there, there is no 
agenda here.
    Guys, we're trying to get to a real solution in how we can 
fix problems in this country. The bottom line is force and 
intimidation that is used for the purposes of changing 
governmental policy--
    Ms. Jackson Lee. The gentleman's time is expired. The 
gentleman's time is expired. Thank you so very much.
    It's my pleasure to now yield to the gentlelady from 
Pennsylvania, Ms. Dean, for 5 minutes, Congresswoman Dean for 5 
minutes. Thank you.
    Ms. Dean. Thank you, Madam Chair.
    Also, thank you to all the folks here who have offered us 
your testimony, your expertise, your personal experience.
    In particular, Mr. Kaleka, I offer my family's sympathy to 
your family's.
    Rabbi Cytron-Walker, we're so thankful that you're here, 
that you are anywhere, and extraordinary the circumstances that 
you and your congregation had to endure.
    I've been thinking about this, and I'm a former college 
professor, I taught writing and rhetoric and ethics. So, I 
loved that many of you used the expression that I used too 
often in my class, words matter. Our words matter.
    So, let me associate myself first with the words of 
Representatives Bass and Demings and McBath. Our words matter 
as we ask questions, as we pull information out that we might 
be able to benefit from in this important hearing.
    So, I'm going to try to get to, in my limited time, two 
different things.
    Ms. Huang, I want to get to the ``why.'' If you don't mind, 
why do you believe in--and Southern Poverty Law Center, what 
does the data show us why do we have an increase in domestic 
violent extremism in our country? If you could briefly give us 
a little kernel about that.
    Ms. Huang. Thank you, Congresswoman Dean. I think what 
you've stated is really important, that the framing of talking 
about crime is completely different than talking about domestic 
terrorism. It's not fair to ask first responders to crime to 
deal with the problems of extremism and domestic terrorism. 
It's not safe for us to ask them to do that. This requires a 
multiprong response.
    To your question why we're seeing the rise and influence of 
these extremist groups, I think there's a few reasons.
    First, it is increasingly being mainstreamed into our 
political discourse. We've seen references to extremist views, 
we've seen calls to extremist organizations from high-profile 
Members of the former Administration, as well as from Members 
of Congress, and that gives supporters, advocates, believers, 
adherents to these ideologies the encouragement to Act on these 
beliefs.
    Second, I agree with my colleagues who've cited the 
importance of social media. There's no question that many 
people are learning about extremist ideologies online, but we 
need to do much more research to understand why being exposed 
to those ideologies online is actually encouraging more and 
more people to take action. Unfortunately, we don't have enough 
research at this time.
    Ms. Dean. Thank you for both of those answers.
    In my limited time left, I want to call upon both Dr. 
Wilson and Rabbi Cytron-Walker to turn to the ``how.'' How do 
we get to healing? I'm certain that one of the ways is through 
education. I'm reminded of the words of Eboo Patel, who said, 
``it matters who gets to a young person's microphone first. Who 
do they hear from first?''
    So, how do we get to healing, Dr. Wilson and Rabbi Cytron-
Walker?
    Mr. Wilson. I would just be very brief. I think you started 
down the right path. It is through education. I would be 
disingenuous if I did not say that I'm very alarmed by what I 
see happening with State legislatures and school districts 
across the country with regard to removing books and sanitizing 
curricular. That's not the way you're going to solve this 
problem, if you will.
    Then I think for what I'm seeing across the campuses, I do 
think that perhaps some additional resources may be coming 
through Health and Human Services to enable us to minister to 
the psychological and emotional well-being of our community. 
Certainly, it would be welcomed as well.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you. The gentlelady's time is up. 
I'm pleased to recognize the gentlelady from--
    Ms. Dean. Oh, I had a little time left. I was hoping to 
hear from the rabbi. Maybe I don't.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. You do.
    Rabbi Cytron-Walker. Oh, then, sorry, my apologies.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. I moved too quickly. Thank you.
    Rabbi Cytron-Walker. That's okay. Thank you, 
Representative. So, just briefly, I would say that with regard 
to healing, healing means that something is already--something 
bad has already happened and that we need to heal from, right. 
So, all that love and support that we have gotten from people 
from every background, it matters. It really helps.
    I would hope that the HBCUs, that anyone who deals the Sikh 
community, that anyone who deals with trauma and terror is able 
to receive that love and support. Part of what we need to do is 
to show that love and support before something bad happens, 
right, to really care for, not just our own community, but 
other communities as well. That's--those are key. That's key. 
It's something that's hard to legislate, but that's something 
that's incumbent upon each of us.
    Ms. Dean. I thank you. Beautifully said.
    Thank you, Madam Chair. I yield back.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you. Thank you for your 
understanding. If they needed to speak a little bit longer, I 
indulge you on that, but thank you so very much for your 
