[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 22 (Wednesday, February 7, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H527-H530]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      BLACK HISTORY MONTH OVERVIEW

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 9, 2023, the gentlewoman from Michigan (Ms. Slotkin) is 
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.


                             General Leave

  Ms. SLOTKIN. Madam Speaker, I ask for unanimous consent that all 
Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on the subject of my Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Michigan?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. SLOTKIN. Madam Speaker, each year in February, we have the 
opportunity to study the past and use it as a learning tool to move 
closer to a future of social equity for all. As we are now in the midst 
of Black History Month, it is both fitting and necessary that we look 
inward to our own communities and the legacy of the pioneers who paved 
the way.
  From the foundations of our great State to the present time, 
Michigan's Seventh District, which I am proud to represent, has been 
home to many pioneering Black men, women, and organizations who have 
made significant contributions to every aspect of life in our State.

                              {time}  1230

  The great State of Michigan stood tall as an anti-slavery State in 
the Civil War and played an important role in aiding Freedom Seekers on 
their path via the Underground Railroad.
  Today, Michigan is a hub of arts, culture, athletics, and innovation, 
thanks to the contributions of our diverse citizenry who call it home.
  It is my profound honor, for the fourth time annually, to highlight 
stories of Black Michiganders, past and present, from the Seventh 
District and to read their stories into the archives of this great 
Chamber.


                       Honoring the Canady Family

  Ms. SLOTKIN. Madam Speaker, today I pay tribute to a legendary 
Lansing family that has broken barriers across generations and 
continues to make history to this very day.
  The story begins in 1927 when the family matriarch, Ms. Hortense 
Canady, was born in Chicago. While she didn't grow up in Michigan, she 
came to Michigan State University to pursue her graduate studies after 
attending Fisk University, where she met her husband, Clinton.
  In the Lansing area, Hortense and Clinton, a World War II veteran and 
member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen, settled, put down roots, and left 
an indelible mark on our community.
  Clinton became a well-known and well-loved dentist, while Hortense 
put her passion for education and civil rights into action, becoming 
the first African American elected to the Lansing School Board of 
Education in 1968. Four years later, she and several other board 
members were recalled for advocating for desegregation, but Hortense 
did not let that deter her from working toward her core belief that 
everyone deserves access to quality education.
  She sat on the State's Women's Commission, served as the first 
executive director of the Lansing Community College Foundation, and 
helped fund a debutante club in Lansing to fill a void for young Black 
women, who at the time were not permitted to share in this tradition.
  Hortense founded the Lansing alumnae chapter of her sorority, Delta 
Sigma Theta, and served as its national president from 1983 to 1988. 
She was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame in 2002 and was 
named one of Ebony magazine's Most Influential People. Hortense Canady 
died in 2010 at the age of 83.
  Not only was Hortense Canady impressive in her own right, but her 
children have continued to blaze their own trails.
  Her daughter, Alexa Canady, is the first African-American woman in 
the Nation to be a neurosurgeon and served as the chief of neurosurgery 
at the Children's Hospital of Michigan from 1987 until her retirement 
in 2001. She devoted her brilliant mind and numerous talents to healing 
and welfare for thousands of young patients over the course of her 
career. Like her mother, she was inducted into the Michigan Women's 
Hall of Fame. She was also named a Michigander of the Year by the 
Detroit News in 2002.
  All three of Hortense Canady's sons became attorneys, including the 
Honorable Judge Clinton Canady III. Before ascending to the bench, 
Canady

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practiced law for 37 years. He was a founder of the Lansing Black 
Lawyers' Association, director of the Ingham County Bar Association, a 
commissioner for the Lansing Board of Water and Light, a member of the 
NAACP, and served on the board of the Lansing Symphony Association, 
Central Michigan Legal Aid, and so many other organizations.
  Elected to the Ingham County Circuit Court in 2010, Judge Canady 
served through his retirement in 2022 but returned on assignment to 
help address the backlog of cases during the COVID pandemic.
  He and his wife, Rita, have two children who are continuing the 
Canady tradition of service, one as an administrative law judge in 
California and the other at the United States Department of State.
  The Canady family is part of the very fabric of the Lansing 
community, a fabric stitched with their incredible work ethic and 
commitment to breaking new ground and to clearing a path for others to 
follow.
  Madam Speaker, I ask that their accomplishments be forever enshrined 
in the permanent Record of the United States House of Representatives.


