[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 156 (Friday, January 2, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6940-S6941]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CELEBRATING THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BIRTH OF JAMES CLEVELAND 
                            ``JESSE'' OWENS

  On Tuesday, December 16, 2014, the Senate adopted S. Res. 226, with 
its preamble, as amended, as follows:

                              S. Res. 226

       Whereas James Cleveland ``Jesse'' Owens was born on 
     September 12, 1913 in Oakville, Alabama;
       Whereas Jesse Owens, the youngest of 10 children of 
     sharecroppers and the grandson of a slave, moved with his 
     family at the age of 9 to Cleveland, Ohio as part of the 
     Great Migration;
       Whereas as a student at Fairmount Junior High School, Jesse 
     Owens broke junior high school world records for the high 
     jump and the broad jump;
       Whereas Jesse Owens attended East Technical High School in 
     Cleveland, Ohio where, as a member of the track team, he 
     placed first in 75 of the 79 races he entered during his 
     senior year, set the world record in the 220-yard dash, and 
     tied the world record in the 100-yard dash;
       Whereas Jesse Owens, the ``Buckeye Bullet'', matriculated 
     at the Ohio State University in 1933 after attracting 
     national attention as a high school athlete;
       Whereas while attending classes, training, and breaking a 
     number of track and field records, Jesse Owens worked various 
     jobs, including as an elevator operator at the Ohio State 
     Capitol, a waiter, a gas station attendant, and a library 
     employee;
       Whereas due to his race, Jesse Owens was barred from living 
     on campus at the Ohio State University, denied service at 
     restaurants near the University, and forced to stay in 
     segregated hotels;
       Whereas on May 25, 1935, in a 45-minute period during the 
     Big Ten Track and Field Championships in Ann Arbor, Michigan, 
     Jesse Owens, competing with an injured back, tied the world 
     record in the 100-yard

[[Page S6941]]

     dash and set new world records in the long jump, the 220-yard 
     dash, and the 220-yard low hurdles;
       Whereas as of the 2012 Summer Olympics, only two men had 
     surpassed the long jump record Jesse Owens set in 1935;
       Whereas at the 1936 Summer Olympics, Jesse Owens won 4 gold 
     medals, tied the world record in the 100-meter dash, and set 
     new Olympic records in the 200-meter race, the long jump, and 
     the 400-meter relay;
       Whereas Jesse Owens' resilience and heroic performance at 
     the 1936 Summer Olympics exposed the struggle against racial 
     bigotry and publicly defied Adolf Hitler's intention of 
     proving that ethnicity was a predetermining factor for 
     achievement;
       Whereas the record-breaking performance by Jesse Owens at 
     the 1936 Summer Olympics was never recognized by the 32nd 
     President of the United States or the 33rd President of the 
     United States, but was later recognized in 1955 by the 34th 
     President of the United States, who referred to Jesse Owens 
     as an ``Ambassador of Sport'';
       Whereas following his Olympic career, Jesse Owens resumed 
     his commitment to public service by spending much of his time 
     working with community groups such as the Boys Clubs of 
     America, chronicling his personal story to magnify the 
     importance of equality and civil rights;
       Whereas during the 1950s, Jesse Owens worked with the 
     Department of State to promote democracy abroad as an 
     Ambassador of Goodwill during the Cold War and advocated for 
     socioeconomic equality, individuality, freedom, and love of 
     country;
       Whereas Jesse Owens was awarded the Presidential Medal of 
     Freedom by the 38th President of the United States in 1976 
     and the Living Legend Award by the 39th President of the 
     United States in 1979, and was posthumously awarded the 
     Congressional Gold Medal by the 41st President of the United 
     States in 1990; and
       Whereas the integrity, courage, and strength of character 
     that Jesse Owens demonstrated remain an example for all 
     people of the United States: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) honors and celebrates the 100th anniversary of the 
     birth of James Cleveland ``Jesse'' Owens; and
       (2) supports and encourages the people of the United States 
     to recognize the contributions of Jesse Owens to the Olympic 
     Games, collegiate athletics, international race relations, 
     and democracy.