[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 130 (Friday, September 27, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1395]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        IN RECOGNITION OF THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF GLORIA JOHNSON

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. SUSAN A. DAVIS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 27, 2013

  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, it is with great sorrow that I 
mourn the passing of one of San Diego's greatest advocates for women's 
and LGBT equality, Gloria Johnson.
  Gloria Johnson has moved on but her legacy as a San Diego champion of 
limitless equality will not be forgotten. Gloria has participated and 
organized civil rights and peace movements for more than 50 years. She 
has received many awards and honors that make evident her commitment to 
equality for all.
  Gloria's commitment to humanity was not only apparent in her 
volunteerism, but also through her professional career as a social 
worker. While working for the County of San Diego, Gloria was one of 
the first in San Diego County to work with people diagnosed with HIV/
AIDS in the AIDS Case Management Program.
  After Gloria retired from her 30 years as a social worker with San 
Diego County, she was just getting started. Not only was Gloria 
committed to equality for women and LGBT issues, she was committed to 
working closely with elected officials on all levels to create the 
progress she so deeply sought.
  Gloria was even more in life than the impressive list of her 
accomplishments on paper. Having worked closely with her for decades, I 
remember her energy and her unforgettable smile. She was just so 
vibrant. Gloria was always there at big events in San Diego and small 
ones wearing stickers and buttons proclaiming loud and clear what she 
thought needed to happen. I can remember so many times pulling up in 
the parking lot for an event and seeing her tiny car covered in clever 
bumper stickers already there and knowing that Gloria would be there as 
always, early and enthusiastic. Gloria's positive vibe and commitment 
to justice year in and year out were simply contagious.
  I'm glad she got to bear witness to so much progress in her lifetime. 
She was so proud of the women and gay and lesbian people in public 
office in San Diego and of all the milestones those two movements 
achieved in the past half century thanks to Gloria and those like her.
  As we all remember Gloria's strong commitment to equality, let's 
commit to working hard for women and members of the LGBT community so 
we can ensure that Gloria's life work will not be in vain.

                          ____________________