[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 146 (Tuesday, September 27, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1379]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TUESDAYS IN TEXAS: BESSIE COLEMAN

                                 ______
                                 

                              HON. TED POE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 27, 2016

  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, in January 26, 1892, a young woman was 
born in Atlanta, Texas. Her name was Bessie Coleman and she continues 
to inspire generations of African American women around the United 
States and in the great state of Texas. As the tenth of thirteen 
children whose father had left to Oklahoma seeking refuge from racial 
barriers, she was forced to work at the cotton harvest every year to 
help support her family. However, in 1915, she moved to Chicago seeking 
to become something greater. She had no idea how this step would change 
American history forever.
  She began working as a manicurist in Chicago, but the stories of 
pilots from the First World War intrigued her. This, along with 
friendly taunts from her brother, would motivate her to learn how to 
fly. However, schools in America denied her entrance, so she set out to 
attend aviation school in France. She attended the Caudon Brother's 
School of Aviation, where she completed a 10 month program in only 7 
months. She also received her international aviation pilot's license 
from the renowned Federation Aeronautique Internationale, making her 
the first African American and Native American woman to earn a pilot's 
license.
  But this is not the end of her amazing story. Coleman returned to the 
United States and specialized in stunt flying and parachuting. She 
earned her living by barnstorming and performing aerial tricks. She 
became the first African American woman to perform a public flight in 
America. Although she changed her mind about starting a flying school 
for African Americans, she still encouraged other African Americans to 
learn how to fly. Most importantly, she stood up for an entire 
community of people when she refused to perform in places that would 
not admit members of her race.
  Unfortunately, her life would end shortly at only 34 years old after 
a test flight gone wrong caused her to fall hundreds of feet to her 
death in April of 1926.
  Mr. Speaker, Ms. Coleman's strength, endurance, and ability to break 
down barriers are truly inspiring. I am incredibly proud that such an 
amazing legacy started in Texas. It is an honor to come from a state 
full of people known for breaking down barriers and overcoming 
obstacles against all odds.
  And that's just the way it is.

                          ____________________