                     honoring elsie mcpherson-brown

  Ms. SLOTKIN. Madam Speaker, today I honor the groundbreaking service 
of a Livingston County woman who never even planned to live in the 
area, much less to make history there. Fortunately, life had its own 
plans for Elsie McPherson-Brown, and the community is so much better 
for it.
  Livingston County sits at the crossroads of several major highways, 
and when Elsie McPherson-Brown was driving one of them to go visit 
family and friends, she took a wrong turn and ended up in the northern 
community of Hartland, Michigan.
  Elsie liked what she saw on that unexpected outing. After further 
investigation, including meeting with the superintendent and school 
principals, she convinced her husband to relocate to Hartland from 
Detroit with their two elementary school-aged boys.
  It is worth noting that Livingston County was and is to this day an 
overwhelmingly White community, but Elsie and her family were 
undeterred. From the beginning of their time in Hartland, Elsie dove 
into community service, volunteering in her kids' classrooms, chairing 
teacher appreciation day events, and serving on the PTO.
  In 2003, Elsie took her service to a new and historic level when she 
successfully ran for the Board of Education of Hartland Consolidated 
Schools, becoming the first African-American woman and only the second 
African American in modern history to be elected to public office in 
Livingston County.
  Her story is not without challenges, particularly when it comes to 
race relations. She often shares how a grocery store manager insisted 
her personal check was fraudulent because he refused to believe that a 
Black woman was living in Livingston County at the address that was 
stated. There were local police officers who questioned her youngest 
son and refused to believe he was heading home for the same reason.
  Elsie chose to rise above and set her focus and her intention on the 
things that she loved about the community and the commonalities she 
shared with her friends and neighbors.
  Supported by the voters, Elsie served 10 years on the school board 
and fulfilled her goal of having a voice and shaping the education of 
the next generation.
  She was known for her calm demeanor, her colorful outfits, and the 
many hats she wore about town, perhaps representative of the different 
hats she wore in life: wife, mother, advocate, trailblazer.
  While she has stepped down from public office, today she continues 
her life of quiet service to the community in her work in the 
Livingston County Sheriff's Office.
  Elsie McPherson-Brown may have stumbled upon Hartland accidentally, 
but it is no accident that she changed the course of Hartland's 
history.
  Madam Speaker, her story deserves to be told, uplifted, and forever 
preserved here in the permanent Record of the people's House.


                  honoring dr. samuel edward holloway

  Ms. SLOTKIN. Madam Speaker, today I honor a man who was a trailblazer 
in athletics and education and used his talents to break barriers and 
change the lives of generations of young people.
  Dr. Samuel Edward Holloway lived to serve others: his Nation, his 
community, and his family. It is fitting that as we mark Black History 
Month, we shine a light on his place in the history of Michigan's 
Seventh District and the many doors he opened for others to pass 
through.
  Before he was Dr. Holloway, he was simply Sam. He was a young man who 
came to Michigan with his father and left the Deep South as part of the 
Great Migration north.
  After spending his childhood in various parts of the Midwest, Sam and 
his family settled in Michigan in the 1940s, where he would eventually 
join the Ann Arbor High School class of 1951.
  Sam's athletic abilities were evident from a very young age. He was 
crowned State champion in his wrestling class during his high school 
years. Also clear was his desire to use his life for the greater good 
as he enlisted in the United States Army upon graduation and was 
honorably discharged in 1953.
  It was then that Sam began embarking on what would become his 
lifelong calling: public education. He received his bachelor's and 
master's degrees from Eastern Michigan University, during which time he 
also began his teaching career.
  So it was, at the height of the civil rights movement in 1963, when 
Samuel Edward Holloway became the first Black faculty member in the 
history of South Lyon Public Schools. During his tenure there, he was 
credited with becoming the first Black person to serve as head 
wrestling coach for any high school team in the State of Michigan.
  Eventually, Sam earned his Ph.D. in education and went on to serve in 
numerous districts, including Ypsilanti Public Schools and Romulus 
Public Schools.
  In the late 1970s, he became a building administrator at Pioneer High 
School in Ann Arbor, a full-circle moment for a man who had graduated 
from that very district.
  He held that post until his retirement in 1990, a retirement that he 
and his wife, Janet, enjoyed to the fullest. Still an athlete at heart 
and in practice, Holloway competed each year in the Arizona Senior 
Olympics and rode his motorcycle across the United States and Europe.
  Dr. Samuel Edward Holloway passed away in 2022, leaving behind his 
devoted wife, his four children, a large and loving extended family, 
and an incredible legacy.
  Dr. Holloway didn't set out to be a pioneer. He simply wanted to do 
the things he loved in service to others.
  Madam Speaker, I ask that the permanent Record of the people's House 
reflect his groundbreaking contributions and the gratitude of the 
institutions forever changed by his presence.


