Honoring Dr. King

Today, we pause to reflect on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and honor his life with action.

This holiday is an important opportunity for us to recommit to his work – rooting out hate and extremism, protecting the right to vote, and promoting economic opportunity for all Americans.

I try and apply those principles to my work in Congress each and every single day. I’ve introduced bills to help first-time, first-generation homebuyers – primarily people of color – build equity in their homes faster, helping to close the racial wealth gap. I’ve championed expansions of the Voting Rights Act, seismic legislation Dr. King spent years fighting to pass. And I work each and every day to make it easier for low-income and minority Americans to access start-up capital, so more Americans of all backgrounds can get a fair shot at the American Dream.

It’s been a particularly challenging year. I know many Virginians feel that we’re moving backwards, further from the visions and ideals Dr. King championed. I take solace in his words: “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”

Things are frightening right now – but I haven’t lost my hope that we live in a country that will overcome these threats. I have infinite hope that our brightest days are still ahead, and will only be possible if we all continue to embody Dr. King’s mission.

Today, I will be reflecting on how I can best do that in the year ahead. I hope you will join me.