[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 219 (Thursday, December 24, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1200-E1201]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            AFRICAN DIASPORA

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. KWANZA HALL

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 24, 2020

  Mr. HALL. I rise today to address the issue of the African Diaspora.
  The African Union defines the African Diaspora very broadly as people 
of African Descent living outside Africa. The UN estimates that there 
are about 200 million people of African descent outside Africa in 
various constituencies.
  In Atlanta, we are blessed to have so many members of the Diaspora in 
our community and that community is anchored by incredible institutions 
like the African Diaspora Art Museum of Atlanta.
  And I am heartened to see that our youth are also engaged in this 
conversation, such as the Young African Diaspora Initiative.
  The last dozen years have been a source of whiplash. From 2009 to 
2017, we had a president whose father was from Kenya, and who used the 
opportunity of his administration to strengthen ties between Africa and 
our Nation.
  For the last four years, however, we have had a president who pays no 
heed to the richness and vitality of the African Diaspora. This was 
encapsulated by his vulgar epithet about some of the countries on the 
African continent.
  But, in November, Americans decided to turn the page far away from 
this hate.
  The election of President-Elect Joe Biden and Vice President-Elect 
Kamala Harris provides an opportunity.
  We need to use the occasion of the Biden Administration to strengthen 
the ties with Africa while emphasizing the importance of the Global 
Diaspora.

[[Page E1201]]

  There are so many opportunities where we can work together, most 
notably with our support public projects, such as schools and health 
facilities.
  During the COVID-19 pandemic, the need to form strategic alliances 
are self-evident--we all have a need to work together to end this 
scourge.
  We must encourage the Diaspora to leave commanding footprints on 
capital, creativity and know-how.
  But there are additional opportunities, such as eradicating malaria, 
ensuring clean water is available in all pockets of the continent, and 
to ensure programs like PEPFAR, the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS 
Relief, are funded and supported. PEPFAR has saved the lives of 
millions of people.
  But we can do more and we must do more. We must strengthen the ties 
of diplomacy and of commerce, particularly through direct private 
investment and improved utilization of transit corridors.
  There are advantages of encouraging African governments to implement 
fiscal incentives and policies that foster common commercial 
development and works to eradicate economic deprivation.
  After all, it was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the most 
prolific servants of nondiscrimination and of racial reconciliation in 
our nation, who advanced just causes through nonviolent protest. We 
must turn to this example once more to achieve further greatness for 
members of African Diaspora as our nation begins this new presidential 
administration.
  We cannot let this opportunity go to waste by disregarding Africa's 
potential. We must seize the moment.

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