questioning.
    It's my pleasure now to yield to the gentlelady from 
Pennsylvania, Ms. Scanlon, for 5 minutes. Thank you.
    Ms. Scanlon. Thank you, Chair Jackson Lee, for calling this 
timely and very important hearing.
    The data we have shows, that incidents of domestic 
terrorism and extremism and hate-based violence are all on the 
rise. While some may seek to deflect attention from this hate-
fueled violence by terming it ``identity politics,'' we must 
recognize that these incidents occur when extremists target 
individuals based upon their identities, seeking to divide our 
communities by sowing hate and chaos.
    My district is a reflection of the diverse melting pot that 
is America. Twenty-five percent of my constituents are Black, 7 
percent are Asian, and 4 percent Hispanic. More than 12 percent 
are foreign born. Unfortunately, our community has also seen 
the recent rise in extremist violence targeting racial and 
religious minorities.
    According to the Philadelphia Anti-Defamation League, 2020 
was the third highest year on record for anti-Semitic incidents 
in Pennsylvania, including vandalism of a Philadelphia 
synagogue and online verbal and physical harassment of Jewish 
community members in my region.
    There's a large Sikh population in my district, and in 
visiting at the gurdwara and meeting with community members, I 
know they are frequently harassed and confronted with anti-
immigrant sentiment, religious discrimination, and hate-based 
violence. As bomb threats have targeted over 20 historically 
Black colleges and universities in recent weeks, we've been 
concerned for the students and faculty at Cheyney University, 
the Nation's first HBCU here in my district. I'm really 
grateful to our Witnesses for being here today and eager to 
hear more about the ways in which the Federal government can 
better support institutions facing threats as well as 
preventing incidents of domestic terrorism in the first place.
    Dr. Jones, the CSIS report from April 12, 2021, indicated 
that 66 percent of terrorist plots and attacks in the United 
States were committed by White supremacists, extremist militia 
members, and other far-right extremists. How does that volume 
when focused of right-wing extremist activity compared to prior 
years?
    Mr. Jones. It's actually similar in many ways to the 
percentages from recent years. We continue to see the majority 
of violence--of domestic terrorism that is perpetrated by White 
supremacists and antigovernment militias. We do see in our data 
set domestic terrorism perpetrated by antifascists and others, 
but the highest percentages continue to be those perpetrated by 
White supremacists. I should also add, in addition, to attacks 
and plots, the highest levels of fatalities are also committed 
by those on the White supremacist side.
    Ms. Scanlon. Thank you.
    Ms. Huang, how are disinformation, false narratives, and 
conspiracy theories used to recruit new members, and what can 
we do about that?
    Ms. Huang. Thank you, Congresswoman Scanlon. One of the 
most important things we have to do is to focus on prevention 
initiatives. We need to be making investments in education, and 
ensuring that schools can teach inclusive history, not just the 
good parts of American history but all our history. That 
enables us to have conversations about the types of experiences 
we've had in the past with slavery, with genocide, with other 
problems of White supremacy so that it's not some kind of 
hidden or opaque myth.
    The other thing that's really important to do is to focus 
on investing in preventative and resilient measures. Some of my 
colleagues on the panel have talked about this. There are calls 
for increased funding for security reasons. The Nonprofit 
Security Fund, for example, is important. It has to be 
complemented with efforts to educate and build resilience in 
communities to stop radicali-
zation.
    We've worked with the PERIL lab at American University to 
put out some guidance for parents and families on how they can 
look out for possible radicalization amongst young people and 
take steps to stop that when it's identified. So, we'd like to 
see more investments concomitant with that. Of course, 
Congresswoman Lee's legislation that she's introduced, the 
Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act, would be a terrific help.
    Ms. Scanlon. Thank you.
    Mr. Kaleka, you've worked some in this field, as I 
understand it, to counter hate and promote understanding. 
You've worked with deradicalization, helping families respond 
when loved ones become involved in extremist groups or when 
they want to move away. Can you talk about what you think--what 
lessons Congress can learn from your deradicalization efforts?
    Mr. Kaleka. Yeah, thank you so much, Congresswoman. Yeah, I 
think what we're trying to do is attempt to scale what we're 
doing, and scaling it means that we need to teach people how to 
create a counseling subspecialty around terrorism, what are 
some of the indicators that we look at, what are ways that we 
can change behavior as it goes forward. While I can't comment 
on cases, I can let that we're seeing a rise in domestic 
terrorism cases on our end as well.
    Ms. Scanlon. Thank you.
    Madam Chair, I see my time is expired, but I would request 
unanimous consent to enter into the record a report from the 
Philadelphia Anti-Defamation League titled, ``2020 Third-
Highest Year on Record for Anti-Semitic Incidents in 
Pennsylvania.''
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Without objection, so ordered.
    [The information follows:]



