[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 16 (Wednesday, February 23, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: February 23, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
BLACK HISTORY MONTH
Mr. STOKES. Madam Speaker, I want to express my appreciation to my
colleagues who are joining me in the Chamber this evening for our
special order in observance of Black History Month. We take special
pride in this opportunity to highlight and pay tribute to the notable
accomplishments of African-Americans who have contributed so much to
this great Nation. I am pleased to also recognize the efforts of our
colleague, Kweisi Mfume, the distinguished chairman of the
Congressional Black Caucus, who joins me in sponsoring this special
order.
Madam Speaker, as we gather to commemorate Black History Month, we
recognize the contributions of African-Americans to every facet of
American history. Indeed, African-Americans have a rich and magnificent
history; a history which is inextricably woven into the economic,
social, and political fabric of the Nation.
In 1926, the late Dr. Carter G. Woodson understood that black
Americans were not receiving recognition in history for their
contributions. Therefore, he proposed setting aside 1 week during the
month of February to commemorate the achievements of black Americans.
In 1976 the observance was changed to Black History Month.
The Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History,
which Dr. Woodson founded, has selected the theme, ``Empowering Afro-
Americans Organizations: Present and Future,'' for the 1994 observance
of Black History Month.
Madam Speaker, in his published work entitled, ``Black Politics: A
Theoretical and Structural Analysis,'' the author, Hanes Walton, Jr.,
notes the influence of black organizations or black pressure groups. He
says,
The principal tactic of black pressure groups, and one that
serves to distinguish them from most other groups, is their
appeal to the conscience of the people against the denial of
justice in the broadest sense. The chief concern of black
groups has been the attainment of rights that can only be had
either through force, concern, or morality.
As we celebrate Black History Month, let us pause to pay tribute to
Afro-American organizations whose founding and, more importantly, whose
perseverance, has proven instrumental in the struggle for civil rights
and economic justice here in America, and around the globe.
Madam Speaker, perhaps the best-known organization associated with
black America and the struggle for civil rights is the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People [NAACP]. The NAACP
came into being on February 12, 1909--the 100th anniversary of the
birth of President Abraham Lincoln. The organization was founded in New
York City by liberal whites and intellectual blacks, largely in
response to the increasing outrages against blacks in the South during
the early 1900's.
The NAACP set out to acquire for all black citizens the rights and
privileges numerated in the Constitution. The organization relied
chiefly upon legal proceedings, legislative action, and educational
means to bring about social change. Leaders of the NAACP spoke out when
poll taxes kept blacks from voting in the South. The organization
appealed to the supreme court to outlaw segregation in the schools.
Members of the NAACP sat at segregated lunch counters and marched to
end Jim Crow laws in the South. Throughout its history, the
organization has remained steadfast in its commitment to the struggle
for equality.
Just recently, Dr. Benjamin Hooks retired as executive director of
the NAACP. During Black History Month, we pause to recognize his
leadership and historic contributions. I also take great pride in
saluting the new president of this distinguished organization, Dr.
Benjamin Chavis. I am proud to note that Dr. Chavis was an outspoken
and celebrated leader in my congressional district of Cleveland prior
to assuming this post.
Madam Speaker, similar to the NAACP, the National Urban League was
also founded by blacks and whites in New York. The league was actually
born as a coalition of three social agencies in New York City--the
committee for improving the industrial conditions of Negroes in New
York City; the League for the Protection of Colored Women; and the
Committee on Urban Conditions among Negroes. In 1911, the organizations
merged to become the National League of Urban Conditions Among Negroes,
later abbreviated to the National Urban League.
The National Urban League began as an organization to help black
migrants to New York City find suitable employment and make as smooth
as possible a transition from rural southern to urban Northern life. a
major goal of the league and its affiliates was to broaden economic
opportunities for blacks by using the techniques of persuasion and
conciliation to open up doors that had been closed before.
In the 1960's with the election of Whitney Young as its new
president, the League emerged as a force in the struggle for civil
rights. We recognize the tireless efforts of the leaders of this
distinguished organization including Whitney Young, Vernon L. Jordan,
and the organization's current president, John Jacob.
As we celebrate Black History Month, we recall that many of our Afro-
American organizations came into being in the 1950's just as the civil
rights movement in America was about to explode. One such organization
is the Southern Christian Leadership Conference [SCLC] which was born
out of the Montgomery bus boycott. It was in January 1957 that
representatives from 10 Southern States, consisting mainly of Black
ministers, gathered at Atlanta's Ebenezer Baptist Church to establish
an organization committed to the achievement of civil rights for black
Americans.
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference chose as its president a
gifted young black minister, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who as
president of the Montgomery Improvement Association, was successful in
desegregating a bus system in a city that was known for its harsh
racial tactics.
Under the leadership of Dr. King, SCLC became one of the most
influential and effective civil rights groups. The
organization espoused a doctrine of nonviolent protest and passive
resistance in its assault on segregation and discrimination.
Those who have followed Dr. King at the helm of this great
organization, including Rev. Ralph Abernathy and the current president,
Joseph Lowery, have continued to battle injustice and inequality.
Madam Speaker, the principles embraced by the founders of the NAACP,
the National Urban League, and the SCLC continue to provide the
framework for combating political, social, and economic racism. During
Black History Month, let us pay tribute to other Afro-American
organizations who share these same goals.
We recognize the efforts of the Congress of Racial Equality [CORE].
We salute Rev. Jesse Jackson and acknowledge the numerous contributions
of Operation Push and the National Rainbow Coalition. We also pay
special tribute to Dorothy Height whose leadership over the years has
been instrumental to the National Council of Negro Women.
Madam Speaker, I believe that each of us in this Chamber needs look
only in our congressional districts to identify Afro-American
organizations who have had a a tremendous impact in the quest for
empowerment. In my congressional district, I am proud to applaud the
National Black Nurses Association, the Phillis Wheatley Association,
the Black Professionals Association, and an organization of significant
political clout which I founded, the Black Elected Democrats of
Cleveland, Ohio [BEDCO].
This evening I also take special pride in recognizing the enormous
contributions of the Congressional Black Caucus. This political
empowering organization of which I am proud to be a founding member,
has been instrumental in articulating the concerns of the African-
American community. From the founding 13 to the present 40, we have
grown not only in size, but also in significance, shaping the way
America views the black community.
This special order in celebration of Black History Month provides
just a glimpse of the historical contributions of African-American
leaders and organizations to our Nation. However, we must recognize the
larger picture; that not only in February, but in every month and,
indeed, every day, African-American men and women are contributing to
the building, shaping, and preservation of this great democracy. Our
history is America's history.
Madam Speaker, I thank my colleagues for joining me in this special
observance of Black History Month.
Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California [Mr. Tucker].
Mr. TUCKER. I thank the gentleman for yielding to me.
Madam Speaker, I appreciate this opportunity to address this House
and indeed the Nation on the question of Black History Month and
certainly recognition of so many role models and so much prominent
history.
This month has been called Black History Month, African-American
History Month, and even, Madam Speaker, more recently African Heritage
Month. Indeed, that underscores the need to look back into the heritage
of persons of African-American descent in this country and remind
ourselves of the rich heritage and indeed the rich history and the rich
legacy which we have inherited.
Of course, you will hear many speeches over the next few minutes, or
hours, alluding to so many different role models that we have had, and
the list goes on and on and on.
I think that indeed points out the most important thing about black
history, that black history is ongoing, it cannot be relegated to just
February, it must not be something that is just educable for just a
month, but it must be something that we must continue to educate
ourselves on for a lifetime.
Indeed, not only must African-Americans learn and understand about
African-American history but indeed this entire Nation must learn about
African-American history. For if we are to better understand ourselves
as Americans, where people do not continually say, ``Why do you all
want to be called African-Americans? Why not just be called
Americans?''
Certainly this is a pluralistic society, and there are various
aspects of America and Americans. But I think because it is a
pluralistic society, that prospect does not make it mutually exclusive
with the recognition and specifically the commemoration of the unique
contributions and unique history of African-Americans in this society.
We are proud to be Americans here, but we also take some very
specific pride in our unique history and the contributions of our
ancestors. I do not think anyone who appreciates their own ethnicity or
background would have any qualm or have any conflict with that.
Going back to the African-American history, it is so interesting that
there is something new to learn every moment on this. I was reminded
during this month by various programs on television--and I would
encourage Americans to look at those programs--of a bit of information
that I was not aware of. I was aware that certainly Martin Luther King
gained great distinction as a Nobel Prize Winner. Last year we had the
first Nobel Peace Prize Winner in literary, an African-American woman.
But the question arose of who was the first black American, or back in
those days, Negro, to win the Nobel Peace Prize for Peace? I thought it
was Martin Luther King, but I was reminded it was Ralph Bunche. That
certainly points to the fact, Madam Speaker, that here some 40 years
ago a gentleman who became the first African-American to reach the high
position, in fact the top position, in the United Nations at the time,
Undersecretary General. Here was a time even before the civil rights
movement, before Martin Luther King, before Stokeley Carmichael, before
Angela Davis, before it was even popular to call yourself black, and
this gentleman was able to move up into the higher ranks of the United
Nations. Indeed, when his superior was unable to fulfill his commitment
in the Middle East, certainly Ralph Bunche took on the leadership of
negotiating peace in the Middle East between the Arabs and the Jews.
{time} 1720
My point, Madam Speaker, is that our history is replete with the
evidence of men and women who were ahead of their time and who braved
all the adversities that faced them, and it seems to me that the
message in black history needs to be that we need to be reminding our
young people, and our families, of just how much we did achieve in the
past while facing all kinds of adversities. And here we are with young
people with an opportunity to be educated, and to have access to
education, to training in the jobs, even though we know unemployment is
higher disproportionately in our community, but there are those who are
dropping out and are not taking advantage of the opportunities we have.
Certainly we, as a community, have to pull together, and we have to
create more Ralph Bunches, and more Martin Luther King, Juniors, and
more Mary Barrys and more Harriet Tubmans.
Our history is today. We can make history new each and every day,
Madam Speaker, and so I want to encourage us to follow that adage from
the old African proverb that says that it takes a whole village to
raise one child. That certainly is more important now than ever, as I
conclude with my remarks, because the statistics show us today that the
African-American community has, unfortunately, a unique aspect to it,
and that is that 68 percent of all African-American families are headed
by single parents, and those single parents are generally black women.
So it is important that we, in light of that statistic, do all that we
can as a community, particularly with the churches being a forefront of
our community, to surround these women, young women, with the support
they need to raise our young men in a way that we will not be able to
say any longer that we have more black men in jail than we do in
college.
Madam Speaker, this is a time where we not only need to revel in our
history, but draw back from our history and to not have some of the
unfortunate consequences of our social development repeated so.
So I thank the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Stokes] again for this time.
I want to encourage his leadership and encourage the leadership of our
chairman, the gentleman from Maryland [Mr. Mfume], and encourage all of
us to work together with the Black Caucus and other African-American
leaders to make sure that we can continue to see history made anew each
and every day. And I salute the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Stokes] for
his leadership because he has been a hero of mine, a role model of mine
and for so many other young African-American men and women not only who
espouse to the U.S. Congress, but who espouse to do great things, not
only to contribute to African-American history, but to America as well.
