[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 44 (Wednesday, March 30, 2011)]
[House]
[Page H2049]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          SUPPORT MORE DIVERSITY IN THE UNITED STATES CAPITOL

  (Mr. COHEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. COHEN. Madam Speaker, this week I plan to introduce a bill that 
will allow States to submit three statues for display in the United 
States Capitol.
  This bill seeks to include more diversity among the honored in our 
Capitol by increasing that number of statues to include more notable 
women, minorities, and other ethnic groups that have contributed 
significantly to our history.
  Currently, there are 100 statues on display given by the States, and 
only 16 are women or minority groups. Ten are women with three Native-
Americans; three statues are Native-American males, two are Hispanic, 
and one is a Pacific Islander. Although there have been many noteworthy 
African Americans and Asian Americans in our history, no State has 
submitted a statue honoring one of them. This disparity must be 
rectified.
  If you walked through the Capitol and looked at the statues, you 
would think all the heroes and leaders were granite white men. This 
bill is to express that equal representation of all Americans is 
essential in our historical perspectives and the educational value that 
the Capitol offers its thousands of visitors.
  I urge my colleagues to look at the bill, to support it, and to have 
more diverse representation among the statuary in the United States 
Capitol.

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