[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 114 (Wednesday, September 3, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H6763]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO ARTENSA RANDOLPH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Davis] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a 
national leader in the public housing movement, the late Artensa 
Randolph. Ms. Randolph departed this life Tuesday, August 19, at the 
age of 81. She chaired the Chicago Housing Authority's Resident Central 
Advisory Committee, and served as a member of the Chicago Housing 
Authority's Executive Advisory Committee.
  She was truly a staunch advocate for the rights of tenants of public 
housing. She possessed an enormous amount of courage, energy, and 
tenacity to advocate on behalf of the disenfranchised and the 
dispossessed. She was guided by the principles of justice and fairness 
for all people. She was indeed a remarkable person who gave her very 
best at whatever she did. Her work reached well beyond Chicago, for she 
influenced public housing policies and decisions on a national level.
  Ms. Randolph moved to Chicago from Pine Bluff, AR, in 1937, and 
worked in the stockyards. During the 1960's she became involved in the 
tenants' rights movement, and was elected president of the Washington 
Park Homes Local Advisory Council in 1976. Her life paralleled the rise 
of public housing, and in many ways she was the catalyst for bringing 
about positive change in the way tenants are treated. She brought a 
tremendous amount of knowledge, perseverence, and dedication regarding 
public housing issues.
  While Artensa Randolph has left this place, her spirit as a fighter 
for justice, fairness, and equality for all tenants of public housing 
shall endure forever. She has left a legacy that will speak to the 
unmet challenges still confronting public housing and its residents. We 
must never forget the cause which she championed, that of the poor. We 
must always stand ready to be a voice for the voiceless, and continue 
to make public housing the best that it can possibly be.
  Anyone who continues to work at the age of 81 as chairman of a large 
organization, who helps to make policy for people all over the Nation, 
is indeed a champion. That was the life and that is indeed the legacy 
of Artensa Randolph.

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