[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 118 (Monday, July 18, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S3341]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. KAINE:
       S.J. Res. 57. A joint resolution redesignating the Robert 
     E. Lee Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery as the 
     ``Arlington House National Historic Site''; to the Committee 
     on Energy and Natural Resources.
  Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, today, I am introducing legislation to 
remove ``Robert E. Lee Memorial'' from the official name of Arlington 
House.
  This legislation is partially inspired by requests from descendants 
of General Robert E. Lee and people who were enslaved at Arlington 
House. This is also an effort to promote a society that is more just 
and equitable for all, regardless of race, by moving on from a public 
symbol that honors a figure that fought to protect slavery.
  Arlington House is the first name of the historic mansion, which sits 
on Federal land within Arlington National Cemetery. The property is 
administered by the National Park Service and overlooks the Potomac 
River and the Nation's Capital. The house was built by Martha Custis 
Washington's grandson, George Washington Parke Custis, as the Nation's 
first memorial to George Washington. Later, his daughter married Robert 
E. Lee, and the couple lived in the home until the Civil War. During 
that period, the site was chosen to serve as a national military 
cemetery in part to prevent Lee from returning. Congress passed 
legislation in 1955 designating the house the ``Custis-Lee Mansion'' to 
memorialize Lee and subsequently amended the official title to 
``Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee Memorial.'' The legislation would 
remove the latter part of that name and return the house to its 
original name, ``Arlington House.''
  Today, the National Park Service is dedicated to telling the story of 
those who were enslaved at the Arlington House. I am hopeful that this 
name change will help to do just a little bit more to encapsulate the 
full history of the site, which included the presence of many families 
and generations throughout history, such as the Syphax, Burke, Parks, 
and Gray families.
  I am pleased that companion legislation is also being introduced in 
the U.S. House of Representatives by my colleague, Representative Don 
Beyer, who has led this effort for years.

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