[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 95 (Friday, June 8, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E808]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING ETHEL HEDGEMAN LYLE

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. FREDERICA S. WILSON

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                          Friday, June 8, 2018

  Ms. WILSON of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I, Congresswoman Frederica S. 
Wilson, from the 24th district of the great state of Florida, along 
with my colleagues and Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority sisters Congresswomen 
Alma S. Adams, Sheila Jackson Lee, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Terri A. 
Sewell, and Bonnie Watson Coleman, rise today to acknowledge and honor 
the 110th anniversary of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and 
the contributions of its founder, Ethel Hedgeman Lyle. Ethel Hedgeman 
Lyle was a visionary ahead of her time, an advocate for women's rights, 
and a dedicated community servant.
  We stand to bring witness that Ethel Hedgeman Lyle deserves to be 
commemorated by a U.S. postage stamp in support of her many 
achievements.
  Mr. Speaker, we are especially honored to be joined by our 
international president Dr. Dorothy Buckhanan Wilson of Alpha Kappa 
Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, to validate our efforts. She has been on 
this mission for a long time. It is a journey she hopes to see to 
fruition.
  Mr. Speaker, we are beaming with pride and overflowing with 
excitement because we are on the verge of making history by bestowing 
an honor that is about 110 years overdue.
  Mr. Speaker in recognition of her great achievements, Ethel Hedgeman 
Lyle deserves to be commemorated with a United States postage stamp.
  Mr. Speaker, Ethel Hedgeman Lyle founded Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority 
in 1908 on a cold January day on the campus of Howard University during 
a time when Jim Crow laws segregated African-American women and 
prevented us from joining established Greek organizations. Undeterred 
by the obstacles of race and gender, she created a legacy of sisterhood 
that continues to inspire millions of women to devote their lives to 
community service and activism. She deserves a stamp.
  Mr. Speaker, Soror Ethel Hedgeman Lyle cut through the bitter cold of 
that winter day like a ray of hope, a guiding light, if you will. And, 
today we have an opportunity to propel the initiative to further 
immortalize her impeccable character and extraordinary achievements 
through her commemoration on a U.S. postage stamp.
  Mr. Speaker, today, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, is an 
international service organization with more than 300,000 members in 
more than 1,000 graduate and undergraduate chapters across the globe. 
The sorority is headquartered in Chicago and oversees the operations of 
two charitable foundations. Alpha Kappa Alpha, Incorporated, has 
inspired millions of women to dedicate their lives to realize its 
motto, ``Service to All mankind.'' These accomplishments were made 
possible by Ethel Hedgeman Lyle's vision to combine scholastic merit, 
personal achievement, and the rich historic African-American culture to 
create a women's collegiate-service based organization that has lasted 
110 years. She deserves a stamp.
  Mr. Speaker, as members of Congress and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, 
we are humbled to be able to support this effort. Thousands of our 
members across the globe have signed letters in support of the 
initiative She Deserves a Stamp. Just making that statement puts me in 
awe of how incredible Soror Ethel Hedgeman Lyle and her classmates 
really were.
  You see, when they agreed to come together to make history by doing 
what had never been done before, African Americans and women didn't 
have the right to vote.
  African Americans couldn't even share a lunch counter or schools with 
whites in 1908.
  But, today, 49 African Americans are serving in Congress . . . and 
seven of them are members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.
  Mr. Speaker, I think Soror Ethel Hedgeman Lyle knew that one day 
African Americans and women would be able to vote. She knew that one 
day African Americans would serve in Congress. And, I strongly believe 
she knew that if given the opportunity, African-American women would 
become the most educated demographic in America. She knew this at a 
time when most women were denied an education. She deserves a stamp.
  She is a ``Guiding Light.'' She still shines on the path others 
didn't know existed.
  Her work has lighted a path for many social and academic 
organizations that tear down the walls of racial and gender inequality. 
Her work has lighted the path for millions of women to attend college. 
Her work has shone brightly to highlight how living a life that is 
dedicated to ``Service to All Mankind'' can change the world in ways we 
never thought possible. She deserves a stamp.
  Mr. Speaker, now, she needs our support. We have to be a part of this 
movement. This is our chance to give back to someone who has given the 
world so much, and continues to give through her legacy. To paraphrase 
an African proverb, ``We are, because she was.'' And, if anyone has 
ever deserved to be on a stamp, it is the prestigious, wonderful, 
visionary Ethel Hedgeman Lyle, the founder of Alpha Kappa Alpha 
Sorority, Incorporated, the first African American Greek Letter 
Sorority. She deserves a stamp.

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