[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 14]
[House]
[Pages 19898-19901]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                     EARL T. SHINHOSTER POST OFFICE

  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the 
rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2261) to designate the facility of the 
United States Postal Service located at 2853 Candler Road in Decatur, 
Georgia, as the ``Earl T. Shinhoster Post Office.''
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 2261

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

     SECTION 1. EARL T. SHINHOSTER POST OFFICE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 2853 Candler Road in Decatur, Georgia, 
     shall be known and designated as the ``Earl T. Shinhoster 
     Post Office''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other

[[Page 19899]]

     record of the United States to the facility referred to in 
     subsection (a) shall be deemed to be a reference to the Earl 
     T. Shinhoster Post Office.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. 
Davis) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann 
Davis).


                             General Leave

  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and 
extend their remarks on H.R. 2261.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Virginia?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time 
as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2261, introduced by our distinguished colleague, 
the gentlewoman from Georgia (Ms. McKinney) designates the facility of 
the United States Postal Service located at 2853 Candler Road in 
Decatur, Georgia, as the Earl T. Shinhoster Post Office Building.
  Members of the entire House delegation from the State of Georgia are 
original cosponsors of this legislation.
  Earl Shinhoster was a dedicated community servant, both locally and 
globally. His efforts to observe and monitor elections in Africa helped 
to promote democracy and freedom, while his service as a Georgia State 
coordinator of voter education and his many roles with the National 
Association for the Advancement of Colored People helped strengthen 
domestic civil liberties, voting rights, and equality.
  His persistence to forward our Nation's values will be missed, and 
this post office designation is a fitting tribute to his memory.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of H.R. 2261, and I reserve the balance 
of my time.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Committee on Government Reform, I am 
pleased to join my colleague, the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo 
Ann Davis), in consideration of H.R. 2281, which names a post office in 
Decatur, Georgia, after Earl T. Shinhoster.
  H.R. 2261 was introduced by the gentlewoman from Georgia (Ms. 
McKinney) on June 20, 2001.
  Earl T. Shinhoster, a native of Savannah, Georgia, was a prominent 
civil rights leader and Director of the NAACP's Voter Endowment 
Project, a national voter registration project. He dedicated 30 years 
of his life to working in various leadership positions with the NAACP, 
serving as the organization's Acting Executive Director and Chief 
Economic Officer for 2 years in the mid-1990s.
  Until his death last year, Mr. Shinhoster was involved in his 
business, the Shinhoster Group, and served as President of the Sister 
Cities Association of Greater Decatur, Inc.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the gentlewoman from Georgia (Ms. 
McKinney), for introducing this measure to honor such an outstanding 
individual who spent so much time with the National Association for the 
Advancement of Colored People. We all know the role that it has played 
in the development and protection of civil rights and civil liberties 
in this country.
  I would urge swift passage of this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman 
from Georgia (Ms. McKinney).
  Ms. McKINNEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding time to 
me.
  Mr. Speaker, I also thank my colleague, the gentlewoman from Virginia 
(Mrs. Jo Ann Davis), and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis), for 
their kind words on behalf of Mr. Shinhoster.
  I was very happy to introduce this bill several months ago, and to 
announce its introduction at a special memorial service held at Martin 
Luther King, Jr.'s former church, Ebenezer Baptist Church.
  First, let me thank the gentleman from Indiana (Chairman Burton), for 
his help and cooperation in bringing this important legislation to the 
floor. When this bill leaves the House, Senator Max Cleland of Georgia 
will usher it through the Senate.
  Earl Shinhoster, for those who did not have a chance to know him or 
know of him, was a wonderful activist, father, husband, and friend. I 
knew him first as an activist. Most of America got a chance to know him 
because he was an activist.
  But as we got to know him, we learned that he operated in many 
dimensions; that while he served the family of man, he was also very 
much a family man.
  His wife, Ruby, was so generous. She shared her Earl with all of us. 
And although Earl was also a father to Michael Omar, Earl also fathered 
to the vitality of the movement for the rights of America's poor and 
dispossessed. I thank Ruby and I thank Michael Omar.
  The family of activists that helped to make America a better place 
were all friends of Earl Shinhoster: Reverend James Orange, former 
Ambassador Andrew Young, Mrs. Coretta Scott King, and our own 
colleague, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis).
  But now Earl has joined the legion of human rights activists who came 
before him, from Sojourner Truth to Harriet Tubman, from Frederick 
Douglass to Henry McNeal Turner. It was Turner who said, ``I am here to 
demand my rights and to hurl thunderbolts at the man who would dare to 
cross the threshold of my manhood. . . .''
  This line alone epitomizes the life Earl Shinhoster led. Earl was 
strong, proud, well-spoken, and internationalist. It has been little 
more than a year since Earl left us, but I can rest in the certainty 
that Martin is on his left side and Malcolm is on his right side.
  Earl died an untimely death, but we know that his life was not spent 
in vain. I just want to take a moment to reflect on his legacy of 
helping and serving, and to suggest to all who will use this post 
office that the man we honor is well worth their emulation.
  When Earl believed in a thing, he gave himself wholeheartedly. Earl 
served as Executive Director and CEO of the national NAACP in 
Baltimore, but Earl was also the Chairman of the Georgia delegation to 
the National Summit on Africa, and lived every day of his adult life 
working on behalf of his people.
  In the words of Walter Butler, Jr., President of the Georgia State 
Conference of the NAACP, ``Earl gave his life that others could enjoy 
the fruits of the Constitution of life, liberty, and the pursuit of 
happiness.''
  For younger people, if they were to study his life, they would find a 
man who came through the ranks of the civil rights movement. Earl 
started out in Savannah, Georgia, an area I used to represent in my 
first term in Congress, the old 11th District of Georgia.
  In Savannah, he was active in the Connie Wimberly Youth Council. From 
there, it was on to the NAACP, which became for Earl a labor of love. 
He started out as a volunteer youth leader and rose all the way to the 
CEO position.
  Like Malcolm and Martin, Earl was international. His passion for 
Africa, her suffering, and his efforts among the people there was 
another part of Earl's ministry. He once served as Field Director for 
the National Democratic Institute in Ghana, where he trained local 
citizens to serve as election monitors.
  From Ghana his interest spread to Liberia. At the time of his death, 
he was assisting the country of Liberia. He was touring the United 
States with Liberia's First Lady, Mrs. Jewel Howard-Taylor, offering an 
opportunity for black Americans to learn firsthand what was happening 
in Liberia and how we could help.
  As a result, the country of Liberia, by order of its President, made 
Earl T. Shinhoster a citizen of Liberia posthumously, offered land to 
his family, and is helping to establish the Earl T. Shinhoster People 
to People for Africa Foundation.
  We now are in a position to honor Earl and ensure his legacy. We are 
in a