                    Honoring Orrin and Luvina Wilson

  Ms. SLOTKIN. Madam Speaker, today I pay tribute to two of the most 
beloved residents to ever call the St. Johns, Michigan, community home: 
Orrin and Luvina Wilson.
  Settling in Clinton County post-Civil War, the Wilsons were a ``power 
couple'' before the term existed, but it was never about seeking power 
for themselves. Rather, the Wilsons lived their lives in quiet but 
devoted and groundbreaking service to their Nation and to their 
neighbors, and forever changed the face of St. Johns.
  Orrin was just 16 years old in 1864 when he enlisted in Michigan's 
all-Black regiment, the 102nd United States Colored Infantry, Company 
K, out of Kalamazoo, Michigan. He served until the war's end and 
returned to Michigan, where he met and married his bride.
  The two would soon settle in St. Johns, where they lived for the next 
60 years. In addition to his military service, Orrin was a trailblazer 
in so many ways.
  First, he took up the trade of barbering and owned his shop for 
nearly 50 years, serving a mostly White clientele out of the old Steel 
Hotel in downtown St. Johns.
  He was also a founding member of the local chapter of the Grand Army 
of the Republic, a national union of Civil War veterans, and served as 
its post commander for a time. Not only was he the only Black member of 
the St. Johns Charles Grisson Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, 
it is believed that he is the only Black man in

[[Page H529]]

the State of Michigan to hold such a leadership position outside of the 
all-Black posts in cities like Detroit.
  Luvina was a trailblazer in her own right, serving as president of 
the local chapter of the Women's Relief Corps, an auxiliary 
organization of the Grand Army of the Republic. The WRC not only 
supported the mission to aid Union veterans but also assisted former 
Army nurses and promoted patriotism through education. Just like her 
husband, Luvina is believed to be the only Black woman in the State to 
have ever led an all-White post.
  Orrin and Luvina raised their two sons together, George and Arthur, 
who continued the family barbering trade. The family was active in St. 
Johns United Methodist Church, where Orrin served as a trustee and 
treasurer for three decades. They were married for 58 years, linked by 
their common goal of creating a better, more just community and Nation.

  United, they also were in death, leaving this world just 1 day apart 
in late December 1928. The two were buried together in the veterans 
section of the Mt. Rest Cemetery, with flags flown at half-mast and a 
large funeral procession going past the family home on South Clinton 
Avenue.
  Madam Speaker, may their life story and memory be a blessing and an 
inspiration to all of us, forever preserved here in the permanent 
Record of the people's House.