I say to the gentleman, My hat is off to you, and God bless you.
Mr. STOKES. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend and colleague for his
very warm and kind remarks, and I appreciate his contributions to this
special order.
I am pleased to yield at this time to the gentlewoman from Florida
[Mrs. Meek], our distinguished colleague who is a member of the
Committee on Appropriations of the House and, in her own right, is a
very distinguished Member.
Mrs. MEEK of Florida. Madam Speaker, I am honored to stand before you
today, balancing on the strong shoulders of those who have preceded us
and those who today tell us by word and deed that we are a proud,
strong race of people. In fact, we are much like the old jack-in-the-
box. Yes, the jack-in-the-box. You can push us down, clamp the lid
shut, but when we hear the sweet refrain of the collective love and
support of our black brothers and sisters, up we pop.
Throughout history there have been black men and women who, although
oppressed and suppressed, have risen up to inspire and uplift us. There
are so many--men like Frederick Douglas, Marcus Garvey, Dr. Martin
Luther King, Malcolm X, and Nelson Mandela--women like Harriett Tubman,
Rosa Parks, Mary McLeod Bethune and Dr. Dorothy Height. I could go on
and on. We have been kings and queens, slaves, farmers, educators,
poets, scientists, entertainers, preachers, businesspeople, cabinet
members, Congress men and women and Senators. We have come far by the
sweat of our brow through perseverance and dogged determination and,
yes, definitely, through suffering. And while black people as a whole
struggled mightily, a section of us have had an added obstacle to
overcome--that of being a woman. So now you had to deal with being
black and therefore thought not to be as good as a white man, and being
a woman, therefore known not to be as good as any man. We were given no
rights as blacks and didn't need any as women.
Then one day there came a 6-foot tall, thin, dark-skinned woman. She
was an abolitionist, lecturer-preacher with a deep voice and a Dutch
accent. After having lived half her life, this former slave had a
revelation. It was necessary that everyone who would listen know that
black people had rights and deserved to vote and that women were equal
to men and deserved equal rights and dignity. This orator was born into
slavery as Isabella Baumfree in 1797. Although technically ``freed'' in
1827 by New York's Emancipation Act, it was at age 46 that she felt a
rebirth--a need to help her people. With that rebirth she gave herself
a new name. Because she would travel up and down the land to bring her
message--she took the name Sojourner. Because she was going to speak
the truth to any who would listen--she took the name Truth. Yes,
Sojourner Truth--a genuine inspiration to me in my life.
She never learned to read and write, yet she mesmerized people with
her thorough understanding of the slave mentality and littlemindedness
that was intent on keeping blacks and women downtrodden. She was stoned
and beaten to keep her from speaking the truth in public, but nothing
could keep her down, just like that jack-in-the-box I mentioned
earlier. Throughout her long life of 80-plus years, Sojourner Truth
never stopped. When she could no longer travel she taught freedwomen in
Washington, DC, and crusaded for black settlements on western public
lands.
And so, Sojourner Truth, here I am today, on my journey. You taught
me to stand up and speak the truth. You taught me that as a black woman
I had an almost impossible road to travel, but with God's help I could
make it through. You taught me that no matter how far I had to travel,
it was my duty to embrace my people--men and women, boys and girls--and
lift them up.
Oh, there are so, so many wonderful black men and women who have
inspired me in my life and continue to do so. But, you see, this lady
is special to me because she was a woman. In an address to the Ohio
Women's Rights Convention in 1851, Sojourner Truth addressed the issue
of women's rights plainly and oh, so, magnificently when she said in
her speech entitled ``And Ain't I a Woman?'':
That man over there says that women need to be helped into
carriages and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place
everywhere. Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-
puddles, or gives me any best place! And ain't I a woman?
Look at me! Look at my arm. I have ploughed and planted, and
gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And ain't I a
woman? I could work as much and eat as much as a man--when I
could get it--and bear the lash as well! And ain't I a woman?
I have borne thirteen children, and seen them most all sold
off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother's grief,
none but Jesus heard me! And ain't I a woman? * * * If the
first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world
upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able
to turn it back, and get it right side up again! * * *
Obliged to you for hearing me, and now old Sojourner ain't
got nothing more to say.
Well, my friends, thanks to great black men and women like Sojourner
Truth, we not only have a lot more to say, but many forums in which to
say it. Imagine, here I stand in the well of the House of
Representatives, a little black girl from tallahassee, FL, not only
celebrating but living black history. Thank you, Sojourner Truth, and
all the many other great blacks, past and present. I intend to make you
proud.
[From the Columbian Orator]
Sojourner Truth: Address to the Ohio Women's Rights Convention, ``And
Ain't I a Woman?'' Akron, OH, 1851
Well, Children,
Where there is so much racket there must be something out
of kilter. I think that twixt the Negroes of the South and
the women at the North, all talking about rights, the white
men will be in a fix pretty soon. But what's all this here
talking about?
That man over there says that women need to be helped into
carriages and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place
everywhere. Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-
puddles, or gives me any best place! And ain't I a woman?
Look at my arm. I have ploughed and planted, and gathered
into barns, and no man could head me! And ain't I a woman? I
could work as much and eat as much as a man--when I could get
it--and bear the lash as well! And ain't I a woman? I have
borne thirteen children, and seen them most all sold off to
slavery, and when I cried out with my mother's grief, none
but Jesus heard me! And ain't I a woman?
Then they talk about this thing in the head; what's this
they call it? [Intellect, someone whispers.] That's it,
honey. What's that got to do with women's rights or Negro's
rights? If my cup won't hold but a pint, and yours holds a
quart, wouldn't you be mean not to let me have my little
half-measure full?
Then that little man in black there, he says women can't
have as much rights as men, 'cause Christ wasn't a woman!
Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman! Man
had nothing to do with Him.
If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn
the world upside down all alone, these women together ought
to be able to turn it back, and get it right side up again!
And now they is asking to do it, the men better let them.
Obliged to you for hearing me, and now old Sojourner ain't
got nothing more to say.
{time} 1730
Madam Speaker, I say to the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Stokes], I would
say where he has led us here in the Congress, we are so proud of the
role that he has created for us. It is merely now a matter of following
in the footsteps of the senior Members who planted the seed before we
got here, because they have done what God would have each of us do. And
that is to give service, for service is a price we pay for the space
which God let us occupy.
Mr. STOKES. Madam Speaker, I thank my distinguished friend and
colleague from Florida for her very eloquent statement on this floor
and her very kind remarks to the gentleman in the well.
I am now pleased to yield to a friend and colleague, the gentleman
from Florida [Mr. Hutto].
Mr. HUTTO. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding to me.
Madam Speaker, I rise today in observance of Black History Month to pay
tribute to three outstanding people from Pensacola, FL, in my
congressional district.
These individuals were honored at the first annual Chappie James
Award Banquet on February 12 for their continuous community service and
their determination to be the very best. My wife Nancy and I were
honored to attend.
Before I talk about the three awardees, I want to say a few words
about the namesake of the event, Gen. Chappie James. A native of
Pensacola, Chappie made us all proud of his service to his country. He
was a decorated U.S. Air Force pilot in the Vietnam conflict and
later became the first black officer to attain the rank of four-star
general in the Air Force.
As a member of the Florida Legislature in the 1970's, it was great to
see that body honor General James in a special ceremony. I remember
vividly what an imposing figure he was and what a dynamic, patriotic
speech he delivered to the legislature. General James made us all truly
proud to be Americans.
At the recent banquet in his memory, it was good to see members of
Chappie's family present, including his sister Mrs. Lillie James
Frazier, an outstanding educator and citizen of Pensacola.
The recipients of the first annual Daniel ``Chappie'' James
Humanitarian Awards were Emmitt Smith, Roy Jones Junior and Sue
Straughn.
Madam Speaker, in contrast to some star athletes today, Emmitt Smith
wants to be a role model and he has stated that plainly. He wants young
people to follow his leadership. Before becoming the most valuable
player in the National Football League and in the Super Bowl, Emmitt
was a star at Escambia High School and then at the University of
Florida. Emmitt has always been a hard worker and a true competitor. In
a game against the New York Giants this season, Emmitt injured his
shoulder but gallantly stayed in the game, and rushed the Dallas
Cowboys to a win. He later led the Cowboys convincingly through the
playoffs and to a second consecutive Super Bowl victory. All the while,
Emmitt has credited his family and Pensacola upbringing for his
success.
When asked how he avoided trouble as a youngster, Emmitt explained,
``It never occurred to me then, and I would never dishonor myself or my
family.'' Emmitt Smith, a true role model.
Madam Speaker, Pensacola is also home to the next superstar of
boxing, Roy Jones, Jr. Roy is IBF World's Middleweight Champ. Fast and
flashy, Roy definitely has a style people remember.
Roy represented the United States in the 1988 Olympics, winning a
silver medal and the Val Barker Trophy as the outstanding boxer of the
Games. Many remember the bad decision that deprived him of a gold
medal. But Roy plodded on to great things.
Roy is a good citizen and a good example for all of us. He often
speaks to young people about the perils of drugs and the value of
education and he is currently furthering his own education at Pensacola
Junior College.
Madam Speaker, Sue Straughn is not only a local celebrity, but an
inspiration and example to all of Pensacola. Sue is the senior anchor
at WEAR-TV in Pensacola. Her 21 years at the station has made Sue a
familiar face and a household name. Many stars just lend their name to
charity letterheads. Sue does so much more than that. She is the
founder and--for 14 years--has been the organizer of the Communities
Caring at Christmas Campaign. She is the creator, producer and host of
the annual Spotlight on Youth Talent Competition and Telethon.
Sue has displayed an unmatched level of caring for the young people
of Pensacola. She is an arbitrator of the Juvenile Justice System
working to straighten out young lives. She is active in the Big
Brothers and Big Sisters of Escambia County and is a Classroom
Facilitator for Junior Achievement. She also works with the United Way,
the West Florida Regional Medical Center, the Pensacola Symphony, the
Chamber of Commerce and many other organizations.
It would take much longer than the time I have here, Madam Speaker,
to list the number of Pensacola service organizations that have named
Sue Straughn citizen of the year. It is an understatement to say Sue is
well thought of by her fellow citizens.
Madam Speaker, It is a pleasure for me to recognize three great
Americans, three great African-Americans today. The accomplishments of
Emmitt, Roy and Sue are an inspiration to Northwest Floridians of all
races excellent role models. Their contributions have made our home
town of Pensacola even better and have made us all very proud.
Mr. STOKES. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his contribution
to this special order.
I am now pleased to yield to my distinguished colleague, the
gentleman from South Carolina [Mr. Clyburn].
Mr. CLYBURN. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding to me.
Madam Speaker, I am pleased to join with my colleagues, the
gentlewoman from Texas [Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson], the gentlewoman
from Florida [Mrs. Carrie Meek], the gentleman from Florida [Mr.