      

                       MS. SCANLON FOR THE RECORD

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    Ms. Jackson Lee. The gentlelady's time is expired.
    We know that our rabbi has to log out of this virtual in a 
short order, and I'm trying to make sure that all our remaining 
Members are able to have him present when they speak. Mr. 
Cicilline, you are now recognized for 5 minutes, and we have 
two other Members.
    Rabbi, thank you for your generous time.
    Mr. Cicilline for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Cicilline. Thank you, Madam Chair, for holding this 
really important hearing, and thank you to our Witnesses.
    Domestic terrorism widely fueled by White supremacy is one 
of the greatest threats to our country's safety and security. 
We have seen over the past decade Black Americans senselessly 
murdered at Emanuel AME Church; increased threats against 
HBCUs; Jews murdered in Poway, California; the Tree of Life 
synagogue in Pittsburgh; and now taken hostage in Texas; 
Hispanic people targeted in El Paso in a shooting that left 23 
innocent people dead; and a deranged gunman going on a killing 
spree across three massage parlors targeting Asian women in 
Georgia; and too many other violent hate crimes irrevocably 
harming minority communities.
    Yet, instead of these attacks spurring action to confront 
the threat of White supremacy and hate groups and the threats 
that they pose, these organizations have actually grown and so 
has domestic terrorism. The year 2020 saw the highest rates of 
domestic terrorism since data started being collected more than 
25 years ago, and White supremacists or far-right extremist 
groups were responsible for two-thirds of terror plots and 
attacks in the United States that year.
    Sadly, I want to join my colleagues, Congresswoman Bass, 
Congresswoman Demings, and others who have made the point--
instead of focusing on this very real threat, some of our 
Republican colleagues have tried to use this hearing as a 
campaign forum to promote the false claim that Democrats are 
against funding the police.
    Of course, nothing could be further from the truth. That is 
not the position of the Democratic Party. In fact, when we had 
the opportunity to test that, we funded the police to the tune 
of $350 billion in the American CARES Act that was eligible for 
law enforcement to use, local law enforcement. Every single 
Republican in Congress voted no to that funding for law 
enforcement. So, let's put that nonsense aside and focus on the 
hearing before us today and this very real issue.
    My first question is for you, Dr. Jones. Can you just speak 
to how disinformation and false narratives and conspiracy 
theories really are used to recruit new members to extremist 
groups and what you think is the status of the government's 
efforts to disrupt online disinformation and recruitment by 
extremist groups, and is what the government doing to disrupt 
that working?
    Mr. Jones. Yeah, thanks for the great question. 
Disinformation happens in at least two major ways. One is 
primarily disinformation caused by domestic organizations in 
the U.S. or extremist groups operating overseas. What we see is 
false information about immigrants, numbers of immigrants, 
about activity being pursued by racial or ethnic communities. 
The entire use of disinformation is designed to energize 
individuals, to effect emotions in ways that they (a) 
radicalize, and then, (b) Act on it eventually.
    The second area we have seen is some activity by foreign 
actors, particularly some of Russia's intelligence services, 
the SVR, the Foreign Intelligence Service, as well as Russia's 
GRU, the Main Intelligence Directorate, attempting to exploit 
using disinformation and online platforms inside of the United 
States, using disinformation to also exploit polarization, 
ethnic, racial, and other divisions. So, we've seen both 
domestic actors doing it as well as foreign.
    As to whether Congress and the government have done enough, 
I will say that there has been an uptick in my conversations 
with some of the Joint Terrorism Task Forces and the FBI and 
the Department of Homeland Security to pay more attention to 
this. We are way behind the eight ball for where we were on the 
Salafi-Jihadist side, the monitoring--
    Mr. Cicilline. Yeah. I'm going to try to get in a couple 
more questions, so I don't want to cut you off.
    Mr. Jones. Yeah, okay.
    Mr. Cicilline. We have a lot of work to do.
    Mr. Jones. We're behind.
    Mr. Cicilline. Yeah.
    Mr. Jones. We're behind, yeah.
    Mr. Cicilline. So, I'm going to ask the last two questions 
and then I'm going to ask the Witnesses to answer them so I can 
get them both in.
    Ms. Huang, first, thank you the incredible work you do, and 
your organization does. What would you like to see more done to 
help people actually move away from extremism and to prevent 
this violence, and how can the Federal government support these 
efforts? Because it's almost like deprogramming people who have 
joined gangs. Like, what do we need to do?
    Rabbi, thank you for your beautiful testimony and for your 
heroism and for the humanity for which you brought to this 
hearing. I wondered if you'd speak a little bit about the 
challenges of leading a congregation bearing the burden of 
generational trauma and the residual anxiety that comes from 
that and what that has meant for your congregation and for you 
as a rabbi.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. The gentleman has 15 seconds.
    Mr. Cicilline. The Chair will not, I'm sure, interrupt the 
rabbi or Ms. Huang as they answer that question.
    Ms. Huang. Thank you, Congressman Cicilline.
    Is it all right, Congresswoman Jackson Lee, to go ahead?
    Ms. Jackson Lee. You may proceed. Thank you.
    Ms. Huang. Thank you.
    I just wanted to emphasize, I think it's critically 
important to note that the balance of domestic extremism that 
we're seeing right now really is being led by the focus on 
White supremacy, and that means that some of the steps that 
have to be taken address White supremacy directly.
    It is not just the Southern Poverty Law Center who's noted 
this. We've heard this from the Office of the Director of 
National Intelligence, the FBI, and the Department of Homeland 
Security in their strategic intelligence assessment, the view 
of FBI Director Wray and DHS Secretary Mayorkas in their 
congressional testimony last September.
    All these government agencies have lifted up the importance 
of focusing on White supremacy, which means that we need to 
look at these underlying causes, including steps like 
Congresswoman Jackson Lee's H.R. 40 bill, which would 
commission a study of reparations for slavery, enabling us to 
look at the underlying history in this country of White 
supremacy and how has it affected different groups. It's just 
one example, but I want to be mindful of time. Thank you.
    Mr. Cicilline. Thank you.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you very much.
    Let me ask the rabbi to remember my dear friend Mr. 
Cicilline's question, and let me allow Mr. Lieu to go forward, 
and then if you can incorporate your answer. You're so 
valuable, all of you, and we'd like to get Mr. Lieu and Mr. 
Cohen in before you have to do your duties, Rabbi. Thank you 
for your graciousness.
    Mr. Lieu, you're recognized for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Lieu. Thank you, Chair Sheila Jackson Lee, for holding 
this very important hearing.
    First, I'd like to do is to ask unanimous consent to enter 
two documents for the record. The first is the Congressional 
Bipartisan HBCU Caucus letter to Attorney General Garland and 
FBI Director Wray, dated February 4, 2022; and the second is 
the American Council on Education letter to congressional 
leaders regarding the bomb threats, dated February 14, 2022.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Without objection, so ordered.
    [The information follows:]



