[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 32 (Monday, February 29, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1088-S1089]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         SENATE RESOLUTION 379--CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY MONTH

  Mrs. GILLIBRAND (for herself, Mr. Cochran, Mr. Reid of Nevada, Mr. 
Brown, Mrs. McCaskill, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Casey, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Coons, 
Mr. Portman, Mr. Wicker, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Warner, Mr. Booker, Mr. 
Carper, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Reed of Rhode 
Island, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Franken, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Nelson, Mr. 
Kaine, Ms. Warren, Mrs. Boxer, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Bennet, Ms. Stabenow, 
Mr. Markey, Ms. Ayotte, Mr. Perdue, Mr. Burr, Mr. Moran, Ms. Murkowski, 
Mr. Paul, Mr. Schumer, Mr. Peters, Mr. Scott, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Murphy, 
Mr. Sessions, Mr. Isakson, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Grassley, and Mr. Leahy) 
submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 379

       Whereas in 1776, people envisioned the United States as a 
     new nation dedicated to the proposition stated in the 
     Declaration of Independence that ``all men are created equal, 
     that they are endowed by their Creator with certain 
     unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and 
     the pursuit of Happiness . . .'';
       Whereas Africans were first brought involuntarily to the 
     shores of America as early as the 17th century;
       Whereas African Americans suffered enslavement and 
     subsequently faced the injustices of lynch mobs, segregation, 
     and denial of the basic and fundamental rights of 
     citizenship;
       Whereas in 2016, the vestiges of those injustices and 
     inequalities remain evident in the society of the United 
     States;
       Whereas in the face of injustices, people of good will and 
     of all races in the United States have distinguished 
     themselves with a commitment to the noble ideals on which the 
     United States was founded and have fought courageously for 
     the rights and freedom of African Americans and others;
       Whereas African Americans, such as Lieutenant Colonel Allen 
     Allensworth, Maya Angelou, Arthur Ashe Jr., James Baldwin, 
     James Beckwourth, Clara Brown, Blanche Bruce, Ralph Bunche, 
     Shirley Chisholm, Holt Collier, Frederick Douglass, W. E. B. 
     Du Bois, Ralph Ellison, Medgar Evers, Alex Haley, Dorothy 
     Height, Lena Horne, Charles Hamilton Houston, Mahalia 
     Jackson, Stephanie Tubbs Jones, B.B. King, Martin Luther 
     King, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Constance Baker Motley, Rosa 
     Parks, Walter Payton, Bill Pickett, Homer Plessy, Bass 
     Reeves, Hiram Revels, Amelia Platts Boynton Robinson, Jackie 
     Robinson, Aaron Shirley, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, 
     Booker T. Washington, the Greensboro Four, and the Tuskegee 
     Airmen, along with many others, worked against racism to 
     achieve success and to make significant contributions to the 
     economic, educational, political, artistic, athletic, 
     literary, scientific, and technological advancements of the 
     United States;
       Whereas the contributions of African Americans from all 
     walks of life throughout the history of the United States 
     reflect the greatness of the United States;
       Whereas many African Americans lived, toiled, and died in 
     obscurity, never achieving the recognition they deserved, and 
     yet paved the way for future generations to succeed;
       Whereas African Americans continue to serve the United 
     States at the highest levels of business, government, and the 
     military;
       Whereas the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick 
     Douglass inspired the creation of Negro History Week, the 
     precursor to Black History Month;
       Whereas Negro History Week represented the culmination of 
     the efforts of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, the ``Father of Black 
     History'', to enhance knowledge of Black history through the 
     Journal of Negro History, published by the Association for 
     the Study of African American Life and History, which was 
     founded by Dr. Carter G. Woodson and Jesse E. Moorland;
       Whereas Black History Month, celebrated during the month of 
     February, originated in 1926 when Dr. Carter G. Woodson set 
     aside a special period in February to recognize the heritage 
     and achievement of Black people of the United States;
       Whereas Dr. Carter G. Woodson stated: ``We have a wonderful 
     history behind us. . . . If you are unable to demonstrate to 
     the world that you have this record, the world will say to 
     you, `You are not worthy to enjoy the blessings of democracy 
     or anything else.' '';
       Whereas since the founding of the United States, the Nation 
     has imperfectly progressed toward noble goals;
       Whereas the history of the United States is the story of 
     people regularly affirming high ideals, striving to reach 
     those ideals but often failing, and then struggling to come 
     to terms with the disappointment of that failure, before 
     committing to trying again;
       Whereas on November 4, 2008, the people of the United 
     States elected Barack Obama, an African-American man, as 
     President of the United States; and
       Whereas on February 22, 2012, people across the United 
     States celebrated the groundbreaking of the National Museum 
     of African American History and Culture on the National Mall 
     in Washington, District of Columbia, which will open to the 
     public in the fall of 2016: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) acknowledges that all people of the United States are 
     the recipients of the wealth of history provided by Black 
     culture;
       (2) recognizes the importance of Black History Month as an 
     opportunity to reflect on

[[Page S1089]]

     the complex history of the United States, while remaining 
     hopeful and confident about the path ahead;
       (3) acknowledges the significance of Black History Month as 
     an important opportunity to commemorate the tremendous 
     contributions of African Americans to the history of the 
     United States;
       (4) encourages the celebration of Black History Month to 
     provide a continuing opportunity for all people in the United 
     States to learn from the past and understand the experiences 
     that have shaped the United States; and
       (5) agrees that, while the United States began as a divided 
     country, the United States must--
       (A) honor the contribution of all pioneers in the United 
     States who have helped to ensure the legacy of the great 
     United States; and
       (B) move forward with purpose, united tirelessly as a 
     nation ``indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.''.

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