                         Honoring Mike Garland

  Ms. SLOTKIN. Madam Speaker, I pay tribute to a basketball coaching 
legend who helped lead the Michigan State University Spartans men's 
basketball team to 19 NCAA tournaments, 10 Big Ten championships, 7 
Final Fours, and a national championship.
  As impressive as those statistics are, former MSU Assistant Coach 
Mike Garland quite literally came back from the dead and is now using 
his second chance at life to pay this incredible gift forward.
  As much as Mike Garland loved coaching basketball, and as many great 
things as his teams accomplished on the court, he was content with his 
decision to retire from MSU in June 2022. He was looking forward to 
spending more time with his wife, his kids, and his grandkids.
  Not long after, however, he went into cardiac arrest while driving 
his car. Fortunately, two Good Samaritans were driving by at the time. 
They saw Garland's car go off the road and into a tree. They called 911 
and performed CPR until paramedics and police arrived. In total, 13 
people worked on Garland for an agonizing 18 minutes to restart his 
heart.
  It turned out the electrical failure in Garland's heart was the 
result of a birth defect, one that required open heart surgery to fix. 
Three months later, Garland was back up and running, quite literally, 
on the treadmill. Not long after that, he honored all of those who 
helped save his life with an emotional public thank-you at the MSU 
Breslin Center, home to many of his greatest coaching moments.

                              {time}  1245

  Today, the Breslin Center is also home court for his new passion: a 
foundation he launched called Champions of the Heart.
  Through this nonprofit, Garland works to inform the Spartan community 
and others on how to save lives during episodes of cardiac arrest.
  Attendees at these free trainings learn how to perform CPR, how to 
recognize sudden cardiac arrest, and how to use an automatic external 
defibrillator.
  Mike Garland is a man who has lived two lives, both defined by 
statistics. In the first, his focus was on wins, losses, and free-throw 
percentages.
  His second life, however, is summed up in a single stark numerical 
reality: Only one person in ten survives a cardiac arrest.
  For all he has done to defy the odds and change the course of history 
for himself and for others, I ask that his story be recorded in the 
permanent Record of the people's House.


                 Recognizing Reverend Lillian Archibald

  Ms. SLOTKIN. Madam Speaker, I rise to honor a woman who defied not 
only the odds but her own family's wishes to become a pioneer in the 
pulpit at a landmark Black church in Livingston County, Michigan.
  Though her father was a devout Baptist preacher in the early part of 
the 20th century, Lillian Archibald was taught from a young age that 
ministry was strictly for men. The fourth of five children, Lillian's 
father was clear in his message to his daughters: Love the Lord, but 
find another calling of work.
  Skeptical but obedient, Lillian attended a business college in her 
hometown of Memphis and spent time as a missionary before starting a 
family of her own. Tragically, the youngest of her four children was 
killed in 1977 in a crash between a car and a train.
  Despite her profound grief, Lillian took solace in her unshakable 
faith and made the decision that it was time to answer the call that 
had been placed upon her heart.
  Lillian enrolled at Payne Theological Seminary and enlisted in the 
ministry at age 50. She spent some time as an itinerant elder before 
being ordained as a full minister in 1985. And, of course, she broke 
the news to her father, who she says grew very quiet before finally 
giving his blessing.
  She brought that blessing to Michigan, first serving 6 years 
assisting the pastor at a church in Jackson, Michigan, before being 
assigned to pastor St. James African Methodist Episcopal Church in 
Brighton--the only African-American church in predominantly White 
Livingston County in 1990.
  With her melodic voice and charismatic style, Reverend Archibald is 
credited with breathing new life and hope into her congregation where 
she stayed for 4 years.
  During her tenure, the church grew in size and in spirit, and began 
reaching out to the community and joining other churches with a sense 
of common purpose and passion.
  Though her time in Livingston County was brief, her impact was 
profound. She received numerous recognitions for her commitment to 
community, including her work with victims of domestic violence at the 
Women's Resource Center in Howell and her efforts to shelter the 
unhoused through Habitat for Humanity.
  Perhaps one of her greatest gifts was the mentorship she offered to 
other women contemplating the ministry. Reverend Archibald is still 
warmly remembered today by many of them as a compassionate guide and a 
listening ear.
  Just as her courageous ministry and her golden voice still guide the 
work of St. James AME Church, I ask that her memory be forever 
enshrined in the permanent Record of the United States House of 
Representatives.