      

                        MR. LIEU FOR THE RECORD

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    Mr. Lieu. Now, I would like to read a statement from my 
friend and colleague, Congresswoman Alma Adams, who's a Co-
Chair of the Congressional HBCU Caucus. She says, ``I pray for 
our beloved HBCUs this past week.'' However, as a proud alum 
twice of North Carolina A&T State University, as a former 
professor at Bennett College, and as a founder and Co-Chair of 
the Congressional Bipartisan HBCU Caucus, I know for a fact 
HBCUs can overcome any challenge. However, HBCUs shouldn't have 
to face the violence and terror my generation experienced 
during segregation. Terrorism and racism have no place in 
college campuses or anywhere else.
    Congresswoman Adams continues, ``I also want to take this 
opportunity to address the perpetrators of these crimes. Just 
as I have prayed for our HBCUs, I am praying for you. I am 
praying that you learn from the pain you've caused. I am 
praying that the hate that inspired these acts leaves your 
heart forever. Like many others around the world, I owe our 
HBCUs a debt that can never be repaid. That is why I continue 
to pray for our institutions and the souls of those who cannot 
or will not honor them.''
    Congresswoman Adams concludes, ``In the wake of more 
threats levied against Spelman College, Howard University, and 
Winston-Salem State University in the past weeks, our Nation is 
being forced to once again recon with our history of racism and 
discrimination. Now, is the time to respond as a Nation, as a 
Congress, and as individuals. Such threats of violence must be 
stopped.''
    At this point, I have some questions for President Wilson. 
President Wilson, has the FBI updated you about their 
investigation of these bomb threats?
    Mr. Wilson. As much as I can say in this format, we are in 
communication with the FBI and with the Department of Homeland 
Security. Our Chief of Police is in continuous conversation 
with them.
    Mr. Lieu. Has the FBI or local law enforcement advised you 
on what HBCUs are supposed to do when you get future bomb 
threats?
    Mr. Wilson. Resources have been made available to us from 
the FBI in terms of possible training opportunities which, of 
course, we welcome. We have a law enforcement and armed law 
enforcement contingent here of pretty close to 60 members, 
that's the authorization. So, certainly any training 
opportunities that can come our way, we would welcome them, 
Congressman.
    Of course, we just don't want any more bomb threats. I 
mean, that's the bottom line that the fragility of our campus 
is quite alarming. I hate to even talk about just preparing the 
university for more threats and who knows what else, but that's 
the sad reality.
    Mr. Lieu. All right. Thank you.
    Rabbi Cytron-Walker, I'm going give you an opportunity to 
answer the question from my colleague, David Cicilline. I also 
have a question for you as well. I've been working with 
Congressman Colin Allred on their nonprofit security grants 
that you mentioned earlier. We're trying to increase funding.
    My question to you is: Are there things for which you would 
like that grant to apply to you for which it currently does 
not? In other words, are there places you think we should 
expand the applicability of these grants?
    With that, I'll yield and let you answer those two 
questions, one from David Cicilline and one from me.
    Rabbi Cytron-Walker. Regarding the grants, yes, to expand 
it. I don't know the details enough or the specifics. I'm not 
that policy expert. I do know that there was testimony given by 
the--Eric Fingerhut of--Congressman Fingerhut of Jewish 
Federations and Michael Masters from SCN, the Secure 
Communities Network, that I believe would help address how it 
can be expanded, not just in terms of funding.
    We certainly want support for smaller congregations. That 
is one thing I can certainly speak to. Smaller congregations 
don't have the resources to write out the grants and do that 
work, so we need support as far as that goes.
    Regarding the Representative's question about generational 
trauma, if I believe that is correct and just how do we heal, I 
will say that the way that I've been taking it is one day at a 
time. We need to address our security concerns. We also need to 
be able to move past this incident.
    We are trying to celebrate as a community and rejoice as a 
community, and when people need those hugs, when fewer people 
are seeing me and bursting into tears, fewer people are hearing 
my voice for the first time and choking up, which is a good 
thing.
    I'm a huge fan and I've been preaching a lot about taking 
advantage of mental health resources. We need to have that 
sense of support, and we need to be able to celebrate and--so I 
don't know how much more I could offer there, but our 
therapists are telling us that as soon as we can get back to 
normal, that's a positive thing.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you. Thank you so very much and 
thank you for those questions. Thank you.
    Very quickly, Rabbi, let me yield to our dear friend from 
Tennessee, Mr. Cohen, for 5 minutes. Mr. Cohen, you're 
recognized for 5 minutes.
    Mr. Cohen. Thank you, Madam Chair. It's been rather hectic 
here. I've got a tax townhall in a few minutes, but I did want 
to address a few things that I wanted to speak earlier, and I 
think you more or less addressed them, and I think all of our 
Members have the same problem. This is a serious issue, and 
it's great that you had this hearing, and the Witnesses have 
been marvelous. They've all been marvelous.
    Rabbi, you're a hero. You spent that time--didn't know, 
with your other members of the congregation, whether you were 
