[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 28 (Wednesday, February 13, 2019)]
[House]
[Page H1531]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          BLACK HISTORY MONTH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
California (Mrs. Torres) for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. TORRES of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate 
Black History Month and to honor countless African American leaders 
throughout our history who have pushed relentlessly to make our Union 
one that is more just and more equitable for all people.
  We recognize the incredible progress that they made possible and the 
work that we still need to do to ensure that opportunity isn't 
something that is determined by the color of our skin.
  We honor the courageous and determined everyday men and women, like 
Medgar Evers and Fannie Lou Hamer, who challenged every barrier in our 
society and set a path for the activists of today, like Patricia 
Nickols-Butler, the CEO of Community Action Partnership. She has 
dedicated her entire life to making sure that not one single family in 
San Bernardino County is left behind by providing them with the 
resources they need to succeed.
  We honor educators like Maxine Smith, who fought discrimination in 
our classrooms to give every child an equal opportunity to learn, and 
leaders in the Inland Empire like Dr. Soraya M. Coley, the president of 
Cal Poly Pomona, who is committed to helping every student reach his 
and her full potential; trailblazers like San Bernardino County's first 
Black schoolteacher, Dorothy Inghram, who taught every child to reach 
for the stars and never give up, or Dr. Eric Bishop, the vice president 
of student services at Chaffey College, who has been a guiding force 
for every student when the going got tough.
  We honor the countless Black veterans who fought for our freedoms in 
every war, from the Revolutionary War to our current conflicts in the 
Middle East, and law enforcement officers who put their own lives on 
the line every single day to keep our communities safe. We salute Chief 
Derek Williams of the Ontario Police Department, whose commitment to 
service began in the Air Force.
  We honor the public servants like Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, the 
first African American woman elected to Congress, who showed us what it 
meant to be ``unbought and unbossed'' and made way for the historic 
number of women running for office today; and Wilmer Amina Carter, the 
first African American woman to represent San Bernardino County in the 
California State Assembly. Throughout her time in office, she worked to 
improve the lives of people in her community by passing laws to 
strengthen healthcare, safety, transportation, and help create jobs.
  We honor the moral leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who 
made America listen--listen--to its conscience and sacrificed his life 
to advance civil rights for each and every one of us.
  And we honor Pastor Chuck Singleton of Loveland Church in Ontario and 
Rialto, whose words provide comfort and healing here at home and abroad 
through his humanitarian work.
  The successes of African American leaders reach far and wide and are 
deeply entrenched in each of our lives. May we all take the time to 
uplift the immeasurable contributions that African American leaders 
have made to our country this month and every single day of the year. 
May we renew our commitment and join them to pick up the fight for 
equality, opportunity, and justice for all Americans.

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