[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 53 (Thursday, April 15, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E564]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     RECOGNIZING DR. HECTOR GARCIA

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                             HON. JOE BACA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 14, 2010

  Mr. BACA. Madam Speaker, I ask for unanimous consent to address the 
House for one minute.
  Madam Speaker, I stand here today to honor the life and historical 
contributions of Dr. Hector Garcia, a WWII hero, civil rights leader 
and medical doctor of the poor and disenfranchised.
  I rise to support the passage of this legislation which will 
encourage educating Americans on the life, deeds, and accomplishments 
of Dr. Hector Garcia.
  Motivated by a teacher who said that no ``Mexican'' was going to get 
an A in class. Hector Garcia graduated with a doctorate in Medicine in 
1940.
  He founded the American GI Forum (AGIF) in 1948, when a Mexican 
American soldier, Private Felix Longoria, was denied a proper funeral 
due to racial segregation.
  Motivated to fight against discrimination, Dr. Garcia sent out 
telegrams to elected and government officials.
  In response, Senator Lyndon B. Johnson, arranged to have the private 
buried with full military honors in Arlington National Cemetery, 
becoming the first Mexican American serviceman awarded this honor.
  AGIF and Dr. Garcia became a voice for Mexican Americans in the post 
WWII era. During Vietnam he made it a point to accompany the families 
of fallen soldiers to collect the bodies of their loved ones.
  Dr. Garcia loved to quote the Declaration of Independence and the 
Constitution, applying it to his daily life.
  Dr. Garcia's motto, and the AGIF's today is, ``Education is Our 
Freedom and Freedom should be Everybody's Business''.
  He strove to make a more equitable and peaceful community both 
locally and internationally. Appointed alternate Ambassador to the 
United Nations, he was the first representative of the United States to 
address the UN body in a language other than English.
  This legislation will encourage his legacy and increase public 
knowledge of Dr. Hector Garcia's exemplary dedication to eradicating 
ethnic discrimination.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, which will have a 
positive impact on our young people and help craft the next generation 
of social leaders.

                          ____________________