going to live or not, and you all did great, and you are 
heroic, and I thank you. I don't know if you know Rabbi 
Greenstein, but if you do, you're a Rabbi Greenstein. You'll 
know that's an honor.
    The Republicans all talked about some people on this 
Committee, it's what Biggs said and what Mr. Burgess said, was 
that Members of this Committee, plural, have talked about 
defund the police. I know of only one Member on this Committee 
who might have talked about defunding the police, and I wanted 
to ask them to name the Members they're talking about, so the 
Members could tell them, yes, you're right, or, no, you're not. 
They're not with us. So, I can say, with the exception of one 
person, the Democrats have not called on defund the police.
    Mr. Biggs. Madam Chair, I am here if he wishes to ask me a 
question.
    Mr. Cohen. Who were you mentioning? You said some Members 
have said defund the police on this Committee. Who were you 
addressing, sir?
    Mr. Biggs. Yeah. First, Chair Nadler agreed the New York 
Police Department budget should be cut, stating, quote, there 
should be substantial cuts to the--
    Mr. Cohen. Sir, the only question I have for you is, who 
said defund the police?
    Mr. Biggs. I'm reading to you what he said exactly.
    Mr. Cohen. He didn't say defund the police, did he?
    Mr. Biggs. Is that your best defense, Mr. Cohen? Okay. All 
right. I could go forward. I can give you--okay. I'll just go 
Chair Nadler, Representative Bush, Representative Mondaire 
Jones, Representative Hakeem Jeffries, I'll give you Hakeem 
Jeffries because he was more equivocal, and Representative 
Jayapal. I've got their statements. I've got their references 
to those statements. I'm happy to submit those to the record, 
Madam Chair, and I appreciate the gentleman's question.
    Mr. Cohen. Thank you, Mr. Biggs.
    Mr. Biggs. I'll yield back.
    Mr. Cohen. Madam Chair, how many of those Members are on 
the Subcommittee? Just is Ms. Bush on the Subcommittee and Mr. 
Nadler?
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Are you posing a question? Those are 
Members of the Subcommittee. Mr. Nadler is a Member of all 
Subcommittees.
    Mr. Cohen. Yeah. Other than that, Ms. Bush is the only one 
he mentioned that was on the Subcommittee?
    Ms. Jackson Lee. That is my understanding.
    Mr. Cohen. So, Ms. Bush isn't here to say, and I think she 
probably has said defund the police. I don't think Mr. Nadler 
has. The other people, I can't speak to them, but they weren't 
on the Subcommittee. Bottom line is, most, if not 90 percent of 
the Democrats, 95 percent have never talked about defund the 
police.
    I'm a former Memphis Police legal adviser. I've advocated 
for strong policing. We had in our American Recovery Act $350 
billion that could be used by police. No Republican voted for 
it. $350 billion that only Democrats voted for giving police, 
local governments the opportunity to hire more policemen, to 
fund policemen, and to improve their systems. We are for common 
defense for police protection and have funded it with--so we've 
walked the walk not just talked the talk.
    There are problems, but there are problems indeed on the 
hearing matter that's been called. The hate in this country, 
the terrorism, mostly from the radical White supremacists is 
horrific. It's un-American. It's in inhuman. It's wrong. It's 
been synagogues, it's been churches, it's been NAACP 
headquarters.
    When I was a child, I remember the Atlanta synagogue being 
bombed. I'll never forget such. In Birmingham, it was the 
church--I think it was the 16th Street Church bombed. African 
Americans and Jews have suffered the most hate in this country. 
Sikhs are suffering it now, Muslims and Arabs too. It must 
stop.
    Now, indeed, in Tennessee, a man just pled guilty to 
bombing four White Protestant churches. So, the right wing 
sometimes goes off and they even destroy or deface religious 
institutions that are akin to their own, if they have a 
religion. These people might just be worshipping Satan.
    Thank you for our Witnesses. Thank you for our Chair. The 
truth will win out, and we need to shine a light on it. That's 
what Ida B. Wells told us and shared with us that the best 
disinfectant is the truth, and we should speak the truth.
    I yield back the balance of my time.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. I thank the gentleman from Memphis and 
thank him for his intensity. His time has been yielded and now 
expired.
    Let me yield to Mr. Biggs, if he has any additional 
comments that he chooses to make at this time, the Ranking 
Member.
    Mr. Biggs. Madam Chair, thank you. I, again, thank you. I 
thank the Witnesses for being here. This has been actually a 
very--in my mind, a very productive and very enlightening 
hearing, and I appreciate your leadership on this issue. I 
appreciate all the Witnesses that have testified.
    I've got to comment just a little bit to the gentleman from 
Tennessee and also the gentleman from Rhode Island who said 
that it was the Republicans are defunding the police. I'll just 
tell you that I'm going to submit for the record, Madam Chair, 
an article of July 7, 2021, that debunks what the gentleman 
from Rhode Island said. In fact, that claim that he made got 
three Pinocchios in The Washington Post. So, I'll submit that 
to you.
    Then I'll also submit, Madam Chair, if possible, without 
objection, the citations for the individuals on our Committee, 
not our Subcommittee, I didn't say our Subcommittee, I said our 
Committee, which is the Judiciary Committee. I'll submit those 
to you as well, the statement, so we can all see the statements 
that they made.
    Now, I want to talk--
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Without objection, so ordered.
    [The information follows:]