Hutto], the gentleman from Mississippi [Mr. Thompson], and the
gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Payne], as we call attention to the
great contributions made to the overall growth and development of this
great Nation by men and women of African-American descent.
Two weeks ago, on February 11, 1994, a space shuttle returned to
Earth which included a Russian cosmonaut as a mission specialist,
marking the first joint United States-Russian human space flight since
the Apollo test project in 1975. In view of our celebration of Black
History Month, I believe it appropriate to highlight the fact that the
commander of that shuttle, Col. Charles F. Bolden, Jr., is an African-
American from Columbia, SC, and grew up in what is now the Sixth
Congressional District of South Carolina, which I am proud to
represent.
Eight years ago, on January 28, 1986, we all watched in horror as the
space shuttle Challenger exploded, 1 minute and 13 seconds after
launch, with 7 men and women aboard. One of the men, Dr. Ronald E.
McNair, was an African-American.
Dr. McNair grew up in Lake City, SC, where I spent this past Monday,
which is now in the Sixth Congressional District of South Carolina.
{time} 1740
Before Charles Bolden and Ron McNair were even born, Ernest Henderson
became the first black man from the State of South Carolina to have a
commercial pilot's license and hold ground instructor, flight
instructor, and instrument ratings. At the Tuskegee flight school Mr.
Henderson taught and trained an average of 20 cadets a year, who
entered the famous 99th Pursuit Squadron which made history in World
War II.
Madam Speaker, I point these three incidents out at this time because
I think it is important for us to reflect upon a continuing custom
among so many of our citizens to perpetuate policies and practices that
limit the participation of certain segments of our society on account
of ethnicity, socioeconomic background, and religious beliefs.
Not long ago, in October 1925, the Army War College prepared a report
titled, ``The Use of Negro Manpower in War.'' This report concluded
that blacks were fair laborers but inferior technicians and fighters.
It also stated that the cranial cavity of the negro was much smaller
than the white's, and that a negro's brain weighed 35 ounces versus 45
ounces for whites.
Other studies concluded that blacks lacked patriotism, were
untruthful, were difficult to discipline and train, and ran off in
times of danger.
I believe, Madam Speaker, that the success of Charles Bolden, the
tremendous sacrifice of Dr. Ronald McNair, the pioneering spirit of
Ernest Henderson, and all of the other work by people like Dr. Mae
Jemison, Dr. Bernard Harris, and many other people of color who are a
part of our space shuttle program, point out the fallacy and
viciousness of the 1925 report. I believe that it is high time for us
to move to incorporate as one of our national education goals the true
depiction of African-Americans for their historical and continued
contributions to the overall development and growth of our Nation.
Madam Speaker, I would like to close my part in this program by
recalling the words written by Martin Luther King, Jr., as he sat in
the Birmingham City Jail after being arrested for calling attention to
the problems of segregation in that city. Dr. King, as we may recall,
wrote a letter in response to a letter that he had received from eight
white clergymen asking him to leave Birmingham because they thought
that he was a disruptive force in that community.
Dr. King read that letter, and the letter had something very
interesting in it. They said to Dr. King, ``Dr. King, we want you to
understand that we know that your cause is right. We just feel that
your timing is wrong.'' In his letter, Dr. King wrote about the
neutrality of time. He responded that, ``Time is neutral. It is never
right and it is never wrong. Time is only what we make it.''
Dr. King penned these words, which I want to share with our audience
here today. Dr. King said, ``I am beginning to believe that the people
of ill will in our society make a much, much better use of time than
the people of good will.''
I believe that the time has come, Mr. Speaker, for the people of good
will in our society to make a much better use of time, and in so doing,
help right the wrongs that are existing in so many of our textbooks.
Mr. STOKES. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend and colleague, the
gentleman from South Carolina, for his excellent statement.
Madam Speaker, I am pleased now to yield to my friend and colleague,
the distinguished gentleman from Mississippi [Mr. Thompson].
Mr. THOMPSON. Madam Speaker, I stand today to pay tribute to a slain
civil rights leader, the late Medgar Wiley Evers. After graduating from
the public schools in Decatur, MS, he enlisted in the U.S. Army where
he served in World War II. Upon returning from the Army, he then
enrolled in Alcorn State University in Lorman, MS where he earned a
bachelor of science degree in business administration.
Medgar began his career as an insurance agent with the Magnolia
Mutual Insurance Co. in Mound Bayou, MS. Thereafter, he moved to
Jackson, MS, and became active with the Mississippi chapter of the
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. In 1954, he
was appointed field secretary of the Mississippi NAACP. Under Medgar's
leadership, the NAACP advocated desegregation of public schools
throughout Mississippi. In fact, he served as a plaintiff on behalf of
his three children to desegregate the Jackson, MS, School System. In
addition, he worked closely with NAACP lawyers in getting the first
black student admitted to the University of Mississippi in 1962.
As the only full-time staff member of the Mississippi NAACP, Medgar
devoted his life to fighting the injustices that plagued blacks in the
State. He was actively involved in every major mass movement for social
change in Mississippi from 1954 until his assassination in 1963.
I might add, Madam Speaker, that I had personal recollection of
Medgar as an impressionable college student attending many of the mass
meetings held by Medgar, and was really inspired by his love of
humanity, the fact that not only did he serve his country in the
military, but he also talked about the constitutional rights and
privileges that should be guaranteed to all, regardless of race, creed,
or color. It was in that spirit that, as a college student at Tusculum
College, I recommitted myself of getting involved in the political
process at an early age, and have continued ever since.
Medgar was instrumental in encouraging and registering blacks to
vote. He also encouraged black customers to boycott merchants who
perpetuated segregation. Even though Medgar strongly opposed racial
violence, he was assassinated on a hot summer night in June 1963. This
was a turning point in the civil rights movement, because it encouraged
citizens and the Federal Government to increase their efforts in the
area of human rights.
I might add, Madam Speaker, also that for 14 years I represented the
community that Medgar lived in in Hinds County, MS, and I serve on the
board of trustees of Tusculum College, who is the custodian of the
Medgar Evers home now, which is now a landmark for African-Americans to
visit when they come to Jackson, MS.
I think 2 weeks ago we sort of put a close to this very bad chapter
in Mississippi's history. After 30 years and two mistrials, a third
trail was held this year and a jury convicted the murderer of this
husband, father, statesman, hero, and leader, Medgar Wiley Evers. I
might add that many of us saw for the past 30 years how the person
convicted bragged on the fact that he had deprived this wife of a
husband and children of a father, and we complimented the prosecutors
in producing that very convincing argument.
Last, in the spirit of Medgar Wiley Evers, we have filed a bill to
name the post office in Jackson, MS, in his memory, and we look forward
to an expeditious consideration of the naming of that facility.
Mr. STOKES. Madam Speaker, I certainly thank the gentleman for the
great tribute he has paid to Medgar Evers. Also we might say that his
wife, Myrlie Evers, has certainly been a great inspiration to all of us
in this country.
I am pleased at this time to yield to the gentleman from Texas, Ms.
Eddie Bernice Johnson, a distinguished colleague and friend.
{time} 1750
Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I thank the
gentleman for yielding and for taking this time.
``Some organizations easily be recalled as forefront organizations
that have played overt and well known roles in the battle for equality
for Black Americans. However, there are others that play sufficient
roles that have been organized by Black American Women. Three of them
I'd like to cite tonight are Links, Inc., Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority,
Inc. and Jack and Jill, Inc.''
As we celebrate Black History Month, we are called to reflect upon
those people, places, and events which played a significant role in
shaping the past, present, and future of black Americans in this
country. An integral part of this history are the activities and
dedication of black civic organizations such as Links, Inc., Jack and
Jill, and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. The late Reverend Dr. Martin
Luther King once said, ``Power is the ability to achieve purpose.''
Contained within the purposes of these organizations are the
improvement of the status of the race, the charge to improve the
quality of life and provide hope for disadvantaged African-American
citizens, and to ensure equal opportunities and advantages for all
children. Each of these organizations are well grounded in their
purposes. Each of these organizations have played key roles in the past
and by purpose will continue to do so in the future.
Jack and Jill, Inc. and Jack and Jill Foundation was funded in 1938
in Philadelphia by a group of black women. Jack and Jill today boasts a
membership of over 37,000 men, women, and children. Ms. Ella Louis
Hudson, Dallas Chapter Founder with 220 chapters nationwide, Jack and
Jill strives to create positive communities for young black children.
It is charged with a multifaceted task, that of teaching our young
children about who they are and who they can be, and also Jack and Jill
is tasked with instilling the idea of responsibility and civic duty in
the next generation of black leaders.
Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority has a membership of 140,000 of this
Nation's brightest and talented young women. Mrs. Theresa Hicks and
Mrs. Florence Harlee Phelps were the first golden girls. Alpha Kappa
Alpha is dedicated to working to enhance the gifts of its individual
members as well as improving their surrounding communities. The
original black sorority with a long history of involvement in the
suffrage and civil rights movements AKA's have shaped the world in
which we live with a gracious cast of caring and commitment.
In 1946, a group of black women united to form one of the leading
black civic organizations, Links. In Dallas, Mrs. Fannie Smith founded
the Dallas Chapter. A small group, numbering slightly over 8,000, Links
have toiled tirelessly in their communities to make opportunities
available to blacks of all income levels. In 1954, the Links integrated
children's theater audiences which were segregated right here in
Washington, DC. Their commitment to social change remains alive today,
in fundraising activities to benefit the United Negro College Fund,
homeless people and projects to prevent drug abuse and teenage
pregnancy.
There are 185,000 individuals dedicated to service and community.
These networks have been the backbone of our communities uniting
individuals from very different backgrounds for the purpose of making a
better world. In 1994, we turn to these organizations because of their
strategic positions within our communities make them uniquely qualified
to address the state of siege we are under as black Americans.
Although 67 percent of blacks are not poor, we are disproportionately
represented among the poor. One in four black children is born into
poverty; 64 percent of our children are born out of wedlock. For the
first time we are producing fewer Ph.D's than in previous years. Too
many of our children are growing up with limited horizons--believing
that if they live to 25 they are lucky. Our communities are besieged by
crime yet the only solutions being proposed are more prisons to lock
black children away for life.
What small victories we won during the civil rights movement are
being stripped away from us as we speak. Individuals who claim that
their rights are being infringed upon because they are represented in
the U.S. Congress by black Americans are ignoring the 300-year history
in which blacks were not even considered full human beings in this
country much less entitled to the right to representation.
Black America is under siege and must mobilize all of its resources
to deflect the multitude of attacks from within and without. Now is the
time for us to work at the grassroots levels to say what we want to be
the defining characteristics of our communities. We must work at the
grassroots level to protect the hard fought gains of the civil rights
movement. We must work to pull our children and the children of those
less fortunate away from the forces which seek to stifle our brightest
young minds. We must commit ourselves to maintaining the economic and
political advances we made during the 1980's.
