Author Archives: Rep. Elijah Cummings

It is time for the Congress to take action that addresses the linkage between unacceptable levels of unemployment and our federal budgetary policy. As I had hoped, my 16th Annual Job Fair last month was a tangible success for many of the 3,500 job-seekers, more than 60 employers and 40 workforce investment experts who participated. […]

After my nephew Christopher was shot and murdered in a home invasion, I mourned the loss of his young and precious life and committed myself to doing everything in my power to make sure that these tragedies would be halted. Yet, I must acknowledge that two years after Christopher’s death, my passion was beginning to […]

In the Baltimore region, and across America, job growth remains the most important issue on people’s minds. That is why job creation continues to be my number one priority in the Congress. We have evidence that our economy is improving. It also remains painfully clear, however, that we have many more good jobs to create, […]

“All types of conniving methods are still being used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters,” Dr. King asserted during his 1957 Give Us the Ballot remarks at the Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom in Washington. “The denial of this sacred right is a tragic betrayal of the highest mandates of our democratic tradition.” As we […]

As a father, husband and son, Women’s History Month has special meaning to me. March is an especially appropriate time, as President Obama declared, “. . . to remember those who fought to make our freedom as real for our daughters as for our sons.” In my “Bread and Roses” column during March of last […]

It now appears that, beginning March 1, Republican resistance to the President’s strategy for getting our economic house in order could well take our economy on a painful toboggan ride. We can avoid this dangerous slide – but only if the will of the American people makes itself felt on Capitol Hill. On March 1, […]

In my community, it seems as if almost every day is a gun murder day. The grieving families and the funeral processions run like clockwork on their journeys to our cemeteries. My own family has been forced to endure this suffering. In America’s inner cities, suburbs and small towns, gun murders take more than 11,000 […]

So many in my parents’ generation – and our own – never thought we’d see an African-American elected president of this country. Now, we have not only been blessed to see that day, but, on Jan.21 – the same day that our nation paused to acknowledge the contributions of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, […]

On Jan. 21, Barack Obama will place his hand on the Bible and take the oath of office for his second term as our President. For most Americans, it will be a moment of celebration. A growing, multi-ethnic coalition, dedicated to progress and greater equity in our society, rose up to overcome a massive effort […]

In a year when volunteers from Maryland played a major role in re-electing America’s first Black President, it is worthwhile recalling the lasting civil rights legacy of our State. This has been University of Maryland Law School Professor Larry Gibson’s mission for nearly four decades.  I know this because he has been my mentor since […]

I am writing this holiday message as many of our neighbors remain homeless and suffering, while others are filled with anxiety about what the future will bring. If you are among them, please know that you are in my prayers as I offer this small story of hope. Those who know me well are aware […]

As the Congress returns to Washington from the Thanksgiving district work period, our most urgent responsibility is reaching the compromises on taxes, government programs and the national debt limit that will avoid pushing our nation off the “fiscal cliff.” If ever there was a time for common sense to prevail in Washington, that time is […]