I don’t think that I could do one singular thing for 25 hours and 5 minutes. It takes commitment, grit, determination and stamina. And then I would have to come up with a specific reason to do something that long. Would I do it for my children? For my family? For my fellow citizens?
Well, Senator Cory Booker from New Jersey did it for all of those people. In his latest book STAND, he chronicles when he spoke in front of the US Senate for 25 hours and 5 minutes.1 He was speaking out on behalf of millions of Americans who were outraged about cuts to vital programs that sustained their lives – Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security. Early in 2025, change was afoot with new legislation and draconian staff cuts to agencies that assist the most vulnerable amongst us. The health, well-being, dignity and retirement plans for these folks were in serious jeopardy. Senator Booker realized that a dramatic stance was necessary.
Starting at 7 pm on March 31, 2025 and ending 25 hours and 5 minutes later, he finished 1,164 pages of material about the current state of affairs, articulated the pending crisis, and, along the way, shared more than 200 stories from his constituents in New Jersey and across America. He took a stance to speak out on behalf of others. He prepared with some measures that put his own health at potential peril. He stopped eating three days before and stopped fluid intake for 1 day before. Yet he felt compelled to declare his support for others and speak out against the current and pending injustices.
Why so long? The longest previous Senate speech was by SC Senator Strom Thurmond (24 hours and 18 minutes) as he attempted to block the Civil Rights Act of 1957. The irony is not lost on me that the record for the longest Senate speech by an avowed racist trying to subjugate the rights of Blacks back in 1957 was broken by a Black Senator from New Jersey in 2025. Cory Booker broke the record set by Strom Thurmond and in my estimation made a powerful statement on behalf of his fellow citizens. Our leaders should be speaking out and acting to help others, not to hold them back into a state of constant injustice.
One might ask why a pediatrician finds this story so powerful? A skeptic or even a cynic might say this action was not impactful on a wide scale and was specifically targeted to a certain segment of our population. Such an argument is not only fallacious but ignores how a healthy society works. Any acts on behalf of others, small or large, are acts that elevate the human spirit and speak to our spiritual nature. When our words and deeds are in support of others, we demonstrate our love, compassion and caring for those around us, all of those around us.
Acts that boost the lives of adults (like for Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security) elevate the lives of children. A healthy society requires parents, caretakers, policy makers, and citizens who understand that they are setting the stage for the healthy development of our children. They are providing for the nurturing of our children (from birth to adulthood). Senator Booker notes in his book that nearly 40% of NJ residents who rely on Social Security have no other source of income. I am reasonably sure that many of those residents contribute to the lives of their children and grandchildren in a substantial way. So, words and deeds to assist the vulnerable adults amongst us are of vital interest to all, especially our children. Democracy is our social experiment recognizing that all people (and especially children) are created equal, deserving of words and deeds that uplift the human spirit.2
The chapter in STAND that contains the information about Senator Booker’s speech is entitled “Vulnerability.” He considers vulnerability a vital virtue for all of us. I do also.3 Let me highlight some quotes from STAND that emphasize the importance of vulnerability.
- “Vulnerability ends isolation, builds new connections, and creates community.”
- When we realize that our struggles are more often than not shared struggles, the logical course of action is to work together for the common good.
- “Leaders who assert that vulnerability is weakness and that bluster is strength do so in an effort to minimize the power of others and assert their control.”
- To diminish the power of vulnerability is to assume that might makes right. And we know that that is false.
- “In this moral moment, we need those who show the fullness of their being—their brokenness and their endurance, their wounds and their healing, their mistakes and their search for growth and redemption.”
- Senator Booker asserts that our strength, our common bond, lies in our shared vulnerability and our willingness to seek solutions. Only then can we be citizens who care for and care about others.
Senator Cory Booker chose to share his vulnerability by speaking out for an astonishing 25 hours and 5 minutes to demonstrate our shared responsibility for each other. Yet, his impact goes far beyond that 25 hours and 5 minutes. His impact goes beyond his new book STAND. His impact speaks to our need to be ever mindful of our common humanity and role to be ever-present for others. His impact manifests our hopes and dreams for our children and for generations to come.
- Booker C. Stand. 2026; St. Martin’s Press. 263 pp.
- https://mychildrenschildren.com/a-declaration-for-children/
- https://mychildrenschildren.com/vulnerability-makes-us-strong/