In 1940, A. Philip Randolph once said during a speech at the March on
Washington Movement in Detroit, MI, ``No organization can do
everything. Every organization can do something and each organization
is charged with the social responsibility to do that which it can, it
is built to do.''
Jack and Jill, AKA's, and Links are charged by their charters to
bring people together to work for the betterment of the world in which
we live. We are at a critical point in our history as black Americans,
there is much work to be done. These organizations must be our sounding
boards for problems and test-beds for solutions. If the full force of
these organizations is mobilized to address just one of the many issues
facing our communities today, we would see a notable change for the
better in all of our communities and this Nation.
Mr. STOKES. Madam Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentlewoman from
Texas for her contribution to this special order.
I am pleased to yield to the distinguished gentleman from New York,
Mr. Gilman, our friend and colleague who always participates each year
in this special order.
(Mr. GILMAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. GILMAN. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise to join my colleagues in
commemorating Black History Month for 1994 and I thank the
distinguished gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Stokes] for arranging the time
for this special order.
As I have previously pointed out in this Chamber, the great Scottish
historian Thomas Carlyle wrote that: ``The history of the world is but
the biography of great men.'' Black History Month is an appropriate
time to commemorate the outstanding black men and women who have
contributed so much to our Nation and to their own people throughout
the years.
It is an appropriate time to remind our Nation's students about some
of our early black heroes and leaders--that the first American to fall
in defense of our independence in freedom, at the Boston Massacre which
proved to be the opening skirmish in our Revolutionary War, was Crispus
Attuckus, a free black man. Another valiant hero of the Battle of
Bunker Hill was Peter Salem, who killed the British commander.
It is also an appropriate time to remind our young students that our
beautiful Capital City of Washington, DC, was laid out by a black man,
Benjamin Banneker, who was one of the most learned astronomers and
mathematicians of his generation. Jean Baptiste Point du Sable, a black
pioneer trader and trapper was the first settler in what is now known
as Chicago, IL. Another early black pioneer was James P. Beckwourth,
who explored northern California when that area was still an unknown
wilderness.
The struggle to end slavery in our Nation is the story of many
courageous men and women: Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth, who
helped found and run the underground railroad; Frederick Douglass, an
escaped slave who was perhaps the most articulate orator of his time;
and the thousands upon thousands of Afro-Americans who fought and in
many cases sacrificed their lives in the Civil War.
We should also remind our Nation of the numerous brilliant black
people who have made the American way of life better in so many ways:
Jan Matzeliger who invented the machinery which revolutionized the shoe
industry; Henry Blair who invented corn and cotton planting machinery;
and Granville T. Woods who invented the third rail used to power subway
cars, and many safety devices which commuters use to travel on our
subways and railways today.
And let us not overlook the significant contributions of Dr. Mary
McCleod Bethune, Frederick D. Patterson, and Benjamin Mays who were
outstanding educators who inspired not only their own students, but
generations of students to come. A. Philip Randolph was one of our
Nation's outstanding labor leaders, who worked with Bayard Rustin in
organizing the marches on Washington in 1941 and 1963 which raised the
consciousness of all Americans. Outstanding African-Americans who made
their mark in the world of literature include Toni Morrison, last
year's Nobel literature prize winner; Langston Hughes, Alice Walker,
James Baldwin, Charles Fuller, Lorraine Hansberry, Paul Dunbar, Charles
Gordone, and so many others.
And I have not even begun to list the many black Americans who made
an impact in the fields of sports, entertainment, music, politics, the
graphic arts, and so many other spheres of human endeavor.
Black History Month is an appropriate time for us to note that the
contributions of blacks to our culture and our society are truly
overwhelming. It is a time to note that our world would truly be
different today were it not for the contributions of so many vital,
giving men and women.
Madam Speaker, African-Americans have contributed to every facet of
American life. It is extremely appropriate therefore that we join
together in calling these significant accomplishments to the attention
of all citizens of our Nation, both young and old.
{time} 1800
Mr. STOKES. I thank my distinguished friend and colleague for his
contribution to this special order.
Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield to the gentlewoman from Florida
[Ms. Brown].
Ms. BROWN of Florida. Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of the
life and work of Eric O. Simpson, founder and editor of the Florida
Star, one of the oldest and largest black newspapers in Florida.
Mr. Simpson, born in 1914, was 79 years old when he died in
Jacksonville, FL, last month. Mr. Simpson founded the weekly newspaper
in April 1951 to report on news and developments of blacks in Northeast
Florida when other newspapers failed to report about blacks. When
Simpson started the Florida Star, blacks were largely invisible;
according to a recent newsarticle, the only black faces were found in
Ripley's Believe It Or Not.
In the 1950's, Simpson was heavily involved in registering blacks to
vote. Simpson's paper featured stories attacking job discrimination,
police brutality, segregation by the local bus company, and
firefighters. Simpson alerted readers in northeast Florida to boycotts
and sit-ins, including the 1960 Jacksonville Woolworth boycott where he
was the only journalist present because white papers blacked out news
of the event.
Mr. Simpson was a champion of civil rights and a pioneer of the black
press in Florida; he was an advocate on behalf of people who suffered
civil and social injustices. As we celebrate Black History Month, let's
not forget the contributions of Eric Simpson, a real trailblazer.
Mr. STOKES. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Florida for
her statement on this special order.
I am pleased now to yield to the gentleman from New Jersey [Mr.
Payne], our distinguished friend.
Mr. PAYNE of New Jersey. Madam Speaker, I join my colleagues in this
celebration of Black History Month, a time when we, as African-
Americans, remember our past and look with hope toward our future.
The African-American community has been blessed, in the past and the
present, with countless men and women whose courage and fortitude has
guided us through the most difficult of times.
We pause to honor heroes like the abolitionists Frederick Douglass
and Harriet Tubman; the famous educator Booker T. Washington; Supreme
Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, and of course, Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr. whose message of nonviolent change remains as relevant today as it
was during his lifetime.
In addition to these legendary figures, there are unsung heroes and
heroines working every day in our communities to bring positive change
and hope to black Americans.
As we focus on our theme ``Empowering Afro-American Organizations:
Present and Future,'' I would like to take a moment to pay tribute to
some of the leaders of organizations in my home State of New Jersey who
are giving their time and talents to help empower their membership.
One of the foremost organizations of our time, the NAACP, grew out of
the Niagara Movement in 1909. This movement was a coalition of African-
American intellectuals who pressed for full citizenship rights.
During my youth, I had the privilege of being a member of the NAACP
Youth Council and College Chapters of the Oranges and Maplewood. In
1957 I had the honor of being elected as the New Jersey president of
the NAACP Youth Council and College Chapters of New Jersey. As State
president, I had the good fortune of meeting Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr., at the national convention of the NAACP in Detroit, MI, in 1957.
Also, a great woman, Mrs. Madeline Williams, served as the adviser to
the youth council and was a real leader for many of the youth, along
with Mrs. Eloise Jett of Jersey City and Mrs. Pickney of Newark.
In New Jersey today, we are fortunate to have outstanding leadership
at all levels of the NAACP as the organization works to meet the
daunting challenges of the 1990's. Please join me in honoring our State
president, Elaine Harrington; First Vice President Wandra Williams;
Second Vice President Kabili Tayari; and our local presidents:
Jacqueline Lawrence of Newark; Reverend Lyman Hines of Elizabeth;
William Rutherford of Irvington; William Perkins of Jersey City; Morris
Thomas of Maplewood and the Oranges; Albertus Jenkins of Montclair;
John Robinson of Rahway; and in Linden, First Vice President and Former
Councilman William Motley.
Another organization of great importance to the African-American
community is the Urban League, which was founded in 1910. The league
continues to pursue vigorously the goal of full and equal opportunities
for all Americans, recognizing the crucial link between education and
empowerment.
We have outstanding leadership in the Urban League of New Jersey:
Lydia Barrett Davis in Essex County; Elnora Watson in Hudson County;
and Ella Teal in Union County.
These dedicated individuals are working to improve economic
opportunities and promote a better quality of life in our local
communities.
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to draw attention to the
accomplishments of African-American law enforcement officers in my home
State. Just a few decades ago, African-Americans were drastically
underrepresented in the police force. There was bias in testing which
prevented promising young people from being fairly considered for these
positions. Many black communities were patrolled by an all-white police
force with little attention to community relations.
In 1959, in response to this problem, a group of black police
officers in Newark formed an organization called the Bronze Shields.
Their first president was Floyd Bostick. They have worked to promote
professionalism among African-American law enforcement officers and
have also focused on community issues. Today, under the leadership of
Detective Sheila Fitts, the group is continuing to make a positive
contribution.
We also have a statewide group of law enforcement officers which was
formed in the early 1950's. Known as the Batons, the group was
originally composed of a coalition of African-American civil service
workers in uniform, including postal employees. Today, under the
guidance of their president, Ken Patterson, the organization works to
promote the interests of New Jersey's African-American law enforcement
officers and strives to better the communities they serve.
Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues in the House of Representatives to
join me in saluting these outstanding representatives of African-
American organizations who are working diligently each and every day to
make a difference. As we celebrate Black History Month, I am glad to
have this opportunity to thank all of them for a job well done and to
tell them how proud I am of their accomplishments.
Mr. STOKES. I thank the gentleman for his contribution to the special
order.
Madam Speaker, I yield to my distinguished colleague, the gentlewoman
from North Carolina [Mrs. Clayton].
Mrs. CLAYTON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for allowing me to
say that I want to lift up the name of one person and one organization.
I want to lift up the name of Floyd B. McKissick, in terms of
economic development, and we certainly will tell more in the Record,
because we recognize the limited time.
Also, I want to recognize the untiring efforts in economic
development of community development corporations in my district who
are beginning to emerge as the new frontier for human services and for
economic parity within the black community.
Both of those, I think, in terms of the individual and the
organization should be expounded on, and I congratulate them both.
Mr. STOKES. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from North
Carolina [Mr. Watt].
Mr. WATT. Madam Speaker, I am delighted to be here and participate in
the Black History Month celebration and take this opportunity to do
something that I have wanted to do for a long time.
I thought it would be fitting today to read some of the words of
George H. White, our last Representative in the last century from North
Carolina. This is from his final speech, January 29, 1901, and I wish I
had the opportunity to read it all. I keep threatening to do my own
special order to come to read the entire speech, but I would not dare
try to even do that tonight. But I do want to read two particular parts
which seem to have particular bearing on where we are today.
One has to do with the commitment of black people to move forward.
{time} 1810
George H. White had these words to say on June 29, 1901:
You may tie us, and then taunt us for a lack of bravery,
but one day we will break the bonds. You may use our labor
for two and a half centuries and then taunt us for our
poverty, but let me remind you that we will not always remain
poor. You may withhold even the knowledge of how to read
God's word and learn the way from earth to glory and then
taunt us for our ignorance, but we would remind you that
there is plenty of room at the top, and we are climbing.
Then finally, as he bid farewell to this body, the Congress, as the
last black Representative in Congress at that time, and to be the last
black Representative for over 30 years thereafter, he made this
prediction, which rings true today:
This, Mr. Chairman, is perhaps the negroes' temporary
farewell to the American Congress; but let me say, Phoenix-
like he will rise up some day and come again. These parting
words are in behalf of an outraged, heart-broken, bruised,
and bleeding, but God-fearing people, faithful, industrious,
loyal people--rising people, full of potential.