[[Page 19900]]

position to ensure that his work and mission continue.
  This bill would not have come this far without the support of the 
Georgia delegation to the House of Representatives, and I would like to 
personally thank the gentlemen from Georgia, Mr. Collins, Mr. Isakson, 
Mr. Linder, Mr. Lewis, Mr. Bishop, Mr. Deal, Mr. Kingston, Mr. Norwood, 
Mr. Chambliss, and Mr. Barr, in their endorsement of this bill.
  In closing, the circumstances that led to the tragic accident that 
claimed the life of this civil rights icon serve as marching orders for 
us to continue the valiant pursuit for justice, peace, and equity.
  The tire that blew out and reportedly led his Ford Explorer to flip 
out of control was discovered to be a Firestone tire, the same model 
tire whose defective design has led to the death of dozens of people 
and scores of injuries across the world.
  Firestone, in its beginning through colonial conquests in Africa, 
seized millions of acres of land to exploit the rubber that produces 
their tires, and today still holds the property. This hold contributes 
to the fight for space within this war-torn area.
  So in addition to building on his legacy, we have to fight on behalf 
of families and victims of the Ford Explorer/Firestone Tires debacle, 
and we must fight for the people of Africa who are, all too often, 
unable to fight for themselves. We must help them find a way to stop 
the plunder and rape of Africa's human, mineral, and strategic 
resources.
  To date, Firestone and Ford are reluctant to admit responsibility for 
the failure of their products. I know Earl will not rest until we help 
Africa receive real security and peace through justice.
  In life, Earl believed his work for the NAACP, for civil rights, for 
equal rights did not suffer while he worked on Africa-related issues. 
Indeed, we know that the work for human rights has no boundaries and 
knows no end as long as there is evil on this Earth.
  I have received Earl's marching orders, and I know that all is well 
with him as long as each and every one of us who was touched by him 
remembers his values and America's values as we traverse these 
dangerous times right now.
  Let us continue to show the world, as Earl T. Shinhoster did through 
his work, that if you work on behalf of the people, you will truly live 
forever.