      

                        MR. BIGGS FOR THE RECORD
                        
                        
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    Mr. Biggs. Thank you, Madam Chair. I appreciate that.
    I want to get to really what I think has been just some 
remarkable testimony that we have to get to, and I appreciate 
the--well, I'm sorry. I've got to clarify one other thing. We 
had--most of our Members were on this Committee--who are on the 
Subcommittee were in attendance at one time or another. Some of 
them actually have conflicting Subcommittees or Committee 
hearings while we speak, so they weren't all able to be with us 
the entire time.
    I thought Dr. Jones' testimony was particularly insightful 
because it substantiated a lot of what Dr. Pennie had said 
about addition--not just domestic actors participating in 
indoctrination and radicalization of American actors, but there 
were also foreign actors participating there. That's a terrible 
thing, and we need to do better.
    Section 230, in my opinion, is just part of the way we get 
that. I've been working on that for the last 2 years, just so 
everyone can know. I think my friend from Rhode Island is 
actually working on big tech issues as well, and I think those 
would deal with radicalization as much as the additional 
censorship, and I appreciate his efforts on some of that--in 
that area as well.
    I wanted to tell Dr. Wilson, I really appreciate his 
testimony. I thought it was very clarifying and very important 
and very substantive as well, and I appreciate that testimony.
    I also want to thank Brandon Tatum who testified. As an 
alumni myself of the University of Arizona Law School and a 
native of Arizona, I remember Brandon playing--Mr. Tatum 
playing on the University of Arizona Wildcat football team, 
which was enjoying better times when he played than it is 
enjoying today. So, I appreciate you being here and testifying 
today.
    I express to the rabbi and also to Mr. Kaleka heartfelt 
condolences and sympathy to what you've endured, and I 
appreciate it.
    Madam Chair, I could go on because I do think this is a 
very important topic. I've written it down, additional notes to 
go from, and I will take much having learned much today. I 
thank you, and I yield back to you, Madam Chair.
    Mr. Cicilline. Madam Chair, I have a unanimous consent 
request.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Mr. Cicilline, you're recognized for a 
unanimous consent request.
    Mr. Cicilline. Thank you. Madam Chair, I'd ask that a 
statement from the Sikh Coalition regarding increased violence 
against their community made a part of the record.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Without objection, so ordered.
    [The information follows:]



