Analysis · Floor speech · beta

Shomari Figures

Democrat on Honoring Michael Figures 2026-09-14

826 words · 38 sentences · 53 clauses

Statement grade

C+

69 / 100, held down by Signal

A score under 50 is red. Choose a measurement to see where it lost points and why; choose it again to clear.

Anecdote 53%Claims 46%Procedure 1%

This view breaks the statement into its steps and names what each one does.

Mr. Speaker, Anecdote · 77 wordsI rise today to recognize the anniversary of the most defining day of my life to date, September 13, 1996, a fall afternoon.¹ My mother walked into a waiting room at the University of South Alabama’s medical center and announced to a collection of friends, family, and colleagues that my father, Michael Figures, had died. He had suffered a brain aneurysm at the house at the dinner table a couple of nights before and ultimately passed away.Anecdote Mr. Speaker, Anecdote · 12 wordsmy father was a lot of things to a lot of people.Anecdote Claims · 19 wordsHe was a State senator.² He was a civil rights advocate. He was a lawyer and a community leader. Anecdote · 6 wordsTo me, he was just Daddy.Anecdote Claims · 57 wordsBy any assessment, he exceeded expectations of a Black kid born in 1947 in Mobile, Alabama, in a neighborhood called The Bottle.³ He went on to excel academically, went to Stillman College in Tuscaloosa, ⁴and was one of a handful of students who were selected to integrate the University of Alabama Law School, and he did that. Mr. Speaker, Claims · 20 words3 years later, he walked out as the first African American to graduate from the University of Alabama Law School.⁵ Procedure · 4 wordsHe didn’t stop there.Procedure Claims · 56 wordsHe got elected to the State senate. Because of the Voting Rights Act, he was one of the first three African Americans to walk into that chamber since Reconstruction. He used that position, as well as being a lawyer, to continue to advocate for rights and to continue to advocate for equality and fairness in communities. Anecdote · 12 wordsYou can imagine that Alabama, at that time, had not experienced them.Anecdote Procedure · 4 wordsHe didn’t stop there.Procedure Claims · 32 wordsIn 1981, the Ku Klux Klan lynched a young man in Mobile, Alabama, named Michael Donald.⁶ My father ultimately brought the lawsuit that resulted in the bankruptcy of the Ku Klux Klan.⁷ Anecdote · 38 wordsI remember that when my father passed away, the condolences started pouring in. President Clinton called the house, and then-Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman called the house, and then Jesse Jackson. Then, there was one who surprised me: AnecdoteClaims · 36 wordsGeorge Wallace--that George Wallace, who, just a few years before my father had integrated University of Alabama Law School, had stood in the schoolhouse doors, famously, to block enrollment of African Americans coming into the school.⁸ Anecdote · 161 wordsLater on, their lives would cross paths. As Governor Wallace was winding down his terms as Governor, my father was in the State senate. As a kid, though I did not fully comprehend or understand the magnitude of my father’s impact or who he was or what he was and what he meant to so many people, I knew one thing: that the respect that I saw shown to him as a kid, whether it was at a park ballfield, in the aisles at Home Depot, or at a gas station, I knew I wanted to be like that when I grew up. This is in an era where Gatorade commercials were plastered around at the time telling kids that ``I want to be like Mike,’’ but the Mike I wanted to be like was not a basketball player. He wore a suit to work, and he was my father. Those footsteps that he left, I would later walk in them.Anecdote Claims · 127 wordsI followed those same footsteps to the University of Alabama, where I got my law degree.¹¹ I followed those same footsteps to the career that I had at the Department of Justice in seeking to make government work for everybody.¹² I followed those footsteps here to Congress because my father, though he never served in Congress, was a State senator. He was the first Black president of the Alabama State Senate. He was the named plaintiff, believe it or not, in the Voting Rights Act case that created the first opportunity district for an African American to represent Alabama since Reconstruction, a seat that is now occupied by Congresswoman Terri Sewell.⁹¹⁰ He literally paved the pathway for me to be here some 30 years after his death. Mr. Speaker, Anecdote · 42 wordsI can stand here today with just a simple message to my father, and that is: I am here because of him. That 10-year-old boy, or barely 11-year-old boy back in September of 1996, became a man, and not just any man.Anecdote Claims · 30 wordsHe became a Congressman who can stand on this floor in this House and deliver this speech because of what he and because of what my mother did for me. Anecdote · 93 wordsAs I sit here today, it is only my dream and my hope that one day, my children, the children who I have of my own--I have four now of my own just like my father--that one day they can also look to me with the same admiration, with the same twinkle in their eyes that I did with my father and say, ``I want to be like my daddy,’’ and that based on the work that we have done in our lives, that that pathway is made easier and possible for them.¹³Anecdote

At a glance

Lost points for
Little substanceMuch of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

Switch Claims on to list the checkable claims here.

What the tags mean

Signal · 39

30 of 30 deductions are Signal

Signal checks whether every part makes a point, gives a reason, or asks for action. A low score means the speaker filled time with fluff, pleasantries, or attacks.

