[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 161 (Monday, November 2, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2683]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING EDWARD F. NEWMAN

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, November 2, 2009

  Mr. FARR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor and pay tribute to my 
friend Edward F. Newman, who recently died at age 85, for an inspiring 
life that promoted peace and social justice. He was a well-known and 
much loved Santa Cruzan.
  Following high school he attended the School of Engineering at the 
University of California Berkeley before joining the Navy to serve in 
World War II. As a young enlisted man, he organized a brave challenge 
to the status quo, resulting in dismissal of a corrupt procurement 
officer. This experience taught him, at an early age, that even one 
person can make a difference in this world. He earned a law degree from 
U.C. Berkeley in 1951, and used his skills as an accomplished writer, 
speaker, and advocate, to stand up for justice and common people.
  Ed actively promoted the causes of peace and social justice 
throughout his life. He vigorously opposed the Vietnam war and the 
invasion of Iraq. He served as president of the Castro Valley 
Democratic Club, and later founded and served as president of the 
People's Democratic Club of Santa Cruz County. He campaigned to protect 
the environment, abolish the death penalty, protect civil rights, 
women's rights, gay rights, and all human rights. As a veteran, he 
became active in the Santa Cruz County Chapter of the Veterans of 
Foreign Wars, leading the chapter to advocate for peace, and to oppose 
expansion of the military-industrial complex. With intelligence and 
humor, he exposed political hypocrisy, writing countless letters to the 
editor, and contributing columns to newspapers.
  As an attorney, Ed Newman championed causes of the underdog, handling 
numerous pro bono matters to protect fundamental rights. He defended 
ordinary citizens in proceedings by the House Un-American Activities 
Committee, and took cases for the American Civil Liberties Union. In 
the 1980s, he took a pro bono case to challenge gender discrimination, 
resulting in the court decision which transformed the Santa Cruz Boys 
Club into the Santa Cruz Boys and Girls Club. He was president of the 
Santa Cruz County Bar Association in 1985. He was also a leader in the 
Starr King Unitarian Church, and he served as committee chair and 
president of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Santa Cruz 
County.
  As a civic leader and activist, Ed Newman inspired his community with 
his eloquence, intelligence, and tireless advocacy for justice. To his 
family and friends, Ed was known for his kindness, his wisdom, his 
outstanding cooking, and his wonderful sense of humor. With his wife 
Carol, he raised five children, all of whom graduated from U.C. Santa 
Cruz before obtaining advanced degrees in Library Science, Particle 
Physics, Medicine, Literature, and Law. He is survived by his wife 
Carol, with whom he recently celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary, 
as well as his sister, five children, and ten grandchildren.
  Madam Speaker, on behalf of the United States Congress, I would like 
to express the gratitude of the whole House to Edward Newman for his 
legacy of courage, honesty, and love, inspiring us all to work for a 
better world. He will be sorely missed.

                          ____________________