[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 26 (Thursday, March 1, 2001)]
[House]
[Page H511]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE COMMITTEE BOYCOTT

  (Mr. RODRIGUEZ asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. RODRIGUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I am deeply concerned about the decision 
of the Committee on Education and the Workforce to split the higher 
education issues.
  I take offense that the higher education issues affecting Hispanic-
serving institutions and historically black universities and colleges 
are not considered as mainstream, and, therefore, the bias-skewed 
mentality found it necessary to group them with such disparate issues 
as juvenile justice, runaway youths and other social issues.
  It is a form of segregation and placing blame and blaming the victim. 
I am really concerned that the mentality that created the proposal is 
one that is placing blame rather than acknowledging that we all have a 
problem, that we all need to take ownership, that we all need to solve 
the issue and not designate it as a problem that belongs to one group 
or another, given that our Hispanic-serving institutions and our 
historically black colleges and universities are assisting youth and 
people throughout the country to make sure that they meet the 
challenges of the 21st century.
  I have spoken to my universities back home, and they are seriously 
concerned with what has happened in the Committee on Education and the 
Workforce and, therefore, I ask the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner), 
the chairman of the Committee on Education and the Workforce, to 
reconsider this decision and let us make sure that every child is not 
left behind.

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