A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I rise today to recognize the anniversary of the most defining day of my life to date, September 13, 1996, a fall afternoon.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “My mother walked into a waiting room at the University of South Alabama’s medical center and announced to a collection of friends, family,”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “and colleagues that my father, Michael Figures, had died.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “He had suffered a brain aneurysm at the house at the dinner table a couple of nights before and ultimately passed away.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “my father was a lot of things to a lot of people.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “To me, he was just Daddy.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “He didn’t stop there.”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “You can imagine that Alabama, at that time, had not experienced them.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
Throat-clearing: announcing what you are about to say, or the House’s routine business.What the tags mean “He didn’t stop there.”Procedure or throat-clearing: no claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I remember that when my father passed away, the condolences started pouring in.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “President Clinton called the house,”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “and then-Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman called the house,”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “and then Jesse Jackson.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “Then, there was one who surprised me:”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “Later on, their lives would cross paths.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “As Governor Wallace was winding down his terms as Governor, my father was in the State senate.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “As a kid, though I did not fully comprehend or understand the magnitude of my father’s impact or who he was or what he was and what he meant to so many people, I knew one thing:”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “that the respect that I saw shown to him as a kid, whether it was at a park ballfield, in the aisles at Home Depot,”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “or at a gas station, I knew I wanted to be like that when I grew up.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “This is in an era where Gatorade commercials were plastered around at the time telling kids that ``I want to be like Mike,’’ but the Mike I wanted to be like was not a basketball player.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “He wore a suit to work,”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “and he was my father.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “Those footsteps that he left, I would later walk in them.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I can stand here today with just a simple message to my father,”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “and that is:”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “I am here because of him.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “That 10-year-old boy,”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “or barely 11-year-old boy back in September of 1996, became a man,”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “and not just any man.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.
A story that illustrates instead of making a point.What the tags mean “As I sit here today, it is only my dream and my hope that one day, my children, the children who I have of my own--I have four now of my own just like my father--that one day they can also look to me with the same admiration, with the same twinkle in their eyes that I did with my father and say, ``I want to be like my daddy,’’ and that based on the work that we have done in our lives, that that pathway is made easier and possible for them.”An anecdote: it illustrates, it does not claim, reason or ask.

Relevance · no score

Not applicable: nothing to answer. Excluded from the average.

Relevance checks whether the speaker stays on topic and answers the question asked. A low score means the speaker dodged the issue.

Reasoning · 87

0 of 30 deductions are Reasoning

Reasoning checks for sound logic and solid support for any conclusion. A low score means the speaker made unsupported leaps or used weak arguments.

Nothing lost points.

Conclusions found · 1

Conclusion“I am here because of him.”

Because“I followed those same footsteps to the University of Alabama,”

“I followed those footsteps here to Congress because my father, though he never served in Congress, was a State senator.”

“He was the named plaintiff, believe it or not, in the Voting Rights Act case that created the first opportunity district for an African American to represent Alabama since Reconstruction, a seat that is now occupied by Congresswoman Terri Sewell.”

“He literally paved the pathway for me to be here some 30 years after his death.”

“He became a Congressman who can stand on this floor in this House and deliver this speech because of what he and because of what my mother did for me.”

Reason given

Respect · no score

Not checked: graded before this measurement existed. Excluded from the average.

Respect checks whether the speaker argued with people’s positions and records rather than attacking the people: insults, mockery, or bad motives assigned to them. Criticism of what someone did, however strong, is not marked.

Clarity · 100

0 of 30 deductions are Clarity

Clarity checks for plain speaking, clear ownership of actions, and honest limits on certainty. A low score means vague promises or evasive language.

Nothing lost points.

Claims · 13

This list shows the factual statements you can check for yourself: the words as said, and the claim restated to stand on its own.

1“September 13, 1996”Michael Figures died on September 13, 1996.search
2“He was a State senator.”Michael Figures served as an Alabama State senator.search
3“a Black kid born in 1947 in Mobile, Alabama”Michael Figures was born in Mobile, Alabama, in 1947.search
4“went to Stillman College in Tuscaloosa”Michael Figures attended Stillman College in Tuscaloosa.search
5“the first African American to graduate from the University of Alabama Law School”Michael Figures was the first African American to graduate from the University of Alabama Law School.search
6“In 1981, the Ku Klux Klan lynched a young man in Mobile, Alabama, named Michael Donald.”Michael Donald was lynched by the Ku Klux Klan in Mobile, Alabama, in 1981.search
7“brought the lawsuit that resulted in the bankruptcy of the Ku Klux Klan”Michael Figures brought the lawsuit that resulted in the bankruptcy of the Ku Klux Klan (United Klans of America).search
8“stood in the schoolhouse doors, famously, to block enrollment of African Americans coming into the school”George Wallace famously stood in the schoolhouse doors at the University of Alabama to block the enrollment of African American students.search
9“He was the named plaintiff, believe it or not, in the Voting Rights Act case that created the first opportunity district for an African American to represent Alabama since Reconstruction, a seat that is now occupied by Congresswoman Terri Sewell.”Michael Figures was the first Black president of the Alabama State Senate.search
10“He was the named plaintiff, believe it or not, in the Voting Rights Act case that created the first opportunity district for an African American to represent Alabama since Reconstruction, a seat that is now occupied by Congresswoman Terri Sewell.”Michael Figures was the named plaintiff in a Voting Rights Act case that created the first African American opportunity district in Alabama since Reconstruction, a seat now held by Congresswoman Terri Sewell.search
11“where I got my law degree”Shomari Figures received his law degree from the University of Alabama.search
12“the career that I had at the Department of Justice”Shomari Figures worked at the Department of Justice.search
13“I have four now of my own just like my father”Shomari Figures has four children, the same number his father had.search

Analyzed on 2026-09-16