[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 61 (Wednesday, May 17, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E848]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 IN HONOR AND REMEMBRANCE OF IONE BIGGS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 17, 2006

  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor and remembrance of 
Ione Biggs, cherished wife, mother, grandmother, friend, and champion 
of peace and social justice whose remarkable life echoes a call for 
peace and civil rights within our community and around the world.
  Mrs. Biggs began blazing trails early on. Every inroad she created 
was lined with grace, integrity, and courage. One of first women police 
officers hired in the city of Cleveland, Mrs. Biggs worked in the 
Juvenile Division where she guided and assisted women and children for 
more than 10 years. Disenchanted with the rampant sexism and racism 
that permeated the Police Division at that time, Mrs. Biggs transferred 
to the Cleveland Municipal Court in 1955, where she worked diligently 
until her retirement in 1986. Her husband of 53 years, the late Keith 
D. Biggs, their son, Keith, and daughter, Gladys, were central to her 
life. Beyond her commitment to family and work, Mrs. Biggs' unrelenting 
activism, focused on peace, minority rights, and women's rights, played 
a vital role in elevating the hearts and minds of the public and its 
leaders, at home and abroad. She marched in support of Cleveland Mayor 
Carl B. Stokes and marched in opposition of the Vietnam war. In 1995, 
Mrs. Biggs organized a local delegation to attend the International 
Women's Conference in Beijing. She was an active leader in Nine to 
Five, supported Cleveland Working Women, WomenSpace, League of Women 
Voters, the ACLU, SpeakOut for Affirmative Action and numerous other 
social justice organizations. Mrs. Biggs attended national and 
international peace conferences, including disarmament and human rights 
summits in Sweden, Kenya, and the former Soviet Union.
  Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honor, gratitude, and 
remembrance of Mrs. Ione Biggs, who lived life with great joy, energy, 
passion, and in tireless advocacy on behalf of others. A certain grace 
illuminated her life, and the endless measure of her kindness and her 
dignified defiance will exist forever within the hearts of those who 
knew her well, especially her family and friends. Mrs. Biggs' legacy of 
peace transcends borders and time, lending light and hope to those who 
still live without justice, and to those who continue her march--from 
the steps of Public Square in Cleveland, Ohio, to the steps of the City 
Square in Nairobi, Kenya, and her journey will be remembered always.

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