WASHINGTON, Nov. 8, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The following is a
letter from U.S. Congressman Bobby
Rush supporting the breakup of Comcast:
Mr. Brian Roberts
Chief Executive Officer
Comcast Corporation
1701 John F. Kennedy Boulevard Philadelphia, PA 19103-2838
Dear Mr. Roberts:
I am dismayed that Comcast is attempting to undo the United States' oldest civil rights statute
the Civil Rights Act of 1866 (hereafter, the Act) and,
specifically, Section 1 (as updated at 42 U.S.C. *1981) — which has
been the bedrock civil rights law for more than 150 years, by
asserting that a person who was denied the right to a contract must
prove that race was "but for" the cause of such denial, an
impossible standard to meet. The Civil Rights Act of 1866
guarantees all persons, regardless of race, an equal right "to make
and enforce contracts." In pursuing this case to the Supreme Court
of the United States (hereafter,
Supreme Court), Comcast is putting corporate profits ahead of
public interest, and is employing a scorched earth policy to defend
a corporate business decision.
It is well established in cannons of law that the intent of the
authors of the Act was to protect freed slaves from the actions of
those determined to harm them. Sadly, some 150 years later there
remain strong elements of oppression committed to excluding
African-Americans from the bounty of the U.S. economy. By almost
every measure, the need to fight against active discrimination is
obvious and ongoing.
As I write this letter, I am moved by the fact that Senator
Lyman Trumbull, from my home state
of Illinois, was the lead sponsor
of this Act. At a time when it was desperately needed, he stepped
forward and provided aid to the oppressed. As he eloquently and
succinctly stated, "Congress is bound to see that freedom is in
fact secured to every person throughout the land; he must be fully
protected in all his rights of person and property." Senator
Trumbull understood the vicious hatred and racism expressed towards
newly freed black men and women, as evidenced by the black codes
and lynchings of that era, he and the members of the
39th Congress knew legal protections were absolutely
vital. Therefore, they enacted this landmark legislation in spite
of a veto by President Andrew
Johnson, who shamelessly and cowardly called them traitors.
Carrying on in this strong tradition, I have reinvigorated the
fight against lynching by introducing legislation and am lending my
voice to defend the Civil Rights Act of 1866.
Comcast has enjoyed the largesse as has the cable industry, in
general of the African American and other minority communities and
has reached such prominence that it now disregard these communities
with a cold, callous corporate insensitivity that is stultifying,
arrogant, harmful, and intensely painful. This is further made
clear by the fact that it would seek to weaken the protections of
the Act to merely prevail in a lawsuit. Furthermore, it is not lost
on me that Comcast is joined in this effort by the Trump Justice
Department who, for the last three years, has systematically and
consistently worked against the rights of minority communities and
has now joined in making the argument to undermine the Act before
the Supreme Court.
Comcast's actions today call into question why it signed
Memoranda of Understanding (hereafter, memoranda) on diversity with
the Asian American Justice Center, East West Players, Hispanic
Association on Corporate Responsibility, Japanese American Citizens
League, Media Action Network, National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People, National Action Network, National
Hispanic Leadership Agenda, National Hispanic Media Coalition,
National Urban League, and Organization of Chinese Americans.
Further, we must note that these memoranda were instrumental in
securing the support of the Congressional Asian Pacific American
Caucus, Congressional Black Caucus, and Congressional Hispanic
Caucus for its acquisition of NBC Universal. The contradictory
nature of its legal argument leads me to believe that these
memoranda were signed merely for political expediency.
It is evident to me that with this demonstration of corporate
greed, Comcast has forfeited and repudiated its claim to be an
inclusive company that is a friend of the black community and, with
this betrayal, has shown itself to be an enemy of minority
communities. Furthermore, Comcast's decision to ignore the
memoranda illustrates a careless disregard of minority communities
and their interests. Simply put, it is my belief that the Comcast
Corporation needs to be broken up.
Sincerely,
Bobby L.
Rush
Bobby Rush
Member of Congress
cc:
Members of Congress
U.S. Attorney General
Federal Trade Commission
Federal Communications Commission
State, District of Columbia, and
Territorial Attorneys General
Comcast Board Members
David L. Cohen, Senior Executive
Vice President & Chief Diversity Officer, Comcast
Comcast Institutional Investors
Comcast Advertisers
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SOURCE Entertainment Studios, Inc.