[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 87 (Thursday, June 29, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1351]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E1351]]
                CELEBRATION OF CARIBBEAN HERITAGE MONTH

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. KENDRICK B. MEEK

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 29, 2006

  Mr. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in celebration of 
Caribbean Heritage Month.
  It is appropriate for our country to recognize the numerous 
contributions of Caribbean-Americans and our Caribbean neighbors to 
United States history and culture, particularly since our friendships 
and economic partnerships in the region continue to expand.
  Caribbean immigrants are found throughout the United States, and 
aspects of Caribbean cultures are becoming increasingly commonplace, 
often touching our lives in subtle ways through art, music, literature, 
and science.
  People from the Caribbean nations have a long and proud history here. 
In fact, one of our most prominent founding fathers, Alexander 
Hamilton, was born on the Caribbean island of Nevis and then raised in 
St. Croix, another island of the Caribbean.
  However, meaningful contributions by Caribbean immigrants began long 
before the American Revolution. Beginning as early as 1619, indentured 
workers were brought to the Jamestown colony in what is now modern-day 
Virginia.
  Over the next four centuries, our histories and cultures became 
inextricably linked, so much so that many of our communities have now 
become an indistinguishable mixture of Caribbean and American culture 
and language.
  My own district in South Florida is home to Bahamians, Haitians, and 
Jamaicans, and people from St. Kitts, Grenada, Barbados, and several 
other Caribbean nations.
  Many of these Caribbean immigrants, as legal residents in the U.S. 
have enlisted in our Armed Forces and have meritoriously served in 
combat, putting their lives on the line to protect the people and 
ideals of this Nation.
  During the American Revolution, these shared ideals were evidenced by 
freemen from the French colony of Saint Domingue, now the Republic of 
Haiti, who came to the United States and fought alongside our 
Continental Army.
  Later, in 1822, it is of note that Denmark Vessey came from St. 
Thomas to lead an unsuccessful slave rebellion, which was the largest 
ever planned in our country.
  Ashley Totten and Frank Crosswaith, who were born on St. Croix, 
helped to establish key labor unions, some still in operation today. J. 
Raymond Jones from St. Thomas, who is also known as the Silver Fox, ran 
New York City politics in the 1900s.

  John James Audubon, the acclaimed naturalist and wildlife artist, was 
born in the former-French territory of Saint Domingue, what is now 
Haiti, and inspired the American conservation society that bears his 
namesake. W.E.B. DuBois, the Haitian-American author and political 
activist, became one of the most prominent, intellectual leaders of 
African-American society during the 20th century.
  Major Joseph Savary, a Haitian, was the first black major in the 
United States Army, and led the Second Battalion of Freemen of Color at 
the Battle of New Orleans, January 8, 1815, under then-General Andrew 
Jackson.
  Other famous Caribbean Americans include former U.S. Representative, 
and first female presidential candidate, Shirley Chisholm; former Head 
of the Ford Foundation, Franklin Thomas; Federal Judge Constance Baker 
Motley, the first black woman appointed to the Federal judiciary; 
activists such as Stokely Carmichael, Kwame Toure, Roy Innis, Malcolm 
X, and Lois Farrakhan; as well as world renowned actor Sidney Poitier; 
civil rights activist and singer Harry Belafonte; Earl Graves, 
philanthropist, businessman, and publisher of Black Enterprise; and now 
Colin Powell, the first black U.S. Secretary of State, just to name a 
few.
  It is indeed fitting to establish a Caribbean Heritage Month as a 
suitable way for our country to recognize these great Caribbean-
Americans and the contributions they have made to our history and 
society. I am proud that these contributions have finally been 
recognized, and I am pleased to be joined by my colleagues to pay 
tribute to those who have made our nation great.

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