[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 20 (Thursday, February 7, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E146]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             HONORING ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA SORORITY OF AMERICA

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSE E. SERRANO

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, February 7, 2008

  Mr. SERRANO. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the Alpha 
Kappa Alpha Sorority of America on the occasion of its centennial 
anniversary in January, 2008. The Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA) Sorority is 
the first African American sorority in America to reach the milestone 
of 100 years, and represents the first Greek-letter organization in 
this country founded by, and for, African American college women. The 
AKA motto is to ``provide service to all mankind.'' Over the years, AKA 
members have broken barriers and attained positions in American society 
of tremendous distinction. The AKA sisterhood prides itself on 
achievement, sacrifice, and a strong belief in the limitless potential 
of women of color. Together, the AKA's strive for the betterment not 
only of themselves, but their families, their neighborhoods, and the 
larger global community.
  From its founding in 1908, through 1921, Alpha Kappa Alpha underwent 
a period of significant growth. Chapters were first established 
throughout the Northeast and Midwest, and beginning in the mid 1920's, 
AKA founded new chapters in the Southeast. One of the most remarkable 
aspects of the AKA sorority is the history of its original nine 
founding members. Born during the Reconstruction era, and enrolling at 
Howard University at the turn of the 20th century, the founding AKA 
women embodied courage and soaring intellect. During a time in our 
nation's history when African Americans, and women especially, were 
viewed as second class citizens, the original AKA sisters coalesced 
around an affirmation of their own dignity. They taught women of color 
across the Nation that belief in one's self, in one's potential, is the 
essential building block upon which anything is possible. In a dark 
chapter of our history, theirs was a message of light--of hope, 
sacrifice and hard work in the pursuit of self-determination.
  This summer, more than 20,000 members of the Alpha Kappa Alpha 
Sorority will come together on the campus of Washington, DC's Howard 
University to honor this legacy. Sorors from around the world will 
retrace the steps taken by the founding members ten decades ago in what 
is being called the ``Walk Through History.'' Discussions and plenary 
sessions will be convened, where together, members will rededicate 
themselves to the founding principles of the AKA tradition and chart a 
new course for the next 100 years.
  Madam Speaker, I am moved by the Alpha Kappa Alpha's prodigious 
historical narrative. The redoubtable strength and prescient vision of 
the founders paved the way for a sorority which today claims more than 
200,000 members, 975 chapters, and a presence not only in the United 
States, but also the Caribbean, Canada, Germany, Korea, Japan, and the 
continent of Africa. Their unifying mission remains to serve others, 
while also challenging themselves and their fellow sisters to reach 
higher for the possible. On behalf of the nearly 3,000 members of 
the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority who reside throughout the 16th 
Congressional District of New York, and the surrounding counties, as 
well as myself, I ask that my colleagues join me in paying tribute to 
this most storied American sisterhood.

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