[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 104 (Tuesday, June 15, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H2751-H2752]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             CELEBRATING CARIBBEAN-AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
the Virgin Islands (Ms. Plaskett) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. PLASKETT. Mr. Speaker, it is spring, the beginning of summer, but 
it is also Caribbean-American Heritage Month this June. It brings me 
great pride to join Virgin Islanders and other Caribbean people across 
the country in celebrating Caribbean-American Heritage Month.
  As a Virgin Islander and an American of Caribbean descent, I am proud 
to celebrate the life, legacy, and achievement of Caribbean people in 
this country. Virgin Islanders and other Americans of Caribbean lineage 
have made enormous contributions to the United States through academia, 
athletics, the arts, and more.
  Caribbeans have been involved in this country since its inception, 
such as des gens de couleurs libres, who included 800 French-Caribbean 
soldiers, 500 of whom were Haitian free men of color who fought at the 
battle of Savannah for the Colonies in the American Revolution.
  Caribbean-American Heritage Month was officially celebrated and 
recognized on June 5, 2006, by Presidential proclamation signed by 
President George W. Bush. It had been unanimously adopted in the House 
in 2005 through the unwavering power of our colleague Barbara Lee, who 
sponsored the legislation. Since 2006, the White House has released an 
annual proclamation recognizing June as National Caribbean-American 
Heritage Month.
  Caribbean Americans have added to the history, culture, and 
communities in America in countless ways. The unique relationship 
between the United States and the Caribbean has enriched both regions, 
and this month is a wonderful time to celebrate our shared past and our 
future.
  We should also look for opportunities for us as Americans to pursue 
new partnerships on a number of issues with the Caribbean. From trade, 
immigration, disaster preparedness, poverty eradication, and ending 
HIV/AIDS, the United States and the Caribbean share a number of mutual 
policy interests.
  This year, the COVID-19 pandemic adds a new challenge to both our 
country and our Caribbean neighbors. I will keep fighting to ensure 
that the United States works to be an active and constructive partner 
in safeguarding the health and welfare of our third border.
  The people of the Caribbean are as much a part of the fabric of this 
country as anyone else. We are not monolithic, nor do we represent one 
culture, one ideology, or even one ethnicity.

[[Page H2752]]

Alexander Hamilton, the drafter of the United States Constitution and 
our first Secretary of the Treasury, was born on the island of Nevis 
and spent his childhood and formative years on my home, St. Croix, in 
the Danish West Indies, what is now the Virgin Islands.
  Caribbean-American heritage not only flows through the fabric of this 
country; it also flows through the Halls of Congress every day. Shirley 
Chisholm, a personal hero of mine, was the first African-American 
Congresswoman and the first Black woman to run for President, nominated 
by a major party. Her heritage hails from Barbados and Guyana. Without 
her, Caribbean women, even Black women, myself, and many other of my 
colleagues would not be here today: Yvette Clarke, Jenniffer Gonzalez-
Colon, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Sheila Jackson Lee, Frederica Wilson, 
former Members Mia Love and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and many more. Even 
our current Vice President, Kamala Harris, is of Jamaican descent.
  The Caribbean people have done so much more than just fight and make 
laws for this country. That doesn't even scratch the surface. The 
building we are standing in right now was designed by Dr. William 
Thornton, who was born on the island of Jost Van Dyke in the British 
Virgin Islands. The symbol of our democracy was designed by a Caribbean 
American.
  Our works in the arts are felt every day: news commentators Joy Reid, 
Yamiche Alcindor, Karine Jean-Pierre; from Sidney Poitier, the first 
Black man to win an Academy Award, to Kerry Washington. Who can forget 
Cicely Tyson and Harry Belafonte; great minds like Edward Wilmot 
Blyden, the father of Pan-Africanism; Denmark Vesey; Malcolm X; and 
Stokely Carmichael.
  In music, we have managed to not only be great but iconic as well: 
Maxwell, who is considered to be the godfather of neo-soul and the R&B 
movement; Biggie Smalls, a fellow Brooklynite born to Jamaican parents, 
changed hip-hop forever; and Nicki Minaj, who is changing it even more 
in the modern era.
  Some of the greatest athletes of our time are Caribbean, from Kareem 
Abdul-Jabbar, whose family is from Trinidad, to Tim Duncan, from my 
home on St. Croix, who was just elected to the hall of fame, and even 
Ramon Harewood in the NFL.
  During this unique time in our country's history, I encourage 
everyone to learn more about the contributions of Caribbean Americans.

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