[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 26 (Wednesday, February 8, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H743-H744]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Michigan (Ms. Tlaib) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, Black history is American history. As Black 
History Month begins, all across the country we see radical, rightwing 
elected officials attempting to whitewash American history and ban 
Black history from being taught in our classrooms.
  This is, Mr. Speaker, unmasked white supremacy at its core. You 
cannot teach the truth about American history without Black history.

[[Page H744]]

  This should be alarming to many of us in this Chamber, especially as 
we fight for a more inclusive multiracial democracy.
  I am reminded of the need for Congress to pass critical legislation 
like Congressman Bowman's African American History Act.
  It is now more important than ever and very timely that, again, we 
make sure that we teach our history accurately. The truth must always 
be taught and should inspire all of us to continue to march for 
freedom, equity, and justice for all in the spirit of our civil rights 
leaders and our social justice seekers who came before us.
  We cannot, Mr. Speaker, rob our children of learning the role of 
systemic racism in our American history and how it continues to impact 
the lives of many of our neighbors across the country.
  This is how we support our communities to gain unity, to embrace 
diversity. It is critical that we tell the truth about our Nation's 
past, and that includes reckoning with our history of racism, 
enslavement, segregation, and redlining in our communities, and even 
now with the Black Lives Matter movement in our country.
  This painting, Mr. Speaker, is called Critical Race Theory by 
Jonathan Harris, a local artist in Detroit. It is a powerful reminder 
of the importance of teaching and preserving Black history. We cannot 
allow anyone to erase Black history and the powerful legacies of our 
civil rights warriors, many of which inspire me today.
  We cannot learn from our past if our past is no longer being taught 
in our education system.

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