[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 23600]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



         RECOGNITION OF NATIONAL AMERICAN INDIAN HERITAGE MONTH

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 29, 2001

  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of the 
designation of November 2001 as National American Indian Heritage 
Month. It is critical that we recognize the history of Native Americans 
and to learn more about their culture.
  I thank President Bush for his promise to protect and honor tribal 
society and help to stimulate economic development in reservation 
communities. I join him in acknowledging the contributions made by 
Native Americans in both World Wars and the conflicts in Korea, 
Vietnam, and the Persian Gulf. Almost half of all Native American 
tribal leaders have served in the United States Armed Forces.
  Only in recent decades have we made progress in dismantling the 
shameful stereotypes that were invented by white Americans in the early 
centuries of European immigration to this land. We owe it to the Native 
American people to learn about their actual history and culture, and to 
teach our children.
  My fellow colleagues, it is of the utmost importance that we all take 
the time to remember American Indian heritage. We must do what we can 
to keep this beautiful culture alive, this culture of a people wronged 
by the greed and ignorance of our forefathers. I ask you to join me in 
making the following promise: Never again will our country attempt to 
decimate an entire culture.

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