[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 78 (Tuesday, June 14, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1227-E1228]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   INTRODUCTION OF THE SERVITUDE AND EMANCIPATION ARCHIVAL RESEARCH 
                   CLEARINGHOUSE (SEARCH) ACT OF 2005

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 14, 2005

  Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to reintroduce the Servitude and 
Emancipation Archival Research ClearingHouse (SEARCH) Act of 2005, 
companion legislation to a bill soon to be reintroduced by Senator 
Landrieu of Louisiana. The SEARCH Act would authorize the creation of a 
national database of servitude and emancipation records within the 
National Archives.
  Mr. Speaker, for most Americans, researching their genealogical 
history involves searching through municipal birth, death, and marriage 
records--most of which have been properly archived as public historical 
documents. However, African Americans in the United States face a 
unique challenge when conducting genealogical research.
  Due to slavery and discrimination, and their residues, African-
Americans were denied many of the benefits of citizenship that produce 
traceable documentation such as voter registration, property ownership, 
business ownership, and school attendance. As a result, instead of 
looking up wills, land deeds, birth and death certificates, and other 
traditional genealogical research documents, African Americans must 
often try to identify the name of former slave owners, hoping that the 
owners kept records of pertinent information, such as births and 
deaths. Unfortunately, current records of emancipation and slavery are 
frequently inaccessible, poorly catalogued, and inadequately preserved 
from decay.
  Although some states and localities have undertaken efforts to 
collect these documents with varying degrees of success, there is no 
national effort to preserve these important pieces of public and 
personal history or to make them readily and easily accessible to all 
Americans. While entities such as Howard University and the Schomburg 
Center for Research in Black Culture Library have extensive African 
American archives, the SEARCH Act would create a centralized database 
of these historic records. This database would be administered by the 
Archivist of the United States as part of the National Archives.
  The SEARCH Act would also authorize $5 million for the National 
Historical Publications and Records Commission to establish the 
national database, as well as $5 million in grants for states and 
academic institutions to preserve local records of servitude and 
emancipation.
  On behalf of the many African Americans throughout the United States, 
and in recognition of the observance of June 19th as African American 
Emancipation Day or Juneteenth, I urge my colleagues to cosponsor the 
SEARCH Act. I believe that this legislation will be a vital step in 
resurrecting the rich history of African Americans and the vital role 
that they played in building America. This legislation is not only a 
means by which African Americans can trace their lineage, but also as a 
means by which our nation can preserve historically comprehensive and 
accurate information for generations yet unborn.
  Author Maya Angelou once said that ``No man can know where he is 
going unless he knows exactly where he has been and exactly how he 
arrived at his present place.'' Let there be no mistake Mr. Speaker, 
the SEARCH Act will provide African Americans an opportunity to forge a 
crucial nexus between the past and the present. Just as important, it 
will give our nation an opportunity to continue to correct the 
unintended consequences of the past.
  Join me in ending the horrible legacies of slavery and discrimination 
by giving African Americans a real chance to understand who they are 
and from whence they came.

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