[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 197 (Thursday, November 30, 2023)]
[House]
[Page H5998]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     RECOGNIZING JENNIFER KUMIYAMA

  (Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of California asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today to 
acknowledge Jennifer Kumiyama, a talented performer, advocate, and 
constituent from Long Beach, California.
  I am so proud that she was cast as the voice of Dahlia in the new 
Disney movie ``Wish.''
  Jennifer was born with arthrogryposis and uses a wheelchair. She 
broke barriers when she became the first person in a wheelchair to 
actually perform on a Disney stage.
  In addition to her career as a performer, she does vital work every 
day as the accessibility coordinator for the city of Long Beach.
  In ``Wish,'' her character, Dahlia, is a courageous leader who also 
uses a wooden crutch to help her walk. This is a huge deal for 
representation. People with disabilities remain dramatically 
underrepresented in the media. Despite over 25 percent of American 
adults having some type of disability, movie and TV shows that feature 
people with disabilities or hire folks with disabilities are few and 
far between. I think we can all agree that this representation, 
especially for young people, is so important.

  We couldn't be more proud of Jennifer for breaking barriers all 
across her life and for this latest performance.

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