[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 21 (Wednesday, February 1, 2023)]
[House]
[Page H616]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   BLACK HISTORY IS AMERICAN HISTORY

  (Ms. CLARKE of New York asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. CLARKE of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise on this day, the first 
day of Black History Month, unfortunately during a moment of 
unprecedented assaults on truth by those desperate to rewrite America's 
history.
  In this troubling time of banned books and canceled curriculums, it 
is with great urgency that I stand before you, Mr. Speaker, to 
celebrate the profound history of our Nation that far too many far-
right zealots are fighting to conceal.
  This is a special month, defined in equal parts triumph and tragedy, 
and centered in pride and appreciation because our African-American 
forebears rose above oppression and helped create the greatest nation 
the modern world has ever seen.
  Make no mistake, Mr. Speaker, only the ashamed and the afraid hide 
from history. Black Americans never have and never will, for ours is a 
story of victory over adversity, determination in the face of 
uncertainty, and the courage of our convictions.
  Our story is America's story. Let us never forget, let us never 
concede, and let us never be silent when we say that Black history is 
American history.

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