[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 39 (Thursday, February 27, 2020)]
[House]
[Pages H1227-H1228]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNIZING THE 176TH ANNIVERSARY OF DOMINICAN REPUBLIC INDEPENDENCE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Espaillat) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. ESPAILLAT. Mr. Speaker, today is February 27, and we celebrate 
the 176th anniversary of independence of the Dominican Republic, which 
gained its independence in 1844 from the Republic of Haiti.
  Led by Juan Pablo Duarte, Sanchez, and Mella, this island nation 
moved forward under great adversity. Throughout its 176 years, it has 
endured military occupation, dictatorship, and other strong and 
determining challenges. But throughout these many decades, the nation 
has prevailed.
  Today, we enjoy the presence of over 2 million Dominicans in the 
United States, many of them in New York State, and many of them in the 
13th Congressional District, particularly in Washington Heights.
  We see many streets in the neighborhood named after some of the 
patriarchs of the nation. We have Juan Pablo Duarte Boulevard, Manolo 
Tavarez Justo Way, Mateo Rojas Alou Street, Miguel Amaro Way, Freddy 
Beras-Goico Way.
  We also have schools named after very prominent members of that 
community. Salome Urena School, the Mirabal Sisters School, Juan Pablo 
Duarte School, the Juan Bosch School.
  We also have a huge parade, which now goes down Sixth Avenue, but 
originally started right there on Audubon Avenue in Northern Manhattan.
  We have social and cultural institutions like Club Deportivo 
Dominicano. We have many bodega owners, supermarket owners, hair 
salons, and other small businesses that I think are characteristic of 
their resolve, our people's resolve to work hard and make it a better 
city for all of us.

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  We send remittances back home, becoming the first and most important 
column of the Dominican economy, and we continue to contribute in many, 
many ways to that island nation and the United States of America.
  Last Saturday, we witnessed an unprecedented event where young people 
convened in Washington Heights to protest the failed municipal 
elections back home.
  Last weekend, the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, which 
I am honored to represent in Congress, witnessed thousands of young 
people who came to protest against the most recent failure by the 
Dominican Republic's electoral board to properly execute the country's 
municipal elections on February 16.

  Tais Garcia Heredia, Emely Curiel, Andres Gonzalez del Rey, Candido 
Santana, Alberto Valentin, Albelis Reyes, and others, particularly a 
young man by the name of Felipe Batista, led these young people--
thousands. Close to 10,000 of them descended on Washington Heights.
  Their initiative to fight for their people's future will probably not 
go down in the history books; you may not be able to find them in a 
Wikipedia page in the future; you may not be able to even Google their 
names; but their names will be echoed in the Congressional Record, and 
their patriotism will forever be remembered.
  They are fighting to strengthen democracy. They are fighting to 
strengthen the best values of any democratic system and process. That 
is why I am here: to exult their names and to tell all that know them 
that we are very proud of them.
  (English translation of the statement made in Spanish is as follows:)
  Today we are fighting for Dominican Independence, wherever there's a 
Dominican there's homeland. God, homeland and freedom.
  Hoy en dia estamos luchando por la Independencia Dominicana, donde 
esta el dominicano esta la Patria. Dios, Patria y Libertad.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from New York will provide a 
translation of his remarks to the Clerk.

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