[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 171 (Thursday, October 1, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H5109]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING KATIE DORSETT AND MARY McALLISTER

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
North Carolina (Ms. Adams) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. ADAMS. Mr. Speaker, I rise this morning to honor two exceptional 
North Carolina women who left us this year, former Senator Dr. Katie 
Dorsett and former Representative Mary McAllister. I admired and was 
friends with both of them.
  They were both educators who went into public service, proud products 
of historically Black colleges and universities. Both advocates on 
behalf of African Americans, they founded and led organizations to 
combat sickle cell anemia.
  They both knew the highs of winning elected office and doing 
exceptional work for their constituents and the lows of personal 
tragedy. Both women were predeceased by a child they loved like a best 
friend.
  They were both county commissioners and State legislators and, most 
of all, trailblazers.
  Katie Dorsett was the first Black woman on the Greensboro City 
Council, and I was proud to follow in her footsteps. After serving on 
the city council, she was elected to the county board of commissioners 
and went on to serve in Governor Hunt's administration and the North 
Carolina State Senate. We served together in the General Assembly, and 
Katie was a longtime friend and mentor whose friendship I cherished.
  When the Greensboro News and Record remembered her in July, they 
wrote: ``She carried herself with dignity and always spoke her mind.''
  That was Katie. She was a great leader and a strong advocate for her 
community, and the State of North Carolina is poorer without her.
  Mary McAllister was also a legislator, a county commissioner who 
broke barriers for Black women. She was the first Black woman to win a 
countywide election in Cumberland County, North Carolina. She changed 
the way the county commission elected commissioners so she wouldn't be 
the last.
  A fountain of confidence, Mary had a sense of humor, and she could 
build relationships with anyone. She wasn't afraid to stand up to the 
good ol' boys club in the legislature, and we became fast friends. It 
is no surprise that her first campaign slogan was ``Mary Has Moxie.''
  I am humbled to have the opportunity to honor these strong, 
phenomenal women on the floor today.
  Thank you, Mary, and thank you, Katie, for opening doors for the next 
generation of Black women leaders. I am here on the floor of the U.S. 
House today because you crossed the threshold first.

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