With those words, he parted from this Congress, and I find it very
appropriate that I would be here saying those words as one of the two
replacements of George H. White after more than 90 years. And also that
presiding over this Chamber would be my fellow colleague, the
gentlewoman from North Carolina [Mrs. Clayton], both of whom having
joined this body as replacements for George H. White.
Mr. MFUME. Madam Speaker, Black History Month was created to
acknowledge the achievements of great African-American individuals and
institutions and their role in the history of the United States.
Today, we honor America's Afro-American organizations and we ask the
question: How can we empower these organizations now and in the future.
We have a long history of empowering organizations in the African-
American community and the success of many of these groups has
paralleled the progress our community has made in achieving civil
rights and liberation.
Whether it's the NAACP, the Urban League, the Rainbow Coalition, or
the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the African-American
community has often looked to these organizations for strength and
leadership during the numerous battles we have fought for equality and
dignity. The voice of the community has often been articulated through
our national and local organizations and we have looked to them to lift
us up as a people.
While the battle for civil rights is hardly over, the African-
American community is now faced with a larger battle for survival.
While the needs of our people have grown, the Government's response has
weakened, thus leaving our community organizations to pick up the
pieces and bear new and daunting burdens.
The state of the black community is indeed critical. While hope is
high the challenges and threats are dangerous. The scourge of AIDS,
crack, and crime continue to tear at the rich fabric of our culture and
threaten the black male with annihilation.
Racism, bigotry, and violence lie terribly close to the surface of
our Nation's consciousness threatening to erupt at any moment. The
Rodney King riots demonstrated that justice denied or tensions ignored
only compound the crisis.
We need leadership from the White House to counter the forces of
ignorance. We need a Marshall Plan in the African-American community to
pull our resources and find solutions. We need the support of all
Americans of good conscience to join us and work together in
understanding and appreciation of our cultural differences and
similarities.
Ultimately it is our African-American organizations that we will look
to now and in the future for the solutions we seek. It is in our
national, State, local, and neighborhood groups that the real agenda
for black America will be melded and refined.
We must provide these groups with the resources, time, energy,
muscle, and prayer that will revitalize our community. We cannot count
on the fair-weather friendship of governments, political parties, or
programs. However, we can rely on ourselves and our community
institutions.
For it is in ourselves that we will find our destiny and strength to
build a new tomorrow. It is in ourselves that we will discover our
richness and wealth as individuals, as a community, and as a people.
And it is in ourselves that we will find a way to stop the fighting and
start the healing.
So today as a people, as a community, as a race, and as Americans we
rededicate our energy to the community organizations that seek to root
out racism, facilitate black liberation, heal our community, and build
the foundations of the future.
Today we lift these organizations up with our words, works and gifts
and look to them for guidance and leadership for the next millennium.
Mr. FAZIO. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues once
again to honor the historical contributions of Black America and to
commemorate Black History Month.
The celebration of Black History Month began in 1926, when Dr. Carter
G. Woodson first conceived the idea of a week dedicated to the
observation of black history. The celebration of Black History Month is
fostered by the valuable contributions that African-Americans have made
and continue to make to this country. Black History Month allows us all
to recognize the importance of our heritage and understand that much
more work has yet to be done.
Madam Speaker, because the 1994 theme of Black History Month is
Empowering African-American Organizations, I cannot help but cite the
outstanding job that Mr. Kevin Johnson, all-star guard for the Phoenix
Suns, has done in Sacramento with the creation of his St. Hope Academy
for young people. I believe that St. Hope represents the very essence
of community empowerment. St. Hope is an after school facility located
in the middle of a predominantly African-American neighborhood which is
plagued by high crime, high unemployment, and a high dropout rate. St.
Hope is a safe place where young children and teenagers can go after
school and on the weekends to study and learn new skills. It is a place
that is equipped with new computers, tutors, and counselors to guide
and discuss issues that are important to the young people. More
importantly though, the academy helps provide self confidence, a sense
of self esteem, and leadership to the children of this neighborhood.
The efforts and contributions by Kevin Johnson to the African-American
community embody exactly what is right with America and how empowered
organizations can benefit our communities.
The history and culture of black America have always played an
important role in the development of the United States and I am honored
to participate once again in the observation of Black History Month. I
also would like to commend the distinguished gentleman from Maryland,
Mr. Mfume, chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus; and the
distinguished gentleman from Ohio, Mr. Stokes, for calling this special
order, and I thank them both for including me in this effort.
Mr. ENGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the innumerable
achievements and contributions of African-Americans in the history and
in the development of our Nation. African-American businesses and
organizations, both past and present, have laid the groundwork for many
innovative and essential institutions.
My home State of New York has long been an academic and cultural
center, due in large part to the talents of its diverse community.
African-American doctors, lawyers, judges, educators, entertainers,
politicians, and many others have helped empower individuals and
provided leadership to the whole Nation.
The 17th District, which I represent in Congress, includes several
African-American organizations and businesses that are vital to
communities in the Bronx, Yonkers, Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, and
Pelham. They provide essential services that ensure fair housing
opportunities, provide medical and counseling services, educate our
youth, and care for the elderly and infirmed. Most of the organizations
had meager beginnings, starting as volunteer organizations under the
leadership of one or two exceptional African-Americans.
These organizations have and continue to play a paramount role in
providing role models and employment opportunities where they may not
have existed before.
I would also be remiss if I did not mention my friends and colleagues
in the Congressional Black Caucus, who work so hard to promote issues
of concerns to the African-American community. I am proud to find
myself standing side-by-side with the caucus when it comes time to
fight for progressive and innovative policies.
So at the same time we celebrate the historic figures in African-
American History, we should also pay tribute to the local heroes who
contribute so much to the day-to-day successes taking place throughout
the Nation. In particular, I want to extend my appreciation to the
organizations and businesses in the Bronx and Westchester County that
draw on the diversity of our communities as a source of strength. They
give us reason to believe that the future will be filled with many more
of the inspirational moments we celebrate during Black History Month.
Mr. LAZIO. Madam Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise today
to commemorate February as Black History Month. For the last 18 years,
February has been the official observance of Black History Month which
helps all Americans appreciate the numerous significant accomplishments
that African-Americans have made in all aspects of American life.
America would not be the great country it is today without the
contributions of African-Americans. From communications to politics,
from science to sports African-Americans have excelled to the pinnacle
of their chosen fields.
Many accomplished African-Americans are from, or strongly associated
with my home State of New York. Time does not permit me to mention all
of them, but I would like to highlight the careers of three such
individuals.
Lewis H. Latimer, a noted inventor, scientist, and resident of Long
Island, invented and patented an incandescent light bulb with a carbon
filament in 1881. Later, while working for the Edison Co., he
supervised the installation of the electric light system in New York,
Philadelphia, Montreal, and London. Mr. Latimer also made patented
drawings of the first telephone for Alexander Graham Bell.
Another New Yorker, Isabel Baumfree, later known as Sojourner Truth,
is well known for her speeches against slavery and in favor of women's
rights. Born a slave in 1797, and after being freed by the New York
State Emancipation Act of 1843, she became the first African-American
woman to speak publicly against slavery. After being freed she crossed
the country speaking out at abolition rallies.
In 1947, when he joined the Brooklyn Dodgers, Jackie Robinson became
the first African-American to play major-league baseball. Jackie
distinguished himself as one of baseball's all-time greats by compiling
a long list of accomplishments including: Rookie of the Year in 1947,
Most Valuable Player in the National League in 1949, and a lifetime
.311 batting average. Most importantly, his entrance into the game
paved the way for other African-American players to play major league
baseball. In 1962, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
As we celebrate the accomplishments of African-Americans this month
it is important to realize that what African-Americans have
accomplished should not solely be heralded in relation to race. This
celebration should not only highlight accomplishments of African-
Americans, it should make clear the vital importance that these
accomplishments have made to American society as a whole.
In a time when the basic American family structure is in decline and
violence is a part of everyday life, our Nation's youth need role
models to follow. Children need to look no further than the names I
have just mentioned to find great American role models who have defined
the American spirit by beating the odds and standing up for what they
believe.
Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. Madam Speaker, Black History Month is a
time to highlight the many contributions African-Americans have made
and are making to our great Nation. I appreciate Mr. Stokes' and Mr.
Mfume's organizing of this special order to pay particular tribute to
Afro-American organizations. Groups at work in my district in North
Carolina--such as the NAACP, the Raleigh-Wake Citizens Association, and
the Martin Luther King Celebration Committee--continue to make a major
contribution to our community.
Tonight I want to take special notice of a unique organization in my
district: Strengthening the Black Family, Inc. Initially organized in
1980 as the Black Family Conference, Strengthening the Black Family,
Inc. is a non-profit coalition of local groups working to help families
and neighborhoods help themselves. It holds an annual conference to
increase awareness of community issues affecting all families with a
special emphasis on African-American families. The conference includes
workshops on topics such as leadership development, health promotion,
youth development, and organizational support. For the record I will
include a complete list of the 32 sponsoring organizations for 1993.
Strengthening the Black Family, Inc. also helps provide community
service through projects like the Teens Against AIDS Project and the
Southeast Raleigh Center for Community Health and Development, a
cooperative effort with the Wake County Health Department, the UNC-
Chapel Hill School of Public Health, and other local health
organizations to develop a community-operated center in southeast
Raleigh to meet a range of health needs.
Mr. Speaker, the diversity and shared commitment of its sponsoring
organizations gives Strengthening the Black Family its vigor. This
organization and many others like it across the Nation are making a
major contribution to an improved quality of life for many of our
citizens. I salute the work of Strengthening the Black Families, Inc.
and related groups in my district, and I encourage my colleagues to
recognize those in their own areas who work similarly for community
betterment.
Strengthening the Black Family, Inc. 1993 Sponsors
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, Alpha Theta Omega
Chapter, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, Sigma Tau
Omega Chapter, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, Phi
Lambda Chapter, Auxiliary to L. A. Scruggs Medical Society,
Black Child Development Institute, Triangle Affiliate, Chums,
Incorporated, Raleigh Chapter, Cosmetologist, Raleigh Chapter
#41, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, Raleigh
Alumnae Chapter, Eagles Retired Teachers' Association, First
Baptist Church, Gay Matrons, Raleigh Chapter, Hampton
University Alumni Association, Raleigh Chapter, Jack and Jill
of America, Incorporated, Raleigh Chapter, Kappa Alpha Psi
Fraternity, Raleigh Alumni Chapter, and, Laodicea United
Church of Christ.
