[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 31 (Thursday, February 18, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E141-E142]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




INTRODUCTION OF A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT AND 
                            BLACK EUROPEANS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, February 18, 2021

  Mr. HASTINGS. Madam Speaker, rise today to introduce a resolution 
with my colleagues, Representatives Gregory Meeks, Sheila Jackson Lee, 
Gwen Moore, and Bobby Rush. The Honorable John Lewis of Georgia was a 
previous cosponsor of this legislation. Even as we honor him during 
Black History Month, I also urge my colleagues to join us in 
recognizing People of African Descent and Black Europeans.
  Our resolution observes the history and current situation of People 
of African Descent living in Europe and Black Europeans during the 
United Nations designated International Decade for People of African 
Descent. It also encourages the U.S. Secretary of State to take a 
number of steps to ensure their situation is improved following 
recommendations from the Anti-racism and People of African Descent 
Weeks (PADWEEK) held with our colleagues in the European Parliament 
over the past few

[[Page E142]]

years and anti-racism measures discussed at the September 2020 Joint 
Meeting I hosted in my capacity as Chair of the U.S. Helsinki 
Commission with my European colleagues ``Reinforcing U.S.-EU 
Parliamentary Coordination to Combat Racism and Systemic 
Discrimination.''
  Recommendations from these efforts have included the implementation 
of EU-wide anti-racism strategies; European Black History Month and 
Remembrance Day for Victims of Colonialism and Enslavement; a fund for 
Black European led initiatives to address continuing disparities and 
discrimination and support for empowerment initiatives; European-wide 
strategies for the inclusion of People of African Descent; and support 
for transatlantic exchanges on common issues of racial prejudice and 
discrimination.
  The need for recognition of Black populations in Europe became clear 
more than a decade ago when I chaired a U.S. Helsinki Commission 
hearing entitled, ``The State of (In)visible Black Europe: Race, 
Rights, and Politics'', where we learned that the situation in Europe 
is very similar to the one in the United States. A number of these 
similarities were most recently highlighted by global racial justice 
protests following the murder of George Floyd.
  While the presence of Blacks in Europe can be traced to enslavement, 
colonization, military deployments, voluntary or forced migration, the 
movement of refugees and asylum seekers, or educational and other 
professional exchanges, the story of Europeans of African Descent and 
Black Europeans still remains largely untold--rendering many of their 
past and present contributions to the very fabric of Europe unseen or 
forgotten, which is unacceptable.
  Madam Speaker, it is my hope that when we gather in the years to come 
to review the efforts of the United Nations designated International 
Decade for People of African Descent, we will not only speak of how our 
efforts resulted in our respective nations publicly recognizing the 
injustices and long-term impact of slavery and colonialism, but also of 
how our societies reconciled these issues in a manner that ensured 
equal opportunity, access, and justice for all people of African 
descent.
  I am greatly encouraged by recent Executive Orders from President 
Biden focused on equity and justice in this country, and see the 
adoption of this resolution on Black Europeans as well as a bill I have 
introduced calling for the creation of a State Department Office on 
Global African Descent Affairs as complementary to the President's 
domestic efforts. I urge you to join me in supporting this resolution 
recognizing Black Europeans and other efforts in support of achieving 
racial justice.

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