[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 27]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 36182]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 A TRIBUTE TO COLLEAGUE, PIONEER, AND DEAR FRIEND CONGRESSWOMAN JULIA 
                                 CARSON

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, December 17, 2007

  Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today in reverence of the 
trailblazing life led by our colleague, Congresswoman Julia Carson, and 
to commemorate the myriad achievements attached to her name. She spent 
over 35 of her years--more than half of her life--as a spirited public 
servant, pushing her message of hope and equality in the Indiana 
legislature, and subsequently, the halls of Congress.
  Her 1996 election from the Indianapolis district marked a litany of 
historic firsts: the first woman, the first African American from that 
area to serve in the House, and up until her passing, the only one in 
that delegation to fit that profile. Hers was a unique--strong, proud--
voice, and the people of her district--the people of America--were all 
the better for it.
  Known to all as ``Miss Julia,'' Congresswoman Carson was raised in 
modest conditions and retained that modesty throughout. She was born to 
a single mother, a housekeeper, who instilled in her the core values 
that impelled her to always agitate for justice. Her convictions drove 
her to be a vehement critic of the Iraq invasion of 2003, and her 
respect for history led her to push for the conferring of a 
congressional gold medal to civil rights heroine Rosa Parks.
  Representative Carson, herself, was a heroine, and although her 
presence is infinitely missed, her aspirations for this great Nation 
will never leave us.

                          ____________________