Lions Club, Raleigh Southeast, North Carolina Association
of Minority Political Women, National Epicureans, Raleigh
Chapter, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated, Iota Iota
Chapter, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Incorporated, Eta Sigma
Chapter, Raleigh Interdenominational, Ministerial Union,
Raleigh/Wake Citizens Assocation, Rush Metropolitan AME Zion
Church, Saint Ambrose Episcopal Church, Saint Augustine's
College, Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, Gamma Sigma Boule, South
Central Wake County NAACP, The Links, Incorporated, Raleigh
Chapter, The Women's Center, Top Ladies of Distinction,
Raleigh Chapter, Wake County Area Health Education Center,
and, Wake County Department of Health.
Ms. FURSE. Madam Speaker, the message has come from around the
Nation; it has been delivered loud and clear from African-Americans who
know. The message is that it's vital that young African-American men
have role models, mentors, and leaders in their own community. They
need to see that there is hope for their future, and that there are
alternatives to guns, gangs, violence, and drugs. It is only then that
we can hope to stem the violence, destruction, and disillusion of so
many people's lives.
I'm pleased to stand here today and honor Portland Police Chief
Charles Moose, the first African-American police chief for the city of
Portland. He is a strong advocate of programs that highlight youths,
gang prevention, education, and community policing. He is known by name
by many people in the community. He is a man who still walks the beat
and stays in touch with people in their neighborhoods.
But Chief Moose is more than just head of a large metropolitan police
force in my home district. He also leads by example. When he was
promoted to the top slot at the bureau, he could have moved to the
suburbs and avoided problems that often plague cities, like decay,
hopelessness, violence, and crime. But Chief Moose made a commitment to
the city and to the people of Portland. He moved into the heart of the
African-American community. He wanted to send the message loud and
clear that people, especially young African-American men, could rise
above their surroundings and accomplish great things. Despite the heavy
demands of the police bureau, he found time to complete his masters and
his doctorate degrees.
Chief Moose is a man worthy of honor, and we all benefit from the
role he serves in our community. And while he leads by example, I call
upon other African-Americans in my home district in Oregon to stand up
and become a mentor for a young man--just help one man grow to stand
taller in our community. There is no greater reward or gift than giving
hope to a young person. And I believe that being a mentor should extend
beyond Black History Month. Chief Moose delivers the message
effectively that our children deserve year-round attention.
Miss COLLINS of Michigan. Madam Speaker, as we commemorate Black
History Month, I want to recognize the millions of African-Americans
who never make the headlines. Their hard work and perseverance are
displayed every day.
It can be seen in the single black mother, struggling against
unprecedented odds to raise her children without a husband. It can be
seen in the black business executive, striving to overcome overt and
covert racism. And it can be seen in the life of the black teenager,
who wants to succeed in school in the face of drugs, violence, and
racism.
I want to discuss the lessons we can learn from the struggles of two
African-Americans who had all the cards stacked against them, yet
persevered for the betterment of themselves, the betterment of all
African-Americans, and the betterment of our Nation.
Harriet Tubman was born a slave in 1820. But Harriet Tubman enjoyed
what was considered a privilege for blacks of her time, and is again
increasingly rare today: An intact and functioning family. While she
and her family were subject to the orders of their owner and hired out
to neighboring farmers, they were a family unit in which care and
support was given and received and in which religion and folklore were
shared. She learned to trust herself, God, and Divine Providence, in
that order.
It is difficult today to understand the forces aligned against
Harriet Tubman. She was an enslaved African-American. She was a woman
living in a man's world. And after receiving a malicious blow to her
head by an overseer, she suffered a form of sleeping sickness, often
falling asleep involuntarily. This meant that literacy, respect, and
even common courtesy were denied her. And yet this remarkable woman
came to understand the social order that enslaved her. In 1849, she
escaped to freedom in Pennsylvania alone and unaided.
She began supporting herself, vowing to free her relatives. Becoming
associated with another great African-American, William Still, Harriet
Tubman began her legendary career as a conductor on the Underground
Railroad, where she was fearless and willing to endure any hardship. It
is said that Harriet Tubman carried a revolver on her side and made the
slaves pledge that they would not turn back once they began the journey
on the Underground Railroad.
She took the sanctification of this Nation upon her narrow shoulders,
becoming involved with abolitionists, feminists, and political and
military leaders. She worked with people who shared her goal of the
emancipation of blacks, regardless of the boundaries of gender, color,
and socioeconomic status.
When the Civil War broke out, Tubman served 3 years in South Carolina
under Union Gen. David Hunter first as a nurse, later as a scout and
spy. And when her lifelong goal of legal emancipation was finally
realized, Harriet Tubman did not even look up. She continued to fight
for true emancipation by raising funds for schools for former slaves
and struggled on in the Suffragist movement.
Harriet Tubman is an inspiration for us all. She fought against what
she knew to be wrong, even when the forces that she fought must have
seemed unbeatable. Yet in the true American spirit, she had a vision
and fought the good fight.
For another African-American hero, we Detroiters need look no further
than former Mayor Coleman Young. A man who always stood for principle,
even in the face of overwhelming resistance and opposition, Coleman
Young always persevered.
While Coleman Young had the good fortune to learn the value of hard
work and organization at his father's knee, racial discrimination
marred Young's childhood. When he graduated from high school, his color
closed the door to financial aid at the University of Michigan and
other colleges despite his exceptional academic record. Later, he was
passed over for a job with an automobile company because of his race.
Despite these obstacles, like Harriet Tubman, Coleman Young decided
to take on the unjust system. He began to organize labor in the
automobile industry, fighting for the rights of black workers.
As a second lieutenant and a bombardier-navigator in World War II, he
remained an adamant defender of the rights of African-Americans. Near
the end of the war he and about 100 other black officers were arrested
for demanding service in a segregated officers' club in Indiana.
Coleman Young's work on behalf of blacks brought him to the attention
of the infamous House Un-American Activities Committee. Called to
testify before that committee in 1952 as a leader of the National Negro
Labor Council, he refused to answer the chairman's questions and
temporarily withdrew from organizing labor, telling the committee,
``You have mixed me up with a stool pigeon.'' Coleman Young was
displaying the independence and stubbornness that came to typify his
struggle for racial equity.
Coleman Young then entered politics, and seeing a system badly in
need of fixing in the wake of the devastating 1967 Detroit riots,
Coleman Young emerged from a crowded field of candidates to become
Detroit's first black mayor in 1973.
At that point, the challenges facing Coleman Young were staggering:
Racial disharmony in Detroit was high, the police force had become a
brutal occupying army, and the city was on the verge of becoming an
economic wasteland.
Coleman Young served as mayor for 20 years, dismantling the walls of
exclusion brick by brick. He made city hall accessible to people who
were not welcome there before--African-Americans, the working class,
and women. Not merely granting access to members of these
disenfranchised groups, Coleman Young elevated them to high positions
in his administration. For the first time, ability determined how far
careers could go, not race, gender, or station in life.
Meanwhile, he strived to revitalize a city that had been given up for
dead. By forging a working partnership with businesses, he endeavored
to revitalize the waterfront with the jewel of Detroit, the Renaissance
Center. Constantly battling budget deficits and Federal neglect,
Coleman Young kept Detroit running on eight cylinders for 20 years.
As African-Americans, we should look to the unflagging perseverance
and courage shown by these two African-Americans as models.
We can also learn valuable lessons from their lives--the need for
family, the value of self-reliance, the importance of persistence, and
the rich rewards of hard work. As I look across America today, I can
see the new Harriet Tubmans, the new Coleman Youngs, in the face of
every African-American who struggles to succeed in a society which,
despite our best efforts, is still weighted against them. So during
this Black History Month, I stand here to honor all African-Americans,
those in the headlines and those in the breadlines.
Mr. DeLUGO. Madam Speaker, February is the month we set aside to
commemorate Black History, when we celebrate the accomplishments of a
few well-known men and women, recognize the achievements of others who
are less well-known, and observe the extraordinary chronicle of all
African-Americans, past and present.
Today, I want to particularly acknowledge some of the remarkable
successes and lasting legacies of the people of the Virgin Islands, men
and women whom I have been proud to represent in this House for almost
20 years, people who have made many important contributions to the West
Indian, American, and African-American experiences.
The Virgin Islands people have achieved a number of firsts in black
history.
Fifteen years before President Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation
Proclamation in 1863 that led to the abolition of slavery in the United
States, that terrible institution at last came to an end in the Virgin
Islands.
On March 26, 1937, William H. Hastie was confirmed as judge of the
Federal District Court of the Virgin Islands and became the first
African-American to be appointed to the Federal bench in the United
States.
On May 18, 1946, Judge Hastie became the first African-American
Governor of the Virgin Islands and, therefore, the first African-
American Governor in American history.
Governor Hastie initiated an active campaign to increase self-
government in the Virgin Islands. As my colleagues know, increased
self-government for the people of the Virgin Islands and all the
insular areas has been one of my foremost goals during my tenure in the
House.
In September 1950, the Virgin Islands Legislative Assembly
strengthened its Antidiscrimination Act and adopted one of the
strongest civil rights bills under the American flag.
In November 1970, Melvin H. Evans was chosen the first elected
Governor of the Virgin Islands and thereby became the first elected
African-American Governor under the American flag.
In January 1981, Senator Ruby Margaret Rouss was elected President of
the Virgin Islands Legislature and became the first African-American
woman to be elected president of the executive branch of government in
the United States.
Madam Speaker, these accomplishments are significant events in
African-American history, and they are important contributions to the
history of the United States. They are illustrations of the tremendous
talent and ability that springs from the Virgin Islands and its people,
people who have written important chapters in the annals of black
history.
Mr. MANN. Madam Speaker, when I thought about this year's theme for
the special order on Black History Month, ``Empowering African-America
Organizations: Present and Future,'' I could not help but think of all
of the men and women who have paved the way for many African-Americans
of the present. This year, I would like to pay tribute to 20 members of
the First District of Ohio. Their accomplishments and contributions
were recently honored by the Urban League of Greater Cincinnati's First
Heritage Award. This year's theme ``Glorifying the Lion,'' is taken
from the African proverb ``Until the lions have their own historians,
tales of hunting will always glorify the hunter.'' This year's lions
are.
Dorthy Cunningham Bailey, Theodore M. Berry, Sr., John Blanton, L.
Venchael Booth, Edmund Casey, Virginia Coffey, Vera Edwards, Tecumseh
X. Graham, Bruce Green, Joseph A. Hall.
Lawrence Hawkins, William Lawless Jones, Alleno Renfro, Marjorie
Parham, Fred Shuttlesworth, Donald A. Spencer, Marian A. Spencer, Emily
T. Spicer, Fred Suggs, Ernic Waits.
For many of these Cincinnati seniors this honor is long overdue. Each
of the lions has contributed over 30 years of service to Cincinnati's
communities. The word ``lion'' symbolizes characteristics like
strength, nobility, greatness, and fearlessness. These lions have
demonstrated all of these qualities during the course of their lives
and have served as leaders during times that were not always easy. Many
honored have had a career of firsts; the first black doctors, the first
black lawyers, the first black educators, entrepreneurs, publishers,
and politicians. Others were social workers, engineers, and religious
leaders. All worked to improve human relations and fought for civil
rights. Empowering African-American Organizations has been a major part
of their life's work, as well as contributing to our communities on a
whole; and for that, I would like to congratulate and thank them. We
can not look to African-Americans of the present and future without
first looking to those who, through their distinguished service, have
laid a strong foundation, and because of their efforts have improved
the quality of life for all citizens of the First District of Ohio and
throughout the United States.