      

                      MR. CICILLINE FOR THE RECORD

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    Ms. Jackson Lee. Let me, first, thank Ranking Member Biggs 
for putting on the record the importance of this hearing, and I 
prayerfully hope that he has gained additional insight. I am 
very grateful that he has acknowledged his own faith. He is 
right.
    I would say to you, Mr. Biggs, many of my friends are in 
your faith, and I have known the discrimination historically 
and even present that has impacted your community. So, I think 
your acceptance and insight of the importance of this is 
crucial because that's the only way we can move forward in a 
bipartisan way.
    So, I want to restate, just for a few minutes, this 
hearing's topic was a rise in violence against minority 
institutions, but we are grateful that we have heard what words 
can do. We see with Mr. Kaleka, he tragically lost friends, 
fellow worshippers, and most, his loving father. Someone died, 
persons died. I've known the Sikh community. They are very 
strong in Houston. We are close. People died. So, I appreciate 
your presence here today.
    Dr. Jones, your statistics are going to be very helpful in 
moving forward on a domestic terrorism legislation, because it 
is shocking to many of us that the Federal government does not 
have a greater presence in data collection, prosecution because 
people die. I think that is what this hearing should suggest.
    Out of these words and actions, out of the tiki torches in 
Charlottesville, Virginia, someone died. Out of the anti-
Semitic remarks, synagogues across the Nation have had people 
die. How grateful we are that in Colleyville, lives were saved 
even though the perpetrator said Jews control the world, a 
greatly anti-Semitic statement. People died.
    Thank you, Dr. Wilson, for digging into the deep 
generational trauma that our young Black students face. I'll 
have a question for you very briefly and a question for Ms. 
Huang.
    Again, we hug and honor, we mourn, hug, and honor. We honor 
and hug the rabbi because he lived, and those in that synagogue 
lived that were under threat. The tragedy, of course, that out 
of threats some violence comes and people die.
    That is the cruciality of this hearing. That is the topic 
that should not be diminished. People die. The pain that I have 
and that my Members have, this Congress should have and the 
nation should have, is that across the nation of HBCUs 
presidents are charged with academic responsibility, but they 
are not FBI. They are not law enforcement. They are not 
national security experts. We are telling our presidents of 
Black universities and other universities of color that they 
now have to take on another responsibility because children 
could die. I cannot leave this hearing without making that 
point.
    So, let me first go to Ms. Huang for the storied history of 
the Southern Poverty Leadership Conference and to thank you for 
now your new leadership, which I am so proud of. Can you 
respond to my point--and, again, you are right, H.R. 40 that is 
now ready to pass this Congress or to become law is that very 
important response to stopping for a moment to discern racism 
and its deeply embedded core as relates to African Americans, 
the descendants of enslaved Africans. We are ready for that 
bill.
    Could you in your history of the Southern Poverty 
Leadership tie words to ultimate killings and violence? That 
seems to be missed, and I want that to be clear on the record. 
Ms. Huang?
    Ms. Huang. Thank you so much, Congresswoman Jackson Lee. I 
believe you know that every year, the Southern Poverty Law 
Center issues a Year in Hate report, and in that report, we 
track the activities of more than 1,200 hate and extremist 
groups across the country, many of whom--and increasingly many 
of whom embrace White supremacy as their leading ideology.
    There's no question that we cannot successfully tackle 
domestic terrorism without dealing with the problem of White 
supremacy in this country. The efforts right now that we're 
seeing to discourage teachers and schools from talking about 
our honest history are contributing to this narrative that 
White supremacy is not the problem, and it is. We've seen that 
time and time again from the data that is collected by the 
government and from the activities of the groups that we track 
and monitor.
    I would just add, what's most important is that over the 
long term, we have to focus on anti-bias, anti-hate prevention, 
and civic engagement initiatives. This is how we're going to 
counter domestic terrorism. It is the fourth pillar of the 
National Strategy for Countering Domestic Terrorism that was 
put out by the White House and this Biden Administration. We 
hope that this Committee and Congress will take those 
recommendations very seriously and prioritize addressing White 
supremacy as the key to addressing all these problems.
    Thank you, Congresswoman.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Thank you. Just out of those words, have 
you documented that people die, words and actions that you've 
just evidenced?
    Ms. Huang. We have seen time and time again that people die 
because of White supremacy, because of hate and extremism in 
this country, and it's why we have spent so much of our time 
and energy trying to document these ideologies and to give 
warning and support to communities who want to stand up and 
protect themselves.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. I thank you very much.
    Dr. Morgan (sic), as an academician and the President of 
the university representing the world of HBCUs and Thurgood 
Marshall schools, coming from your historic history, which in 
this day and time is important for people to know that there is 
that history, in your leadership and your ability to give 
strength to your students, but do you have as your trepidation 
your history that when anger and hateful comments were made 
people died?
    Mr. Wilson. Unfortunately, that is a part of the great 
history of the formation and survival of HBCUs. I have 
documented in my testimony, going back to 1865, how acts of 
racism have destroyed buildings on the campuses, have led to 
deaths of students and deaths of professors.
    Madam Chair, based on what you just heard from Margaret 
Huang of the Southern Poverty Law Center, it is really that 
connected with your comment that keeps me up at night and keeps 
other HBCU presidents and chancellors up at night. We are in a 
period where we don't know if one of these threats will no 
longer just simply be a threat, and that is a very, very 
frightening place to be.
    Our students who come to Morgan and to other HBCUs, they 
come to get an education. They come to prepare themselves for 
the future of work and the work of the future. They just want 
to have an education in an environment that their very lives 
are not being threatened every day.
    There is no other genre of institutions that I'm aware of, 
as I have raised my hand in this hearing today, that is 
receiving the bomb threats with the kind of regularity that we 
see across HBCUs. I hope the Nation wakes up and responds in a 
way that will bring this to an end. I appreciate the 
opportunity, Madam Chair, for having presented before this 
Subcommittee today.
    Ms. Jackson Lee. Dr. Wilson, thank you.
    Thank you to, as well, I don't think I mentioned Dr. Pennie 
and Dr. Tatum.
    Thank you to all the other Witnesses, which I did express 
my appreciation.
    Dr. Wilson, let it be clear that this Committee, this 
Congress, and this Nation will be standing with you.
    I wish to introduce into the record a series of texts that 
are now appearing in the trial of the Mike Michaels, one to 
read, referring to Black people: ``They ruin everything. That's 
why I love what I do now. Not a n-i-g-g-e-r in sight,'' Mike 
Michaels said in the message. There's a series of these that 
are prevalent in the testimony. I want to add--ask unanimous 
consent to include these in the record, which I will do without 
objection.
    Then, I want to introduce into the record a letter that was 
sent by Chair Nadler, Chair Jackson Lee, Chair Beatty to the 
FBI, in sync Dr. Wilson, and with all of the Witnesses for 
there to be a full briefing of this Committee and, of course, 
the Congressional Black Caucus, on the question of the attacks 
on historically Black colleges and, of course, the rise in 
racism and anti-Semitism among many other groups.
    We're insisting--let me put that on the record. I want to 
ensure Director Wray to know that we will be in touch and want 
this to be immediate and not later, because for Congress to 
act, we must have these kinds of serious briefings. So, that 
letter will be put into the record as well.
    [The information follows:]



