[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 101 (Friday, June 14, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E640]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              HONORING THE `BLACK ANGELS' OF STATEN ISLAND

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. NICOLE MALLIOTAKIS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, June 14, 2024

  Ms. MALLIOTAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to include in the Record the 
following Proclamation honoring the Black Angels of Staten Island:
  Whereas Staten Island Sea View Hospital opened in 1913 specifically 
to treat patients with Tuberculosis and, at its peak, Sea View Hospital 
saw nearly 2,000 patients and was one of only four municipal hospitals 
in New York City that did not discriminate against Black nurses;
  Whereas the Black Angels, as they are known, were courageous, 
dedicated, and bold in answering the call to come to Sea View and risk 
their lives caring for the grievously sick and ``indigent 
consumptives'' of New York City, who had been banished to this woefully 
understaffed sanatorium;
  Whereas the Black Angels' caring demeanor, and years of expertise 
played a significant role in the first ever human trials of Isoniazid, 
the first drug to cure tuberculosis. Since its discovery in 1952, tens 
of millions of lives have been saved;
  Whereas the Black Angels were activists and active members of the 
NAACP, neighborhood churches, and community groups, and became founding 
members of the Lincoln Hospital Alumni Association, the Urban League 
Guild, and the Women's Civic and Political Union. They were fierce 
advocates for the integration of Black nurses into the U.S. military 
and American Nurses Association, and in New York City they worked 
toward desegregating the hospital system; and
  Whereas the people of Staten Island are grateful for the years of 
service by all the Black Angels who selflessly served on the front 
lines at Sea View Hospital to treat tuberculosis patients.

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