[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 14]
[House]
[Pages 19270-19272]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                AUGUSTUS F. HAWKINS POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. DAN MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules 
and pass the bill (H.R. 2578) to redesignate the facility of the United 
States Postal Service located at 8200 South Vermont Avenue in Los 
Angeles, California, as the ``Augustus F. Hawkins Post Office 
Building.''.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 2578

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

     SECTION 1. REDESIGNATION.

       The facility of the United States Postal Service located at 
     8200 South Vermont Avenue in Los Angeles, California, shall 
     be known and redesignated as the ``Augustus F. Hawkins Post 
     Office Building''.

     SEC. 2. REFERENCES.

       Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, paper, 
     or other record of the United States to the facility referred 
     to in section 1 shall be deemed to be a reference to the 
     ``Augustus F. Hawkins Post Office Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Dan Miller) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Dan Miller).

                              {time}  1330


                             General Leave

  Mr. DAN MILLER of Florida. 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. 2578.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Aderholt). Is there objection to the 
request of the gentleman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. DAN MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have the House consider H.R. 2578, 
introduced by our distinguished colleague, the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Waters), that designates the facility of the United 
States Postal Service located in Los Angeles as the Augustus F. Hawkins 
Post Office Building. Members of the entire House delegation from the 
State of California are cosponsors of this legislation.
  This legislation honors a former Member of the House who preceded our 
colleague, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters), in what was 
the 29th Congressional District of California.
  Congressman Augustus Hawkins was elected to 14 consecutive terms to 
this House on behalf of the people of South Central Los Angeles.
  He rose through the ranks of this body and ultimately chaired the 
Committee on Education and Labor in the 1980s. Prior to his term in the 
House of Representatives, he served 28 years in the California State 
Assembly, a body in which he was the only black member for the greater 
part of his tenure.
  Mr. Speaker, this legislation honors a man who devoted more than five 
decades of public service to the people of California. For that reason, 
I urge all Members to support the adoption of H.R. 2578.
  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, as a member of the Committee on Government Reform, I am 
indeed pleased to join my colleagues in consideration of H.R. 2578, 
which names a post office in Los Angeles, California, after former 
Representative Augustus Hawkins. H.R. 2578 was introduced by the 
distinguished gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters) on July 19, 
2001, and enjoys the support and cosponsorship of the entire California 
delegation.
  Augustus Freeman Hawkins was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, in 1907 
and moved with his parents to Los Angeles in 1918. He received a public 
school education and graduated from the University of California at Los 
Angeles and the University of Southern California.
  From 1935 to 1962, Mr. Hawkins served as a member of the California 
State Assembly. He served on the important Committee on Rules during 
part of his tenure in the Assembly and began his focus on education, 
labor and employment issues.
  In 1963, Augustus Hawkins was elected to Congress as a Democrat 
representing the 29th Congressional District in California. In 1971, he 
joined 12 other African American Members of Congress and formally 
established the Congressional Black Caucus, a coalition of African 
American Members of the House dedicated to achieving greater equality 
for persons of African descent.
  During his tenure in Congress, Gus Hawkins served as chairman of the 
Committee on House Administration and the Committee on Education and 
Labor. The 1990 Almanac of American Politics describes Chairman 
Hawkins' mindset: ``His convictions are that government programs can 
help and have helped the poor and middle class; that aid to education 
has strengthened the Nation; that Federal job programs have made the 
difference between a productive life and an idle one; and that the 
government has a responsibility to give jobs to those who cannot find 
employment in the private sector.''
  To that end, Chairman Hawkins coauthored the Humphrey-Hawkins Full 
Employment and Balanced Growth Act of 1978, legislation designed to 
promote genuine and sustainable recovery and a full employment society.
  Representative Hawkins also served as Chairman of the Joint Committee 
on Printing and Joint Committee on the Library. He retired at the end 
of the 101st Congress.
  Mr. Speaker, I commend my good friend, the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Waters), for seeking to honor Chairman Augustus Freeman 
Hawkins by naming a post office after him in Los Angeles, California.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman 
from California (Ms. Waters).
  Ms. WATERS. I thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) for 
yielding me time.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that this bill is being considered today. 
As it has been stated, it would rename the post office at 8200 South 
Vermont Avenue, which is California's 35th Congressional District, 
after Representative Augustus Hawkins. Representative Augustus Hawkins 
represented this district for nearly 30 years.
  Mr. Speaker, this is a small gesture to a truly great man. 
Congressman Hawkins was a distinguished Member of this House. He worked 
hard, and he carried the respect of all those who worked with him.
  Again, he was first elected to the California State Assembly in 1935. 
He served in the Assembly for almost 28 years. In 1962, he was elected 
to the U.S. House of Representatives and was California's first African 
American Member of Congress. He served a total of 13 terms.
  Throughout his career, Gus focused on education, labor and employment 
issues. He served as chairman of the Committee on House Administration 
for 4 years. He also sat on the House Education and Labor Committee.
  However, it is for his work on monetary and economic policies that he 
is often talked about. He teamed up with Senator Humphrey to sponsor 
the Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act of 1978. One aspect of the 
bill, which has become known as the Humphrey-Hawkins Report, required 
the Chairman of the Federal Reserve to report to the House and Senate 
Banking Committees on the economy and monetary policy twice a year. 
This report has become one of the most important

