[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 20]
[House]
[Page 28245]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




   MUHAMMAD A. NASSARDEEN, FOUNDER OF RECYCLING BLACK DOLLARS IN LOS 
                                ANGELES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Watson) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, it was with great sorrow that I learned of 
the loss of a stalwart champion of political and business empowerment 
within the Los Angeles community. I'm speaking of Mr. Muhammad A. 
Nassardeen, a pioneering entrepreneur and a staunch promoter of 
``economic activism.''
  Muhammad Nassardeen founded Recycling Black Dollars in 1988 as a way 
to encourage African Americans and others to patronize African 
American-owned businesses and promote the practice as a much needed 
strategy for revitalizing the community and addressing problems such as 
unemployment.
  Muhammad Nassardeen never saw the City of Los Angeles as it is, but 
he envisioned what it could be. He was ``connector'' extraordinaire. He 
connected black consumers with black businesses, and black business 
owners with one another. It is estimated that some 2,000 to 3,000 
businesses benefited from the work of Recycling Black Dollars.
  Muhammad Nassardeen's vision and focus on the economic empowerment 
and advancement of ethnic minorities in Los Angeles will be sorely 
missed. He was a beacon of light out of economic darkness for many.
  The City of Los Angeles, colleagues, family and friends all mourn the 
loss of Muhammad A. Nassardeen, and I extend my most heartfelt 
condolences to his family, his colleagues, his many close friends in 
the Los Angeles business community and here on Capitol Hill.

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