Mr. HOYER. Madam Speaker, I am proud to join my colleagues today to
commemorate Black History Month. Particularly, Madam Speaker, I would
like to thank the gentleman from Ohio, Mr. Louis Stokes, for requesting
this special order today. Black History Month is a time of reflection
and honor.
During Black History Month, we recall and pay tribute to the towering
achievements and inspiring contributions that African-Americans have
made to this country. This month provides us with the opportunity to
intertwine the notable accomplishments of African-Americans into this
Nation's fabric.
Madam Speaker, this is the time when, we honor those men and women
who influenced, shaped, and altered American life, culture, and
politics--those who believed in a democracy that would not tolerate
prejudice and discrimination, those who fought brutal injustice with
the power of mortal truth. These brave soldiers I speak of are
Frederick Douglas, born a slave on Maryland's Eastern Shore, who became
one of America's most influential diplomats and journalists during the
19th century.
Harriet Tubman, born in Dorchester County in 1820, who escaped
slavery to become the Moses of her people and delivered hundreds of
men, women, and children from bondage.
Justice Thurgood Marshall, raised in Baltimore, who became the first
African-American Associate Justice to the U.S. Supreme Court after a
career as a brilliant trial attorney, director of the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People Legal Defense and
Educational fund, and solicitor General for the United States.
Madam Speaker, we must also thank W.E.B. DuBois, Booker T.
Washington, Gwendolyn Brooks, Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, and John
Baldwin who through their writings and teachings have enabled all of
America to appreciate the African-American legacy, past struggles and
present dreams. We pay tribute to America's sport's heroes such as
Arthur Ashe, the great activist and renowned humanitarian, who inspired
all with his courage. We honor the scientists and educators, who
labored so hard to overcome the racial barriers in our society and
proved that America could not afford to squander the talent and
knowledge of African-Americans. We recall the words of some of our
Nation's most revered ministers and theologians, such as Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr. who braved the wrath of society, to change that
society to fit the principles it espoused but did not practice.
Madam Speaker, the struggles which were overcome and the
accomplishments achieved by African-Americans in the past have paved
the way for present African-American leadership and involvement.
Today, there is a record number of African-Americans serving at all
levels of government.
My former colleague, Mike Espy is the first African-American
Secretary of Agriculture, Hazel O'Leary is the first African-American
woman to serve as the Secretary of Energy, Ron Brown, the first black
chairman of the Democratic National Committee became the Secretary of
Commerce, and the Department of Veterans' Affairs is under the
leadership of Jesse Brown.
Last year, the American voters elected 16 African-Americans to the
U.S. House of Representatives.
Moreover, the voters of Illinois made Carol Moseley-Braun, the first
African-American woman to be elected to the U.S. Senate.
Madam Speaker, Black History Month has a broader significance. It is
a critical prism through which to view America's history overall. Our
examination of this history is both painful and shameful, but is also
essential.
Only in this way can we appreciate the importance of this country's
ability to redress past injustices.
Only with awareness of past wrongs can we define our future as one in
which the right to live with dignity and free from persecution will be
accorded by all Americans.
Madam Speaker, only with the knowledge of our heritage and the
conviction that we are indeed a nation of people endowed by their
creator with certain inalienable rights, can we practice the teachings
of those whose legacy we remember today.
Madam Speaker, again, I want to thank Congressman Louis Stokes for
allowing me to participate in this special order.
Mr. MAZZOLI. Madam Speaker, in honor of Black History Month I am
pleased to commend two outstanding persons, Ms. Aminah Hazelwood and
Mr. Walter Barnes who live and work in the Third District which I am
privileged to represent. They are perfect examples and positive role
models for all to emulate.
The YMCA Black Achievers Organization had its beginnings in Harlem
back in 1971. The program is designed to put African-American youths in
touch with adult mentors so that they can have a ready resource for
educational, career, and life choices. Since the program came to
Louisville and Jefferson County in 1980 over 15,000 youths have moved
through the program. Currently, 1,100 are involved.
Aminah Hazelwood is a senior at Louisville Male High School in
Louisville, KY. She was honored recently by the YMCA's Black Achievers
as the Youth Achiever of the Year. And, to those who know her well,
this accomplishment comes as no surprise.
Aminah's mother, Karen Hazelwood, has been involved in the Black
Achievers program for several years, and set an excellent example for
her daughter, who followed that example by becoming president of the
junior Black Achievers.
For Aminah, involvement with the junior group gave her a matchless
chance to learn more about her culture, to gain pride and self-esteem
as well. Using these characteristics and skills, Aminah ran for and won
the post of student president at Male High School. She is the first
female African-American senate president.
The Black Achievers' Adult Achiever of the Year is Walter Barnes. He
has been the heart and soul of the Chestnut Branch of the YMCA for many
years and a man to whom the young people who use the Y's facilities
turn to for advice, counsel and, at times, consolation. Walter has been
heavily involved in the Black Achievers program from its start in
Louisville in 1980.
Mr. Barnes is committed to giving kids all the chances and
opportunities they need to succeed. He is serving in his 40th year with
the YMCA's Chestnut Street Branch. Throughout this time, he has
stressed the need for inner-city kids to work on their whole person in
order to have a real shot at life.
I ask my colleagues to join me in offering congratulations to Aminah
Hazelwood and Walter Barnes for their achievements and for being
examples to us all.
Mr. TOWNS. Madam Speaker, today, I rise to join my colleagues in our
annual salute to Black History Month. In our celebration of the
contributions and achievements of African-Americans, we recognize the
overlooked, applaud those pushed aside, and hear the accounts of our
people that history has chosen to ignore; because on this day we salute
the achievements of African-Americans.
I want to take the opportunity to thank my colleague from Ohio for
creating a historical precedent by assuring that each year this
distinguished body sets aside some time to seriously consider the many
and varied contributions and achievements of African-Americans. I am
pleased that our focus this year is on black groups and organizations.
It is particularly appropriate because the only black groups that the
media seems to recognize are gangs and singing groups. But we know that
the black community has developed strong, vital, positive professional
and social organizations which serve to inspire, develop, and propel
the improvement of the community and the Nation.
One such group, which I am here to speak about today, is the National
Council of Negro Women. Founded in 1935, by educator and human rights
activist Mary McLeod Bethune, the National Council of Negro Women is
the Nations' most broad-based organization of African-American women.
Founded with the idea of harnessing the great power of a million women
into a force for constructive action, this non-profit voluntary service
organization has 34 national affiliated organizations and 250
community-based sections. Through this impressive network, the council
touches issues and raises the concerns of over 4 million women.
As an organization of organizations the council is much more than a
clearinghouse. It has managed to translate its mission of assistance,
advocacy, and action into an agenda of national programs which
disseminate information about social, political, and economic issues
which affect the well-being of African-American women and their
families including: Promoting healthy lifestyles through projects on
healthy behaviors and disease prevention; developing community
empowerment and self-help programs; and fostering programs on self-
sufficiency, economic development, and entrepreneurship.
Most Americans are familiar with the council through its annual Black
Family Reunion. Beginning in 1986, the council has held the reunion in
seven cities. More than an opportunity to picnic, the Black Family
Reunion is a celebration of traditional African-American values. An
example of those values of love, hope, faith, harmony, education,
dignity, and confidence was engraved on the base of a statute honoring
the council's founder, the late Mary McLeod Bethune statute. Through
its booths and seminars, the council distributes and reiterates this
message every year to millions of black Americans.
This important weekend devoted to restating the traditional values of
African-Americans was the brainchild of Dr. Dorothy Height, current
president of the National Council of Negro Women.
Trained as a social worker, Dr. Height began her career in social
service and government while a caseworker for the New York welfare
department. In that capacity, she was the first black American named to
deal with the Harlem riots of 1935 and became a leader of the national
youth movement. During this time, Height, the social worker became
Height the civil rights advocate. She worked to prevent lynching,
desegregate and Armed Forces, reform the criminal justice system, and
open public accommodations to all people.
This early experience of caring and working laid a firm foundation
for the woman who would become fourth president of the National Council
of Negro Women. With Dr. Height at the mantle, the National Council of
Negro Women has achieved tax-exempt status, developed model national
programs, and opened a new era of historical scholarship focusing on
the achievements of black women. On this day, I rise to recognize Dr.
Dorothy Height and the National Council of Negro Women.
Mr. FILNER. Madam Speaker, and my colleagues, I am pleased to join
you today in honoring the African-American community and its rich
history through the observance of Black History Month. Throughout this
month, we hail the numerous achievements of African-Americans within
American society--and in doing so we counter the pervasive stereotypes
that pull at our Nation's fabric.
In 1961, I served a jail sentence in the Mississippi State
Penitentiary for my commitment to the principle of equality. As a foot
soldier in the civil rights movement, I know the value of education--
and that's what Black History Month is all about. During this month, we
celebrate the intellectual and technical contributions that this Nation
has gained from its African-American citizens.
Through Black History Month, many people will learn of the strides
that African-Americans have made toward equality. We applaud this
continual struggle toward the principles set forth in our Constitution
that ``all men (and women) are created equal, that they are endowed by
their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among them are
life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.'' Although we have
struggled with making this a reality for all Americans, we must
continue to work together to make the American Dream available to all.
This month praises the work of many distinguished African-Americans
that we all know, such as the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks,
George Washington Carver, and Benjamin Banneker.
But this month also recognizes other African-Americans, whose
contributions are equally heroic, but whose names may not be as well
known. Let me give you one example: Dr. Shirley Weber, a member of the
board of education in my home of San Diego, CA.
Twenty years ago, she helped to develop a black studies department at
San Diego State University and has spent 9 years as the chair of that
department. Dr. Weber continues her fight for better education for all
students as a member of the San Diego School Board--which sets policy
for the sixth biggest school system in the Nation. Over the past 5
years, the dropout rate has been reduced by 50 percent in San Diego
schools, largely due to the efforts of Dr. Shirley Weber. The daughter
of a sharecropper, she has enriched the lives of thousands of our young
people.
Black History Month commemorates the struggles of all the Dr. Shirley
Webers to break through racial intolerance and social and economic
barriers, and their perseverance in making a better life for ourselves
and our children.
I am also privileged to have a special African art exhibit in my
district this month, entitled ``Songs of My People.'' This display,
which has traveled nationwide, is an inspirational self-portrait of the
African-American community. I am proud to have the honor of hosting
such an important presentation at the San Diego Museum of Art--and I am
thrilled that Congressman Kweisi Mfume, chairman of the Congressional
Black Caucus, will be helping us kick off this important exhibit.
But this month is only symbolic. We must continue to fight for equal
rights and opportunities for all Americans, no matter what the month.
We must keep on keeping on.
