[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 101 (Thursday, June 12, 2025)]
[House]
[Page H2657]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       2025 JUNETEENTH MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL EVENTS IN BIRMINGHAM

  (Ms. Sewell of Alabama was recognized to address the House for 5 
minutes.)
  Ms. SEWELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge June 19 as 
Juneteenth. On June 19, this Nation will recognize Juneteenth with a 
Federal holiday. We will gather in the spirit of remembrance, 
resilience, and recommitment to celebrate a day of delayed liberation, 
but not undeniable triumph.
  On June 19, 1865, more than 2 years after President Lincoln signed 
the Emancipation Proclamation, Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, 
Texas, with the news that the last enslaved Black Americans were 
finally free.
  Freedom did not come easily. It came slowly, unevenly, and at a 
painful cost, but it came. Along with it, generations of Black 
Americans began the long, unfinished journey toward full equality 
through Reconstruction, through Jim Crow, through the civil rights 
movement, and through the voting rights movement even now in our time.
  Juneteenth is not just about history. It is about truth telling. It 
is a reminder that freedom delayed is freedom fought for and that 
liberation means more than just the breaking of physical chains. It 
demands justice in our laws, equity in our institutions, dignity in our 
labor, and respect in our schools, in our neighborhoods, and in our 
Nation.
  My district, Alabama's Seventh Congressional District, will honor 
Juneteenth with a host of activities. The NAACP in Tuscaloosa will kick 
it off with a parade on Saturday and a luncheon on Thursday. In 
Birmingham, we will have a variety of events including a unity 
breakfast on Friday hosted by DA Danny Carr and the League of 
Gentlemen.
  We will also welcome Major League Baseball back to Birmingham, 
Alabama, for the second consecutive year. On June 19, 2025, Major 
League Baseball will return to the Magic City for the 2025 East-West 
Classic game at Rickwood Field. The game will pay tribute to the Negro 
leagues and honor Birmingham's important contributions to baseball 
history.
  This year, we will also celebrate the ribbon cutting of the newly 
refurbished Willie Mays Park in Fairfield, Alabama. Thanks to the 
generosity of Major League Baseball and the extraordinary efforts of 
State Senator Merika Coleman and numerous community partners, the 
Willie Mays Park will undergo major improvements and will now serve 
generations of aspiring young baseball players in Jefferson County.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Major 
League Baseball for their continued investment in Alabama's Seventh 
Congressional District. We look forward to welcoming them back to the 
Magic City. Of course, we know how important baseball has been not only 
to the African-American community but to the American community writ 
large.
  We are excited to welcome Major League Baseball back to Birmingham, 
Alabama. Thanks to their generosity and the generosity of so many, we 
will continue to play ball in Alabama's Seventh Congressional District.
  Let's play ball.

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