[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 121 (Wednesday, July 1, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H2991]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 HONORING FORMER MAYOR PAUL GAINES, SR.

  (Mr. CICILLINE asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. CICILLINE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a Rhode Island 
legend, the late former mayor of Newport, Paul Gaines, Sr.
  At a moment in our Nation's history, when we are again confronting 
the torment of generations of racial inequality, and collectively 
working to repair the soul of America, Paul Gaines will be remembered 
as a trailblazer in the fight for equal justice under the law.
  As New England's and Rhode Island's first Black mayor, Mayor Gaines 
was an inspiration, an educator, a soldier, a mentor, and a change-
maker who succeeded in every endeavor by bridging divides and leading 
with humility and integrity.
  When he died last Thursday, at the age of 88, Mayor Gaines left 
behind an enormous legacy.
  As an activist, he spent a decade of his life working to build a 
memorial to the First Rhode Island Regiment, a Continental Army 
regiment that is best remembered today for recruiting Black soldiers to 
serve during the Revolutionary War.
  In these recent years, he continued his work to ensuring equality of 
opportunity regardless of one's race, who they are, or where they came 
from.
  Mr. Speaker, I offer my deepest sympathies to his wife of 61 years, 
Jo Eva, and to the entire Gaines family.

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