[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 180 (Tuesday, November 12, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1420]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            HONORING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF W. GEORGE ALLEN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 12, 2019

  Mr. HASTINGS. Madam Speaker, I rise today with a heavy heart to honor 
the life and legacy of my dear friend, W. George Allen, a selfless 
member of our community who spent his life serving others. I had the 
great privilege of working alongside George as his law partner for many 
years. Throughout his more than four-decade career practicing law, he 
established himself as one of our state's most influential civil rights 
advocates. I will never forget the years we spent working together to 
fight and end segregation in Broward County.
  George was born in Sanford, Florida in 1936. He attended Florida A&M 
University and received his Bachelor of Science degree in Political 
Science with a minor in Economics, before continuing his education at 
the University of Florida Law School, where he became the first African 
American to receive a Juris Doctor degree.
  Between 1958 and 1960, George served in the United States Army as a 
special agent in the Counter Intelligence Corps, before being honorably 
discharged at the rank of First Lieutenant. Following his military 
service, George was accepted into law school, where he became involved 
in social activism by organizing lunch counter sit-ins around 
Gainesville, Florida. After graduating and being admitted to the 
Florida Bar Association, he decided to open his own firm in Fort 
Lauderdale. Here he practiced for forty-two years, specializing in 
trial work, probate, personal injury, insurance defense and wrongful 
death.
  Throughout his career, George was recognized time and again for his 
hard work and dedication to those around him. He was a member of the 
Urban League of Broward County, the NAACP, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, 
Inc, the University of Florida Foundation, and the Florida Bar 
Association. He also served as the Broward County Bar Association's 
president. Additionally, he received numerous awards for his 
achievements, including the University of Florida Distinguished Alumnus 
Award in 2000, and the National Conference for Community and Justice 
Silver Medallion Award in 2001. In 2003, George was inducted into the 
National Bar Association's Hall of Fame, and in February of 2005, 
Governor Jeb Bush appointed him to the Florida A&M University's Board 
of Trustees.
  Madam Speaker, W. George Allen was a champion for our community and 
positively impacted the lives of all those he met. He was a South 
Florida icon, whose life and legacy has left an indelible mark on our 
state and nation. I want to extend my deepest condolences to his 
children, Jonathan, Timothy, Frederick, and Amy Carole and the entire 
Allen family during this heartbreaking time. W. George Allen was a 
blessing to our community. I am so truly honored to have called him my 
friend. He will be dearly missed.

                          ____________________