                              {time}  1700

  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I have no further 
speakers at this time, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield as 
much time as she might consume to the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. 
Meek).
  Mrs. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for allowing 
me this opportunity to say a few words about Earl Shinhoster.
  I knew Earl Shinhoster, and it is an honor to rise in support of H.R. 
2261, designating a post office in Decatur, Georgia. It is in Decatur, 
Georgia; but Earl Shinhoster is known throughout this world.
  Mr. Shinhoster is an American hero who led the southeast region of 
the NAACP during the last decades of the 20th century. I am proud to 
have known Earl Shinhoster and to share in the magnificent legacy he 
has left for America.
  Mr. Shinhoster played a defining role in America's quest for justice 
and equality of opportunity during a major transitional period in the 
Nation's history. Designating this post office in his honor pays 
tribute to a young American crusader whose courage and wisdom appealed 
to our noblest character as a Nation, and the committee should be 
commended for naming this post office after Earl Shinhoster. So does 
honor go to the gentlewoman from Georgia (Ms. McKinney), who has always 
been a fighter in the area of civil rights, for taking the opportunity 
to recognize all of the good things that Earl Shinhoster did.
  He labored, struggled, sacrificed, and gave his all to address the 
challenges of racial equality, wherever they emerged, police use of 
deadly force, academic excellence in the schools, racial disturbances, 
fair immigration practices, school busing, fair housing, insurance 
redlining, mortgage discrimination practices, fair political 
redistricting, voter education, and participation.
  The history of Earl Shinhoster is a history of African Americans in 
the southeastern United States. His life chronicles the ongoing 
struggle of African Americans for equal rights and social justice. For 
those of us who knew him and worked with him, this post office will 
cause us to pause and reflect on his journey and remind us of the 
challenges that we must meet in this day and time.
  For generations of Americans to come, the naming of this post office 
lets them know that there was a young American named Earl T. Shinhoster 
whose intelligence, vision, and leadership guided his people and this 
country toward our goal of freedom, justice, and democracy for all.
  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of 
my time.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such 
time as he might consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Lewis), who 
is noted as a contemporary pioneer of the civil rights movement.
  Mr. LEWIS of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my dear friend and 
colleague, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis), for yielding the 
time; and I want to thank my friend and colleague, the gentlewoman from 
Georgia (Ms. McKinney), my neighbor next door, for bringing this 
legislation before us.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support the designation of the Earl T. 
Shinhoster Post Office in Decatur, Georgia. Earl Shinhoster was a great 
American.
  I knew Earl. He was a friend of mine. He had a distinguished career 
of public service in Georgia, the Nation, and the world. Before his 
premature death last year, Earl lived in DeKalb County, Georgia, in 
metropolitan Atlanta with his family. He was a devoted husband, father, 
and brother. He was more than just a resident of Georgia; he was a 
citizen of the world.
  Earl was born and reared in Savannah, Georgia. He loved our State. He 
loved our Nation. He traveled the length and breadth of the American 
South, into south Georgia and to the delta of Mississippi and the black 
belt of Alabama, eastern Arkansas, North Carolina, South Carolina, the 
bayou of Louisiana. Everybody in this part of the country knew Earl 
Shinhoster. He also traveled to Africa. He cared about her people, and 
he loved the people of the motherland.
  Earl Shinhoster was a leader of the NAACP for more than 35 years. At 
the time of his death he was a director of Voter Empowerment, a 
national voter registration and education program. He was involved in 
efforts to raise census participation among blacks and others. It is 
because of his tireless work for voter education and voter 
participation, voter registration, turning out the vote, that many of 
us are where we are today.
  Earl Shinhoster cared about people. He loved people. He was a 
graduate of Morehouse College. He loved Morehouse. He loved his school. 
He cared about human rights and civil rights. He cared deeply about all 
of the people of this land and of this planet. He cared about being 
empowered and empowering others. He cared about equal access and equal 
opportunity.
  Throughout his life, Earl was always looking for creative ways to 
break down the barriers that separated us, to make things a little 
fairer, a little better. He truly lived to make a difference. I was 
there.
  Mr. Speaker, Earl's eyes were always on the prize. He did not have 
time for small talk or just playing around or what some people call 
horsing around. He was a very serious young man.
  Though his life was tragically cut short, his legacy must live on so 
that others may know and be inspired by this great American and the 
unbelievable impact he had on Georgia and our Nation and so much of our 
world.
  For these reasons and others, Mr. Speaker, I support the designation 
of