[[Page 19271]]

speeches given by the Federal Reserve Chairman.
  While the statute has officially expired, the report is still 
provided to Congress and remains a benchmark for evaluating the 
economy.
  In 1971, though already in office for nearly a decade, Congressman 
Hawkins joined 12 other African American Members of Congress to 
establish the Congressional Black Caucus. Today, only the gentleman 
from New York (Mr. Rangel) and the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. 
Conyers) of the pioneering group remain in the House.
  Over the past 31 years, the CBC has grown in influence and in size. 
Today, we have 38 Members from all over the country. The CBC owes much 
of its success to Gus Hawkins and the other founding members.
  In 1991, after 14 terms in Congress, Congressman Hawkins decided to 
retire. I was fortunate enough to be elected to serve in the district 
that he had represented so well for so many years.
  Recently, Congressman Hawkins partnered with Dr. Vinetta C. Jones, 
the Dean of Howard University School of Education, to form the Black 
Education Leadership Summit. The group is comprised of education, civil 
rights, nonprofit, business and community groups that seek to remove 
the public education debate beyond rhetoric-based theory. The ultimate 
goal of the group is to develop and enhance the education of all 
African American students.
  I certainly appreciate the work of Congressman Augustus Hawkins, and 
I am very pleased and proud to represent the 35th Congressional 
District, that area which he served so admirably for so long.
  I would like to just close by giving my very fond thoughts about the 
length of time that I have known Congressman Hawkins. The conversations 
that we have had over the years helped me to understand that not only 
do I have a responsibility to come to this body and represent my 
constituents in the absolutely best way that I possibly can, but 
Congressman Hawkins taught me to ``trace the money.''
  He came home often, and he always went to city hall to find out what 
they were doing with the Federal funds that we were sending down there. 
I learned to pay attention to that. Because of Gus Hawkins, even today 
I am tracing the dollars from the CDBG Grants, Section 108 loan 
guarantees and other areas of government where we appropriate money 
that goes into the local government to be disbursed.
  It was because of Gus Hawkins that I think our city began to do a 
better job of making sure, as Gus said, that all of the money was not 
concentrated downtown, that the money got out into the communities and 
out to the district that he represented, and certainly to the district 
that I now represent.
  Again, I am pleased and proud to be a part of the efforts here today 
to name this Post Office after a most deserving gentleman, Congressman 
Augustus Hawkins.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may 
consume to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Watson).
  Ms. WATSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of 
H.R. 2578, the naming of a post office after Gus Hawkins. I just want 
to tell my colleagues this personally. My father, who has long been 
deceased, did the first fund-raiser for Gus Hawkins. They raised all of 
$75, and that was a lot of money in those days.
  During a time of renewed interest in public service, Gus's career and 
life epitomized the importance and the impact of serving one's fellow 
man for the betterment of our country and way of life. A champion of 
children, poor people, working people, senior citizens, and minorities, 
he expressed his views about public service by stating: ``The 
leadership belongs not to the loudest, not to those who beat the drums 
or blow the trumpets, but to those who day in and day out work for the 
practical realization of a better world.''
  Still living, and we are so proud that he is with us, he was born in 
Louisiana in 1907. He moved with his family to Los Angeles when he was 
11 to escape racial discrimination. He received degrees from UCLA, my 
alma mater, and USC and began his legislative career in 1935 in the 
California Assembly where he served for 28 years, often as its only 
black member. And to get him there in 1935, that $75 went a long way.
  Gus faithfully served this House from 1963 to 1991; and during his 
tenure, he served as chairman of the Committee on Education and the 
Committee on House Administration. He is the author of more than 17 
Federal laws, including the title VII of the Civil Rights Act 
establishing the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Job 
Training Partnership Act, and the School Improvement Act, which 
revamped virtually all major elementary and secondary education 
programs.
  Gus once recounted that he wanted to be remembered as one who simply 
loved children. I recall a telephone call I got from him just a few 
months ago. He was very concerned about the Leave No Child Behind Act.
  As he continues to open his heart to others, today we open our hearts 
to Gus Hawkins and the officially named post office in Los Angeles. He 