Mr. CLAY. Madam Speaker as we observe Black History Month, black
Americans should take particular pride in their race, their culture,
and their contributions to the development of humankind. Too many black
Americans don't realize the importance and significance of recalling
past struggles and achievements and relating those efforts to present
day conditions. Pausing to assess our role in society and to remember
our contributions to its development are as valid today as they were in
1926 when Carter G. Woodson, a renowned historian, first introduced
Negro History Week. Many remember that this was a week beginning on
February 12, the birthday of the ``great emancipator,'' Abraham
Lincoln, and ending on the birthday of the ``great abolitionist,''
Frederick Douglass. The underlying purpose was then, and is now, to
make known the important contributions black Americans have made to the
advancement of this Nation.
When the subject of why we celebrate Black History Month arises, some
ask--Are we not all Americans? Are not black people a part of American
history? Why do we need a day to honor Dr. Martin L. King or a month to
highlight the contributions of blacks to America? Those usually asking
these questions are the same individuals who have no problem engaging
in festivities extolling their own ethnic heritage and cultural
background.
It took members of the Congressional Black Caucus 15 years to
convince a majority of the Congress to set aside a day of honor for Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr., Nobel Peace Prize winner, crusader for human
decency and racial equality--the greatest champion for social justice
in the history of this Nation. Somehow many in Congress felt that
naming a holiday for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., would be an affront
to their sense of shared values and democratic principles.
Racist individuals and attitudes made the advent of black history
celebrations absolutely essential. One of the primary reasons that
racism is so pervasive, so ingrained, and so readily embraced by many
people is that they lack sufficient knowledge about the struggles, the
sacrifices, the efforts of blacks to become an integral part of
American society. Consciously or subconsciously, black Americans are
victims of those historians, theologians, educators, entrepreneurs, and
others who distorted or ignored the role played by enterprising
courageous blacks in the development of this great country.
The omissions and distortions were deliberate, calculated and
widespread and were part of a massive conspiracy engaged in by public
officials, religious leaders, scholars, teachers, publishers, and
writers. Their mission was to justify one of the cruelest forms of
human slavery in the history of mankind. Black people suffered the
indignities of debilitating de facto human slavery for 200 years and
another 100 years of legally imposed racial separation. In order for
false Christians to soothe their consciences and keep faith with the
teachings of the Holy Bible, it was necessary to provide moral
justification for these perverse and abominable human practices.
Simply put, the so-called moral justification which hypocritical
Christians used to enslave blacks was that black folk had no souls and
were not candidates for conversion and had no rights or privileges
Christians needed to respect.
It has only been within the last 30 years that anything vaguely
resembling the truth has surfaced to challenge and replace the
mythology which is passed off as American history. However, despite
slavery, despite lynchings, despite illiteracy, and despite poverty,
black Americans have come a long way.
And yet as we proclaim victory over bondage and legal oppression we
know that much remains to be done. Conditions of homelessness,
joblessness, teenage pregnancy, absent fathers, high infant mortality,
kids killing kids, and mental and physical illness abound.
In responding to these challenges, we must instill in our people a
proper appreciation for engagement in the affairs of the community. We
must dispel the notion held by many young people that gives
glorification to negative forces in society. We must also teach our
children an appreciation for the virtues and the values that enabled
their forebearers to endure the debilitating hardships of slavery and
yet be able to meet the challenges of their day.
In so doing, let us not join the chorus of those who would denigrate
and disparage us and others. Above all, let us discard the myths about
black Americans which only serve to limit upward mobility. Let us
instead strive to move to higher ground. One way to do this is to
constantly remind ourselves and others of the great contributions
blacks have made and continue to make to this Nation.
Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Madam Speaker, thank you for the opportunity this
afternoon to speak in support of this year's congressional recognition
of Black History Month.
I frequently hear complaints from citizens who indicate that
ceremonies and other forms of cultural recognition such as those which
honor the proud heritage of today's African-Americans, Hispanic-
Americans, or Native Americans are a waste of time and money. In
response, I want to reiterate the importance of traditional activities
of the nature of this special order, and other activities taking place
this month throughout the Nation.
For too long the history taught in this country was very one-sided.
Students read, studied and talked about a group of individuals now
referred to by some as ``dead white males.'' While this educational
system worked well for the vast majority Americans, it subconsciously
diminished the role and value of a large segment of other Americans who
did not share that same cultural heritage.
Today, through ceremonies in Federal, State, and local governments,
as well as in the private sector, the month of February provides a
common time during which we can all be reminded of the contributions
and achievements of African-Americans.
I think many times our citizens are familiar with individual sporting
achievements such as those of Willie Mays, Wilt Chamberlain, Michael
Jordan, and Jackie Joyner-Kersee, but they tend to say ``oh that's just
the separate achievement of a few, and then only in the area of
sports.'' In fact, the contributions of African-Americans to U.S.
culture have been significant, and it is only through knowledge of the
whole that the broader accomplishments and contributions can be seen.
To this end, I support recent changes in school curricula to include
the significant contributions of African-Americans to the economic,
political, and scientific advancement of the United States. It is
through programs of this nature, introduced to students at an early
age, that I believe we stand our best chance of making this great
Nation of ours a racially unbiased society.
Mr. Speaker, Dr. Martin Luther King was one of the many who
contributed immensely to our society by organizing sufficient force to
implement the civil rights guarantees included in our Constitution 170
years before, but never implemented. His work has helped not only
African-Americans but also women and others considered in a minority
status.
Dr. King's ``I Have a Dream'' speech on the steps of the Lincoln
memorial in 1963 spoke of the dreams of African-Americans more
eloquently than any has since, and I want to quote portions of this
speech:
Washington, DC, August 28, 1963.--Five score years ago, a
great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand, signed the
Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a
great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who
had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came
as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of captivity.
But one hundred years later, we must face the tragic fact
that the Negro is still not free. One hundred years later,
the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles
of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred
years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in
the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred
years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of
American society and finds himself an exile in his own land.
So we have come here today to dramatize an appalling
condition.
In a sense we have come to our nation's Capital to cash a
check. When the architects of our republic wrote magnificent
words of the Constitution and the Declaration of
Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which
every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that
all men would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life,
liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this
promissory note insofar as her citizens of color are
concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation,
America has given the Negro people a bad check; a check which
has come back marked ``insufficient funds.'' But we refuse to
believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to
believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults
of opportunity of this nation. So we have come to cash this
check--a check that will give us upon demand the riches of
freedom and the security of justice. We have also come to
this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of
now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off
or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the
time to make real the promises of Democracy. Now is the time
to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to
the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to open
the doors of opportunity to all of God's children. Now is the
time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial
injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.
It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of
the moment and to underestimate the determination of the
Negro. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate
discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating
autumn of freedom and equality. 1963 is not an end, but a
beginning. Those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off
steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening
if the nation returns to business as usual. There will be
neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is
granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt
will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until
the bright day of justice emerges.
But there is something that I must say to my people who
stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of
justice. In the process of gaining our rightful place we must
not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy
our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness
and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high
plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our
creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again
and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting
physical force with soul force. The marvelous new militancy
which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a
distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers,
as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to
realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny and
their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom. We cannot
walk alone.
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall march
ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking
the devotees of civil rights, ``When will you be satisfied?''
We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim
of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never
be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of
travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and
the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as
the Negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a
larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as a Negro in
Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he
has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied,
and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like
waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of
great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh
from narrow jail cells. Some of you have come from areas
where your quest for freedom left you battered by the storms
of persecution and staggered by the winds of police
brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering.
Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is
redemptive.
Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to
South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go
back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing
that somehow this situation can and will be changed. Let us
not wallow in the valley of despair.
I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the
difficulties and frustrations of the moment I still have a
dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and
live out the true meaning of its creed: ``We hold these
truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal.''
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the
sons of former slaves and the sons of former slaveowners will
be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi,
a desert state sweltering with the heat of injustice and
oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and
justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day
live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color
of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted,
every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places
will be made plains, and the crooked places will be made
straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and
all flesh shall see it together.
This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return to
the South. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the
mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will
be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into
a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will
be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle
together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom
together, knowing that we will be free one day.
And if America is to be a great nation this must become
true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New
Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New
York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of
Pennsylvania!
Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous peaks of California!
But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of
Georgia!
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee!
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of
Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.
When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every
village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we
will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children,
black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and
Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words
of the old Negro spiritual, ``Free at last! free at last!
thank God almighty, we are free at last!''
Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the leadership and the Congressional
Black Caucus for organizing this special order today, and I want
particularly to thank the chairman of the Caucus, Congressman Kweise
Mfume, and Congressman Louis Stokes for their leadership roles.
Ms. PELOSI. Madam Speaker, I thank my distinguished colleague from
Ohio [Mr. Stokes] for calling this special order on Black History Month
and choosing this year's appropriate theme, ``Empowering Afro-American
Organizations: Present and Future.''
African-American organizations, such as the NAACP, National Urban
League, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference have worked
together with the primary goals of achieving social and economic
equality. During the 1960's these groups attempted to reach these goals
by removing the legal structure that supported racial discrimination
and segregation, and by developing the unanimously accepted view that
overt acts of racism are not morally tolerable in American society.
Even After these monumental achievements, African-Americans did not
gain social and economic equality.
Today, the goals of achieving social and economic equality remain the
same, only the scope has been expanded. African-American organizations
now unite to address critical social conditions such as drug abuse,
crime, poverty, health care, and education. In addition to working
through legislation and litigation, they also focus on self-help
approaches through education, drug rehabilitation, and job training
programs.
I am fortunate to represent California's Eighth Congressional
District, in which local African-American organizations actively work
to improve conditions of African-Americans in the community. I would
like to take this opportunity to commend a few of the many at work in
our San Francisco community, including:
First, Father Jim Goode, pastor of St. Paul of the Shipwreck for
founding the National Day of Prayer for the African-American family,
the first Sunday of February;
Second, Lefty Gordon, executive director of the Ella Hill Hutch
Community Center, for inaugurating the second year of midnight
basketball, an education and recreation program working to bring young
African-American men off the streets and into the classroom; and
Third, Enola Maxwell, of the Potrero Hill neighborhood house, for
continuing to house the nationally recognized Omega Boys Club as well
as other community programs dedicated to the youth of Potrero Hill.
I thank these groups, Glide Memorial Church, the Washington Senators,
and the many other civic organizations and leaders for their time and
commitment to racial equality. With their help and continued service,
the stature of African-Americans within our community will continue to
be enriched.
In 1984, Benjamin Hooks, Jr., stated as he addressed a large group of
African-American organizations one decade ago, that African-American
organizations ``must involve society as a whole in combating conditions
adversely affecting all American families and impacting on black
families in a very disproportionate manner.'' While local organizations
work at the community level, and national organizations focus efforts
to serve the African-American population through education, job
training, and drug abuse programs, we the members of the 103d Congress
and the administration must work to support their efforts.
We must remember that the fight for equal access to opportunities
despite socioeconomic differences is a daily challenge. Society through
the efforts of our community and national leaders can meet this
important challenge--not only during Black History Month--but also
during every month and every single day.
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