[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 53 (Thursday, April 18, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E491]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  RECOGNIZING THE KELLOGG-BRIAND PACT

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                           HON. KEITH ELLISON

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 18, 2013

  Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Kellogg-
Briand Pact.
   One of the busiest streets in Minnesota's state capital of St. Paul 
is Kellogg Boulevard. This street runs along the Mississippi River and 
was named after the only person from Minnesota to ever win the Nobel 
Peace Prize. Frank B. Kellogg was a Department of Justice prosecutor 
who was elected President of the American Bar Association and then 
served as a U.S. Republican Senator from Minnesota, followed by an 
appointment as U.S. Secretary of State for President Calvin Coolidge 
from 1925 to 1929.
   Kellogg was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1929 for his work in 
co-authoring the Kellogg-Briand Pact that made war illegal, renounced 
the use of war, and committed nations to the peaceful settlement of 
disputes. The Kellogg-Briand Pact--also called the Pact of Paris, or 
the General Treaty for the Renunciation of War--was signed on August 
27, 1928 by the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, 
Italy, Japan, and several other countries.
   The Pact prohibited the use of war as ``an instrument of national 
policy'' except in matters of self-defense. President Coolidge signed 
the Pact on January 27, 1929 and the U.S. Senate passed it by a vote of 
85 to 1. On July 24, 1929 President Herbert Hoover declared the Pact in 
force. The Kellogg-Briand Pact provided the legal basis for prosecuting 
Nazi officials at Nuremburg and is still U.S. and international law, 
with 84 state signatories.
   Mr. Speaker, some of my own constituents are currently planning a 
commemoration of the Kellogg-Briand Pact to mark its 85th anniversary 
and to recognize Frank B. Kellogg. The Minneapolis-St. Paul chapter of 
Veterans for Peace is taking part in a peace essay competition 
organized by the West Suburban Faith-based Peace Coalition. The 
competition asks the question, ``How can we obey the law against war?'' 
The best essays will be sent to members of Congress. I urge this body 
to welcome these essays and give them due attention. Everyone must do 
their part to help eliminate war and promote the cause of peace.

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