[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 57 (Tuesday, May 1, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H1701-H1702]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING REVEREND LEON SULLIVAN

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Pence). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today we funeralized a hero of 
the American people and a hero of the world. And so I offer to his 
family and to the world, his world of friends, both national and 
international, my deepest sympathy.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a heavy heart to mark the sad passing 
of our friend Reverend Leon Sullivan, an educator, minister, diplomat, 
civil rights leader, and yes, national treasure. I am so happy that in 
the course of the last year, Reverend Sullivan and myself were 
together. His love for life, his interest and his passion of working 
with the people of Africa, his concern on making sure that there is a 
synergism between the business communities of this Nation and of the 
Continent were alive and well. And yes, he was receiving an outstanding 
award from then President Clinton for his great humanitarian service, 
and he relished it and he loved it and yes, we loved honoring him.
  As the Lion of Zion, the 6-foot-5-inch Reverend Leon Sullivan was a 
giant among men. Reverend Leon Sullivan was an activist, civil rights 
leader, business leader and pastor as I have previously said. Reverend 
Sullivan once said, ``We must stand up with politicians and businessmen 
and women. We must stand up for those who need help to stand on their 
feet.'' He was the author of the Sullivan Principles, a set of 
guidelines for American businesses operating in South Africa under the 
apartheid regime. Although later largely superseded by the divestment 
movement, these principles laid a foundation for ethical business 
practices that continue to influence companies today.
  The central premise of the Sullivan Principles was that American 
companies operating overseas should treat their workers there with the 
same fairness and equity that they practiced at home. He was a pioneer 
moving throughout this very difficult time, leading the way for then 
the major apartheid movement to come and finally crush that terrible 
and tragic time in our history.
  The Sullivan Principles called for racial nonsegregation, fair 
employment practices, equal pay for equal work, improved housing, 
educational and health facilities for workers, and increased training 
and promotion opportunities for nonwhites who had been denied access 
under South African law and custom. He was trying to find solutions for 
what was then an insurmountable problem. He had faced discrimination at 
home. By the mid-1980s, most American companies operating in South 
Africa followed these principles before, as I said, we finally crushed 
apartheid.
  As a child, Leon Sullivan lived in a segregated world where he was 
not permitted to sit at a counter in certain stores or attend school 
with white students. Although he was elected Governor of Negro Boys 
State, he was not treated the same as his white counterpart.
  About his experience he said, ``I couldn't understand quite why I had 
to do things a certain way. My grandmother had to wash these clothes. 
She had to iron them and put them in a little basket and I had to put 
them in my red wagon and take them out to where the big houses were. 
When I walked up Washington Street, all the white children walked on 
the left side of the street and all the colored children walked on the 
right side of the street.''
  In 1987, Sullivan called for U.S. companies to withdraw from South 
Africa and for international trade and investment sanctions against the 
apartheid regime. He came to the conclusion that a more harsher and 
stronger viewpoint must be taken and that we must end apartheid then 
and end it now.
  About his role in helping end apartheid, Sullivan said, ``If you take 
a hammer and chisel and pound a rock 100 times, it's going to crack. I 
pounded it and it cracked.''
  After the fall of apartheid, Sullivan worked with U.N. Secretary-
General Kofi Annan to encourage businesses to adopt the Global Sullivan 
Principles for Social Corporate Responsibility on a worldwide basis. 
About 100 American corporations accept these principles today.
  In 1971, Mr. Sullivan became the first African American director of 
General Motors. As a member of the board of directors, he expanded 
minority hiring

[[Page H1702]]

and business opportunities. He went on to build bridges. He continued 
to pastor the Zion Baptist Church in Philadelphia. They loved him 
greatly. He challenged the establishment. He continued to work on 
behalf of us all, and he did something even greater, beginning to put 
major conferences and summits on the continent of Africa, insisting 
that we travel to Africa to talk about the issues of health care, 
business opportunities, education, and yes, to enhance these developing 
nations.
  Reverend Leon Sullivan knew what the 21st century would have to do. 
It would have to fight the war of HIV/AIDS and win that war. He was a 
champion of those issues. To the end, he was aware that the Continent 
was rich in resources and human resources and that in order for it to 
grow and thrive, we must embrace it, we must help it and enhance it but 
it must help itself. And yes, he embraced the fight against HIV/AIDS 
and helped Members of Congress to raise their voices against that 
terrible pandemic. He was a warrior and a lion. I will always remember 
his smile but most of all his fight for justice and equality and his 
love for humanity.

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