               Honoring Rodney Whitaker and Xavier Davis

  Ms. SLOTKIN. Madam Speaker, today I pay tribute to two members of the 
Michigan State University faculty who have contributed to the rich 
artistic landscape of our great State and helped shape the next 
generation of musical talent, all set to a distinctive jazz beat.
  As a young recording artist in Detroit, Rodney Whitaker likely never 
imagined he would one day build and lead one of the most distinguished 
jazz degree programs and performing faculties in the world. But the 
legendary bassist known for his distinctive ``bear-sized'' tones, today 
serves as director of jazz studies at MSU, a program he has transformed 
into a world-class training ground whose students have gone on to 
perform alongside some of the top jazz artists in the world.
  It is a case of those who can do, teach. Whitaker himself spent 7 
years as a bassist with Wynton Marsalis' Septet and the Lincoln Center 
Jazz Orchestra, followed by a quarter-century touring around the world, 
collaborating and performing with legendary jazz artists from Dizzy 
Gillespie to Diana Krall.
  He continues to teach master classes at universities around the 
world, all while serving as the artistic director at the MSU Professors 
of Jazz, the East Lansing Summer Solstice Jazz Festival, the Dr. 
Phillips Center Jazz Orchestra in Orlando, Florida, and the Gathering 
Orchestra in Detroit to name a few of his many involvements.
  He has earned one of the highest distinctions in academia, the title 
of University Distinguished Professor of Jazz Bass and he is proud to 
serve as a special assistant to the dean's office, directing the 
College of Music's diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging efforts.
  In 2006, he was nominated for the Juno Award, Canada's equivalent to

[[Page H530]]

the Grammy, and in 2011, he received an Emmy nomination.
  Just last year, he was named 2023 Detroit Jazz Hero by the Jazz 
Journalists Association.
  But strip away all the titles, all the awards, and Whitaker is simply 
a man who understands the power of the gift that he has been given and 
the necessity to pass it on. In his own words, Dr. Rodney Whitaker 
said: That is my truth. I love passing on the knowledge of the 
history of music, and it is life-changing to see that lightbulb go off 
in someone. It certainly changed my life.

  For all the lives he has enriched, changed, and set to music, I ask 
that his contributions forever live here in the permanent Record of the 
United States House of Representatives.
  Madam Speaker, I would also like to shine a light on the incredible 
accomplishments of another member of the Michigan State University jazz 
community: Associate professor of jazz piano, Xavier Davis.
  It was 1994 and Xavier Davis, then a college student from Grand 
Rapids, Michigan, was performing with a small ensemble at a convention 
in Boston when his tunes caught the ear of the legendary jazz vocalist 
Betty Carter, a native of Flint, Michigan. Carter scooped him up and 
brought him to New York, hiring him to work exclusively as a pianist 
for her jazz trio.
  Davis spent many years in New York, cultivating his talent, learning 
from and playing with some of the greatest names in jazz, including: 
Carl Allen, James Williams, Billy Hart, Regina Carter, and Wynton 
Marsalis. He served as musical director for the Boys Choir of Harlem 
during its 1999-2000 season, he played keyboard for the television 
series ``The Cosby Show,'' and has been featured on more than 50 
albums, including a Grammy-winning collaboration with Christian McBride 
in 2012.
  We are so fortunate that after 6 years of teaching at the famed 
Juilliard School in New York, Davis brought his talents back home and 
has been teaching jazz piano at Michigan State University since 2014.
  In addition to the many students who have benefited from his 
instruction, Davis has also dedicated himself to uplifting his own 
hometown of Detroit through his music.
  Supported by a grant from Michigan State University's Humanities and 
Art Research program, Davis began composing music about Detroit, which 
eventually became a powerful album titled ``Rise Up Detroit.''
  Through his music, Davis focused on the role Detroit has played in 
the lives of African Americans and in the world at large, highlighting 
the Underground Railroad, the Great Migration, and the boon days of the 
auto industry.
  Professor Davis is a gifted composer, arranger, and producer of 
music, and widely recognized as one of the most accomplished jazz 
pianists in the world. He is also a proud Michigander, continually 
giving back to the community and the State that put the music in his 
soul. While he is a recording artist, it is my distinct pleasure to 
record his accomplishments and convey my gratitude for his 
contributions here in the permanent Record of the people's House.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________