[[Page 19901]]

the Earl T. Shinhoster Post Office in Decatur, Georgia.
  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of 
my time.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I do not have any additional speakers, but I do know the 
gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson) had intended to be here and 
speak on behalf of this bill; and had he been able to make it, I am 
sure that he would have done so.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank all of those who have spoken, because 
through their eloquence, they have permitted us the opportunity to 
relive the life and legacy of Earl Shinhoster and also to pay tribute 
and recognize the tremendous work of the NAACP.
  As a matter of fact, I was in Decatur, Illinois, Saturday with the 
Illinois chapters and there are so many similarities and so many things 
are relevant. So I simply thank all of them.
  I commend the life and the work of Earl Shinhoster.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 1 minute 
to conclude.
  Mr. Speaker, I think we have all heard how much Mr. Shinhoster was 
admired and respected by his colleagues and how much he has done for 
Georgia. I urge all Members to support this measure.
  Mr. BISHOP. Mr. Speaker, if I were asked to describe Earl T. 
Shinhoster in a single word, ``patriot'' would be the first that would 
come to mind.
  From his teen-age years until his untimely death at 47, he devoted 
his life to making the promises so eloquently expressed in the 
Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution--promises such as 
justice, opportunity, and the freedom to pursue one's dreams--apply to 
every citizen.
  We could also call him a ``relentless fighter'' and a ``thoughtful 
leader.''
  Earl Shinhoster exemplified all of these qualities during three 
decades of service with the NAACP. As executive director and chief 
economic officer, he achieved renewed stability by sharply increasing 
membership and reducing indebtedness. As director of the Voter 
Empowerment Project, he increased registration and opened the political 
process to thousands of people. During the last census, he worked 
diligently to boost participation by African Americans in an effort to 
ensure that every American would be counted.
  In one of his final public appearances, he urged fellow members of 
the NAACP to always keep fighting for the cause of humanity--and to 
always uphold the values they learned in their family, church and 
school. He was a man of courage, of commitment and of principle.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge our colleagues to support H.R. 2261, a bill 
introduced by my colleague from Georgia, Congresswoman McKinney, to 
name a Decatur, Georgia Post Office in memory of Earl T. Shinhoster, as 
a fitting tribute to a great American patriot.
  Mr. HILLIARD. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak of my friend Earl 
Shinhoster, who died on June 11, 2000, in a car accident.
  This good man joined many of us in struggling to make America better 
in innumerable ways. He spent 30 years with the National Association 
for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
  This organization was the original civil rights organization, and it 
still stands among the great leaders for human rights in the world.
  Earl Shinhoster began at the age of 13 stuffing envelopes, sitting-in 
and picketing for the basic civil rights of American people. He stayed 
with it, humbly saying later in life that he had never had a real job, 
just a calling and a movement.
  He served as the NAACP director of the Southeast until he was called 
in 1995 to be acting director and chief executive officer of the 
national organization.
  While in the South, he traveled to every meeting he could attend, in 
cities, on farms, in the poorest areas of the poorest area of our 
nation. No one was beneath him; no one was too poor or oppressed for 
his attention, love and service.
  Few of us have served so well and so consistently as Earl Shinhoster. 
Few have asked for less compensation or sought less recognition. He was 
a servant of the people, of freedom and of God. Earl Shinhoster was a 
graduate of Morehouse College, where I also graduated.
  When he died in that automobile accident, he was picked up by a 
chariot and taken to a higher place. He asked for no praise, but he 
will never be forgotten. Where he walked, there remains traces of his 
life on the hearts of everyone. We must all be grateful for his life 
and sing his memory in our songs.
  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance 
of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Quinn). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentlewoman from Virginia (Mrs. Jo Ann Davis) that the 
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2261.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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