[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 10 (Friday, January 25, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E67-E68]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNIZING THE RECIPIENTS OF THE 2013 PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY HUMAN 
                        RIGHTS COMMISSION AWARDS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. GERALD E. CONNOLLY

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, January 25, 2013

  Mr. CONNOLLY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the recipients 
of the 2013 Prince William County Human Rights Commission Awards.
  The Prince William Board of County Supervisors, BOCS, implemented the 
Human Rights Ordinance January 15, 1993, formally establishing the 
Human Rights Commission. Two years prior, the BOCS formed the Human 
Rights Study Committee to explore the needs of a community that was 
growing in population and diversity. An exhaustive effort that included 
numerous Committee meetings and public hearings identified a strong 
community desire for a human rights ordinance and an agency to enforce 
it. The Human Rights Ordinance prohibits discriminatory practices based 
on race, color, sex, national origin, religion, marital status or 
disability, in employment, housing, public accommodations, education 
and credit, in Prince William County.
  The BOCS approved the Ordinance in September 1992 to ensure that 
``each citizen is treated fairly, provided equal protection of the law 
and equal opportunity to participate in the benefits, rights, and 
privileges of community life.'' Residents enlist the services of the 
Commission if they feel their rights have been violated in the areas of 
employment, fair housing, credit, education and public accommodation.
  In celebration of Universal Human Rights Day, the Human Rights 
Commission recognizes individuals and organizations that promote the 
principles of human rights in Prince William County. It is my honor to 
enter into the Congressional Record the recipients of the 2013 Prince 
William County Human Rights Commission Awards: Stephen Dittmer, Connie 
Moser, Lillian Garland, Ralph Smith, Lydia Stewart.
  The Human Rights Commission Hall of Fame honorees:

[[Page E68]]

  Police Chief Charlie T. Deane is a two-time Commission award 
recipient. He is being honored for his 42-years of service to the 
Prince William County Police Department and for providing equitable 
services to all county residents.
  Mary Porter, Maxine Coleman, Zella Brown and Fannie Fitzgerald 
constituted ``The Courageous Four,'' a group of four African-American 
teachers who integrated the Prince William County Public Schools in 
1964. They are being honored for promoting the smooth transition to 
desegregated schools.
  The Human Rights Study Committee: Donald T. Poe, Chair, Fred Allen, 
Richard Brown, Jr., Ethel Georges, Provi Gonzales, Bob Prevatte, 
Herbert A. Rountree, Rajendra P. Singh, Eric Tatum, and Manual L. 
Velasquez.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that my colleagues join me in commending the 
recipients of the 2013 Prince William County Human Rights Commission 
Awards. We owe a deep debt of gratitude to these honorees for their 
efforts to safeguard our most basic rights and remind us of our common 
humanity. Let us use their example to rededicate ourselves to the fight 
against inequity and injustice.

                          ____________________