Rep. Terri Sewell (D-AL) scolded Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. after he denied saying that "every Black kid" should be "re-parented" instead of getting mental health treatment.

During a Thursday hearing before the House Ways and Means Committee, Sewell noted that Kennedy had made the remarks in a 2024 podcast on the 19Keys Online Show.

"Have you ever re-parented or parented, I should say, a Black child?" the Democratic lawmaker asked Kennedy.....

"Mr. Secretary, for Black families of the United States, the issue of family separation is not new," the lawmaker explained. "During slavery, Black children were taken from their parents and sold with no regard."

"For you to suggest that Black families are not capable of raising their own children is deeply offensive," she added. "And to suggest that they have to be re-parented is offensive."

"I never suggested that," Kennedy griped.

"Your words matter," Sewell remarked. "When those words are careless, communities pay the price. When your words are imprecise, they create confusion. And when your words are dismissive, they cause real harm."

"I expect, and the American people expect that you choose your words with sincereness and with seriousness, the seriousness that your position demands."