[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 26 (Monday, February 12, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E326-E327]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    TRIBUTE TO THE HISTORY OF AFRICAN AMERICAN CONTRIBUTIONS TO OUR 
                            NATION'S CAPTIOL

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, February 12, 2007

  Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, the role of 
African Americans in the Capitol's history precedes our arrival as 
elected officials. In fact, the very foundations on which we stand bear 
witness to the involvement of African American people. Some names 
became famous, such as Benjamin Banneker. He was a free African 
American mathematician who helped layout our capital city 1791.

[[Page E327]]

  But many more names will never be widely known. Although they labored 
in obscurity, their contributions stand today as monuments to their 
tenacity. Among them were skilled and unskilled laborers who helped 
build the U.S. Capitol building in 1793. Both free and enslaved people 
labored side by side to create this architectural gem. They were 
carpenters, sawyers, blacksmiths, bricklayers, and brickmakers. 
Ironically, it was an enslaved person who helped cast our magnificent 
Statue of Freedom. Another slave--Philip Reid--used his mechanical 
expertise to lift that statue to the top of the Capitol Dome in 1863.
  Eventually, African-Americans moved into domestic service roles. They 
served as messengers, groundskeepers, cafeteria workers, and in similar 
service capacities. Yet black people were excluded from professional 
jobs until the 20th century.
  The first African American known to be hired as a professional clerk 
was Jesse Nichols, a government documents clerk for the Senate Finance 
Committee from 1937 to 1971.
  Later Christine McCreary, who worked for Senators Stuart Symington 
and John Glenn, was one of the first staffers to challenge the de facto 
segregation that existed on Capitol Hill. Sadly, this second class 
status for blacks persisted well into the 1960s. And to some degree it 
stubbornly persists.
  In 1985, Trudi Morrison became the first woman and the first African 
American to serve as Deputy Sergeant at Arms of the Senate. Three years 
ago we saw another first for African Americans when the Senate 
appointed Dr. Barry C. Black as Chaplain. He continues to hold this 
position today.
  And this year, Madam Speaker, you have expanded the train of firsts 
into the House of Representatives. The appointment of Lorraine C. 
Miller as Clerk of the House makes her the first African American to 
serve as an official of this chamber.
  These are the unsung heroes that made possible all of the successes 
African Americans in civil service positions enjoy today. Whether 
elected or appointed, it is on their shoulders that we stand. In this 
month when we heighten awareness of African-American history, it is 
critical that we acknowledge them and pay down our debt of gratitude.

                          ____________________