[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 53 (Monday, March 30, 2009)]
[House]
[Page H4103]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     HONORING JOHN HOPE FRANKLIN, A WARRIOR, A HERO, A STORYTELLER

  (Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Madam Speaker, thank you very much for your 
leadership. I would like to associate myself with the 1 hour of the 
Congressional Black Caucus in honoring John Hope Franklin, and I want 
to thank the leadership of the gentlelady from Ohio and the chairwoman 
of the Congressional Black Caucus.
  John Hope Franklin was, in essence, a storyteller that was long 
awaited for by the United States of America. His ``From Slavery to 
Freedom'' indicated the broadness of the history of African Americans 
in the United States. It was a singular treatise that everyone had to 
read to find out about themselves, about America, and about the 
question of race and racism. His work on the President's Race 
Commission was without comparison. And he was the only one, I believe, 
that could have taken the helm with the President's appointment, 
appointed by President William Jefferson Clinton.
  His easy hand, his comfort level with race and racism, of where we 
had come from and where we were going, helped us tell the story and 
balanced the role and responsibility of this commission. We lost a 
warrior, a hero, a storyteller, one that could only be told by him, a 
scholar.
  We thank you. And may you rest in peace.

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