is a friend, he is a mentor, and he is someone who simply loves 
children and their parents. He is very deserving of this honor.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I would just close by indicating that Representative 
Hawkins was indeed and is indeed a legend. Between the time that he 
spent in the California Assembly and the time that he spent here in the 
halls of Congress, he must have spent much more than half of his life 
in representative positions. I think that that is indeed rare, and it 
is my pleasure to urge passage of this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. DAN MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support this measure.
  Mr. ABERCROMBIE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join in paying tribute 
to a great American. Former Congressman Augustus Hawkins was not only a 
pioneer in breaking a race barrier of the House of Representatives, he 
was also a pioneer in economic and unemployment reform.
  Congressman Hawkins was well respected by both sides of the aisle for 
his sincerity, dedication hard work, and commitment to helping those 
less fortunate. He sponsored numerous laws that created jobs and 
insured civil rights. He was a forceful advocate of Federal support of 
education.
  During his years in Congress, Mr. Hawkins' most notable 
accomplishments included the establishment of the Equal Employment 
Opportunity Commission in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 
and the Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act of 1978.
  Mr. Speaker, I join with my colleagues in wishing Congressman Hawkins 
a happy 95th birthday, which he celebrated earlier this year. it is 
fitting that we name a postal facility after Congressman Hawkins so 
that Californians and Americans can long remember his legacy. Let us 
not only look back at his accomplishments and his patriotism, let us 
look forward and wish him many more healthy and happy years.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise to support giving long overdue honor 
to a man who will be remembered as a great chair of the Committee on 
Education and Labor. ``Gus'' Hawkins, as he was affectionately called, 
will be remembered for many significant federal laws that he authored. 
His name has become synonymous with the Humphrey-Hawkins Act to set our 
country on the course in pursuit of the often-elusive balance between 
full employment, balanced growth, and minimal inflation. However, I 
want speak especially to Chairman Hawkins' work as the author of Title 
VII of the Civil Rights Act, which established the Equal Employment 
Opportunity Commission.
  I had the good fortune to chair the EEOC during a period when Gus 
Hawkins was chair of the House Education and Labor Committee. I came to 
the agency when it was only ten years old and had had a rocky 
management tenure. Faced with no experience in handling large numbers 
of complicated cases, the Commission had developed a crippling backlog. 
The EEOC was fortunate during that period, and later during my own 
tenure, to have in chairman. Hawkins a dedicated, no nonsense 
taskmaster who insisted that the agency reform itself so that it could 
deliver the equal job opportunity the statute envisioned. It fell to me

[[Page 19272]]

to institute the restructuring and the reform of the EEOC beginning in 
1977, but that process had the advantage of the determine and very 
knowledgeable oversight of a chairman who knew what needed to be done 
and made sure that all of us did our best to do it.
  Chairman Hawkins' name is synonymous with hard work and an 
encyclopedic understanding of the most important domestic agencies and 
statutes affecting health, welfare, education, and equal opportunity in 
our society. His work in the California Assembly and here in the 
Congress is replete with examples of his leadership and education to 
the needs of working people, the unemployed, children, and minorities. 
He was the author of such land mark legislation as the School 
Improvement Act, which made the federal government an important factor 
in elementary and secondary education for the first time. He was a 
founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus.
  However, when a man has been the author of more than seventeen 
federal laws, it is difficult to overestimate his importance in 
American legislative history. Mr. Hawkins was an understated man but 
his legislative achievements are legendary. He is not a man who would 
have sought to have a building named after him. Instead many bills bear 
his name, as he would prefer. Never the less, let this House add the 
name of Augustus Hawkins to a post office allowing many more to know 
his work and become aware of the significance of Gus Hawkins in our 
history.
  Mr. DAN MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests 
for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Dan Miller) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2578.
  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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