[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 12]
[House]
[Pages 17679-17680]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



               BLACK REVOLUTIONARY WAR PATRIOTS MEMORIAL

  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 4957) to amend the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands Management 
Act of 1996 to extend the legislative authority for the Black Patriots 
Foundation to establish a commemorative work.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 4957

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. BLACK REVOLUTIONARY WAR PATRIOTS MEMORIAL.

       Section 506 of the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands 
     Management Act of 1996 (40 U.S.C. 1003 note; 110 Stat. 4155) 
     is amended by striking ``2000'' and inserting ``2005''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Utah (Mr. Hansen) and the gentleman from American Samoa (Mr. 
Faleomavaega) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen).
  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4957 extends the legislative authority for the 
Black Patriots Foundation for another 5 years, to 2005, in order to 
establish a commemorative work on the Washington, D.C. mall. This 
commemorative work honors the black patriots who fought for American 
independence during the Revolutionary War.
  In 1998, the Black Patriots Foundation was granted an extension for 
the authority to design and construct the memorial on the Washington 
D.C. Mall. When granted, the Black Patriots Foundation believed that 
the memorial would be finalized in just 2 years. Unfortunately, the 
foundation has not been successful in raising enough funds and has 
asked that it be granted an extension 5 more years until 2005.
  Mr. Speaker, the Black Patriots Foundation has recently hired an 
exclusive director with extensive fund-raising experience and has 
recommitted themselves to seeing this memorial to completion. 
Therefore, I believe it is the best course of action to reauthorize 
this foundation so that this very important part of our history can be 
experienced by all of those who will visit this deserving memorial.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen), my good 
friend, the chairman of the Subcommittee on National Parks and Public 
Lands for his management of this legislation. I want to personally 
commend the chief author of the sponsor of this legislation, the 
gentleman from New York, (Mr. Rangel), my good friend.
  Mr. Speaker, the 99th Congress approved legislation reauthorizing the 
Black Revolutionary War Patriots Foundation to establish a memorial on 
Federal land in Washington, D.C. The specific purpose of the proposed 
memorial is to honor the roughly 5,000 slaves and free men who fought 
against Britain during the American Revolution, although its broader 
theme is to honor all African Americans who have fought and died while 
serving in the U.S. military.
  Mr. Speaker, the proposed site for the memorial is north of the 
Reflecting Pool on the Mall, between the Washington and Lincoln 
Memorials, an area where more than 100,000 people once gathered in that 
summer of 1963 to hear Dr. Martin Luther King's historic speech, ``I 
have a Dream.''
  Mr. Speaker, from the outset, the project has complied with all 
aspects of Commemorative Works Act and has received all the approvals 
necessary to move forward. Unfortunately, the private efforts to raise 
an estimated $9 million needed for the construction of the memorial 
have yet to reach their goal, and without congressional action, 
authorization for the project will expire this month.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4957, as I said earlier, which was sponsored by the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel), my good friend, will amend the 
existing law to extend an authorization for the foundation until the 
year 2005. While previous extensions have been for 2 years only, it is 
our hope that this 5-year extension will provide sufficient time for 
this project to raise the funds necessary to move this project forward.
  Again, I urge my colleagues to approve this legislation; and I urge 
my friends to support this bill.
  Mr. WATTS of Oklahoma. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4957, 
legislation to extend the authority of the Black Patriots Foundation to 
establish a commemorative work on the national Mall.
  I am delighted to be an original cosponsor of this legislation along 
with Mr. Rangel, Mrs. Johnson and Mr. Payne, all of whom have worked so 
long and hard--and continue to do so--to make this memorial to the 
Black patriots of the Revolutionary War a reality.
  My colleagues, this House has noticed an absence and therefore a very 
real need for commemoration in honor of people who helped to birth this 
Nation, people who actually gave the supreme sacrifice during this 
Nation's defining moment.
  As Harriett Beecher Stowe wrote about the black men and women who 
served in the Revoluntioinary War, It was not for their own land they 
fought, nor even for the land which had adopted them, but for a land 
that had enslaved them and whose laws, even in freedom, more often 
oppressed than protected. Bravery under such circumstances has a 
peculiar beauty and merit.
  The fact is, Mr. Speaker, men and women of all colors have been 
involved in every aspect of this country from its founding days. We are 
full partners in the history, bloodshed and tears that have made this 
Nation great.
  Unfortunately, not all of us know our Nation's history, where we came 
from and what makes us who we are today. H.R. 4957 and the work of the 
Black Revoluntionary War Patriots Foundation will move us closer to 
that goal and to a lasting historical recognition on our national Mall 
of these brave men and women who fought for our freedoms. I am pleased 
to support this effort and encourage my colleagues to give this bill 
their strong support.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of 
H.R. 4957, the Black Patriots Foundation Extension, which would extend 
by five years, until 2005, the authority of the Black Revolutionary War 
Patriots Foundation to complete a memorial to the black

[[Page 17680]]

men, women, and children who fought in the Revolutionary War.
  It is fitting that the Black Patriots Foundation was created and 
charged with the responsibility of constructing a memorial on the 
National Mall to honor the approximately 5,000 known African Americans 
who fought for America's freedom during the Revolutionary War. 
Unfortunately, their important work will not have been completed by the 
expiration of the authority of the initiating legislation. Therefore, 
it is important that H.R. 4957 be passed by the 106th Congress and 
signed into law by the president because the original 1986 legislation 
will expire in October 2000.
  Most American school children learn of the bravery of, Crispus 
Attucks, the first African American man to die in the cause of this 
country's independence. However, very few school age children or adults 
in this country know any other names of stories of the thousands of 
African Americans who fought for this nation's independence at a time 
when they themselves were slaves. It is reported that many African 
American soldiers in the Revolutionary Army did not enlist, but were 
offered for service by their masters so that they themselves would not 
be required to serve in the cause for their nation's freedom. During 
the War for Independence if a man was drafted, he was allowed to buy 
his way out of the army or to send someone in his place, a mercenary. 
For the wealthy property owner, the cheapest mercenary available to 
them was a slave.
  By the time the first battles of the war occurred at Lexington and 
Concord, there were ten African American soldiers. One of these brave 
Americans was named Prince Easterbrooks, who was said to be ``the first 
to get into the fight.'' Later at the battle of Bunker Hill, Salem 
Poor, another African American soldier acted with such valor, fourteen 
officers who observed his actions in battle wrote to the legislature 
requesting special recognition of Poor for his heroism.
  At first Washington was hesitant about enlisting blacks. But when he 
heard they had fought well at Bunker Hill, he changed his mind. This 
allowed the creation of the first all-black First Rhode Island Regiment 
composed of 33 freedmen and 92 slaves who were promised freedom if they 
served until the end of the war--distinguished itself in the Battle of 
Newport. Later, most were killed during a British attack.
  The heroic actions of African American free citizens and slaves 
during the American Revolutionary War extend beyond the battlefield. 
Such is the case of an unnamed African American spy who was a servant 
to the leader of the British Army, General Cornwallis. This patriot spy 
provided valuable information to General Marquis de Lafayette, who 
offered his services to the American Revolutionary Congress and fought 
with General George Washington at the Battle of Brandywine and at 
Valley Forge.
  In the name of this American Revolutionary spy and the thousands of 
other unknown African American free persons and slaves who fought 
during our nation's war for freedom I urge my colleagues to support the 
passage of this legislation.
  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Utah (Mr. Hansen) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 4957.
  The question was taken.
  Mr. HANSEN. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

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