[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 22 (Friday, February 11, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E213]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          TRIBUTE TO LA GRAN PARADA DOMINICANA DEL BRONX, INC.

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSE E. SERRANO

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, February 11, 2011

  Mr. SERRANO. Mr. Speaker, during the month of February our nation 
celebrates Dominican Heritage Month. I rise today to pay tribute to La 
Gran Parada Dominicana del Bronx, Inc., a valued institution in New 
York that promotes and celebrates Dominican life and culture.
  The Bronx is home to one of the fastest growing Dominican populations 
in the country, and organizations like La Gran Parada Dominicana del 
Bronx help us to keep pace with this cultural enlargement. They 
articulate the Dominican experience here in the U.S., as well as the 
many ways in which Dominican Americans activate our national endeavor 
and strength.
  Mr. Speaker, Dominican Heritage Month commemorates the anniversary of 
Dominican independence. It represents, as well, a moment when we pause 
to consider the growing influence Dominican Americans are having in 
this country.
  Most Dominicans in the U.S. migrated here after 1960; the first 
generations put down strong roots in the Northeastern states of New 
York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, 
Pennsylvania and also Florida. Migration increased steadily in the 
1970s and more so during the 1980s. Today the Dominican American 
community is primarily an immigrant community, with all the struggles 
and triumphs that accompany this experience. It is also a relatively 
new immigrant community, which means, among other things, that we--as a 
nation--have the joy of being able to witness history unfold before us, 
as newness gives way to establishment, and first steps lead to progress 
and ultimately to Dominican power. Already, we idolize Dominican 
Americans in our national culture and sport, and see an ever-growing 
number in public offices throughout the land, serving their 
constituents with honor.
  La Gran Parada Dominicana del Bronx, Inc., was founded in May 1989 by 
Felipe Febles and Rosa Ayala. Its founders, friends, and allies had the 
foresight to recognize the value the Bronx would hold for Dominican 
Americans in years to come. They believed the Bronx would one day serve 
as a launch pad for Dominican aspirations across the U.S., and that the 
borough deserved an institutional partner worthy of the people who 
reside here. This belief has proven correct and in La Gran Parada 
Dominicana del Bronx, Dominicans from the Bronx have support to match 
their considerable talents.
  Mr. Speaker, this is a bridge-building organization, one that 
understands honoring cultural achievement in America is at its best a 
shared experience. For this reason, I ask that my colleagues join me in 
paying tribute to Dominican Heritage Month 2011, and to an organization 
helping to bring it to life in New York City, La Gran Parada Dominicana 
del Bronx.

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