      

                     MS. JACKSON LEE FOR THE RECORD

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    Ms. Jackson Lee. As I conclude, let me say to my own city 
of Houston, we are in this fight together. Let me thank Chief 
Finner, Mayor Sylvester Turner for the hard work that is going 
on, that I am joining them in, and the many neighbors that are 
standing up against crime, but the many victims who have been 
victimized by crime. We do not take it lightly, and we are 
equal to cities across the Nation.
    We're coming into a period that mixes the toxicity of the 
pandemic and the toxicity of the divisive language that was 
evidenced on January 6th and in the past years. We now have to 
overcome that with healing and coming together and, yes, 
legislation like H.R. 40.
    I think this hearing has emphasized the importance of the 
work that the Committee is doing, and we will look forward to 
hearings addressing the question of violence forthcoming, 
because that's what we do in Judiciary Committee. We take up 
the issues of concern.
    I want to finally say that Members on this Committee have 
the right to have differing opinions and characterize their own 
words, and I'm sure that all Members appreciate the good work 
of our law enforcement officers that are protecting us across 
the Nation.
    With that, this concludes today's hearing. I thank all of 
you and our distinguished Witnesses for attending. We mourn 
those who have lost loved ones, and we commit ourselves to 
finding solutions.
    Without objection, all Members will have 5 legislative days 
to submit additional written questions for the Witnesses or 
additional materials for the record.
    The hearing is now adjourned. Thank you very much.
    [Whereupon, at 1:08 p.m., the Subcommittee was adjourned.]



      

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