[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 6]
[House]
[Pages 7977-7983]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     JEWISH AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 5, 2011, the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) 
is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.


                             General Leave

  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on 
the topic of this Special Order.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor May as 
Jewish American Heritage Month. I'm so pleased to be joined by my 
colleagues tonight as we honor our Nation's Jewish community through 
Jewish American Heritage Month.

                              {time}  1950

  As the first Jewish woman to represent the State of Florida in the 
United States Congress, I am so proud to be a strong voice on many 
issues crucial to our community, from tolerance and understanding to 
tikkun olam--repairing the world.
  In 2005, members of the Jewish community in south Florida approached 
me with the idea to designate a month to honor the contributions that 
American Jews have made to our Nation. As a result, I was the proud 
sponsor of Jewish American Heritage Month, which the House and Senate 
unanimously passed in 2006 and has been proclaimed by both President 
Bush and President Obama annually since then.
  This year, in 2012, is the Seventh Annual Jewish American Heritage 
Month. JAHM promotes awareness of the contributions American Jews have 
made to the fabric of American life from technology and literature to 
entertainment, politics, and medicine.
  As we are all well aware, the foundation of our country is built upon 
the strengths of our unique cultures and backgrounds. The American 
Jewish experience is the story of the immigrant, the labor movement, 
the battle for civil rights, and so much more. Jews in America have 
blazed trails from the battlefield to the Supreme Court, from the 
sports field and symphony hall to the pages of our Nation's history 
books and our Nation's Capital.
  From the time of the Colonies until today, Jewish communities have 
played a significant role in American history and telling the American 
story. That's why communities across the country have come together to 
celebrate Jewish American Heritage Month during the month of May.
  Seven years ago, this idea gained momentum as 250 of my colleagues 
joined me as original cosponsors of a resolution urging the President 
to issue a proclamation for this important month. Senator Arlen Specter 
led the effort in the Senate, and together the House and Senate 
unanimously passed resolutions supporting the creation of Jewish 
American Heritage Month.
  Now, each year, the month of May introduces Jewish culture to the 
entire country in order to raise awareness and dispel harmful 
prejudices. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, we have seen a precipitous rise 
in intolerance and anti-Semitism, not just in this country but across 
the globe. It is my hope that by providing the framework for the 
discussion of Jewish culture and contributions to our Nation we will be 
able to reduce the ignorance that ultimately leads to anti-Semitism.
  Over the last number of years, I have talked about the impact and the 
contributions of the Jewish community to our country over more than 350 
years of Jewish life in America. It has always struck me that Jews in 
America are less than 2 percent of the American population, and so as 
much, many of our colleagues--most Americans--never actually spend much 
time around the Jewish community. So our traditions are unfamiliar, our 
culture and our religion--of which we are both--are not something that 
most folks encounter every day. That is the reason that we honor 
communities like the Jewish community with a cultural awareness month 
so that we can raise that awareness and make sure that people who don't 
usually have an opportunity to get the kinds of information that these 
months provide can really reach out to one another and learn more so 
that we can be the melting pot and also the salad bowl that is always 
debated about the United States of America.
  Over the last 7 years, we have seen JAHM grow from an inspired idea 
to a national reality. We've had a group of committed organizations and 
museums around the country that have worked to get JAHM into the 
classroom, on the airwaves, and into the halls of our government, as 
today's activities demonstrate.
  Just before votes this evening, President Obama hosted the Third 
Annual Jewish American Heritage Month reception at the White House, 
welcoming leaders from the Jewish community into the Nation's House.
  The President told the story--not a really wonderful note in our 
Nation's history--of General Ulysses Grant who, at the time of the 
Civil War, had actually issued an order, Mr. Speaker, to expel Jews 
from their homes in the war zone during the Civil War. President Obama 
went on to also talk about how President Lincoln issued an order 
rescinding that order. The Library of Congress brought out from its 
archives all of the documents related to General Grant's order and 
President Lincoln's order to make sure that we could protect the rights 
of individuals and make sure that our commitment as a Nation to 
religious tolerance and freedom was preserved from then through 
history.
  Tonight, I'm so pleased to be joined by my colleagues to commemorate 
the American Jewish experience. From sports games, to concerts, to 
lectures

[[Page 7978]]

and films, JAHM is truly an interdisciplinary and multimedia 
experience, and we want to see these efforts continue to grow. However, 
it's vital that this idea takes hold not only for Jewish organizations, 
because, after all, we're already familiar with the contributions of 
Jewish life in America. We want to make sure that this month is an 
opportunity to grow that knowledge and reach out to communities across 
the country.
  It's our responsibility to continue this education. If we as a Nation 
are to prepare our children for the challenges that lie ahead, then 
teaching diversity and celebrating it is a fundamental part of that 
promise. Together, we can help achieve this goal of understanding with 
the celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month.
  The lessons of Judaism inspire us to do great things, from our 
commitment to service, to our political advocacy, to our cultural 
contributions to this Nation. Together, we can and should celebrate our 
community's history and values so that not only the Jewish people, but 
all Americans may go from strength to strength.
  Now I'm delighted to recognize one of my colleagues who has been an 
incredible leader for the United States of America, for the people of 
her district in New York, and someone that I am proud to say has been a 
mentor throughout my time here in the U.S. House of Representatives, 
Congresswoman Nita Lowey from the great State of New York. By the way, 
let me add, Mr. Speaker, that Congresswoman Lowey is the ranking member 
on the Foreign Operations Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Let me thank my outstanding colleague from the State of 
Florida, Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz. I personally want to express 
my appreciation for the work you have done to make this day a reality 
so that we can all acknowledge Jewish American Heritage Month. It's 
because of you that this day is noted, and it's because of you that we 
have gathered at the White House for a really inspirational speech from 
President Obama. So as a Jewish American, I want to express my 
appreciation to you.
  I know that it may not be coincidental that this was a special time 
in your life this past week. I think it's appropriate that we talk 
about your family and your personal commitment to your Jewish heritage. 
During this month--last week, I believe--your daughter celebrated her 
bat mitzvah or bene mitzvah. This is such an amazing, amazing time in 
your life when your daughter or your son reaches that point where they 
have studied, they have learned what it is to be a Jewish American here 
in the United States of America. I am sure that your family was just 
overflowing with joy. And I just want to say mazel tov to you. That 
means good luck and congratulations.
  So today I not only rise, Mr. Speaker, to express my appreciation to 
Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz for making this Jewish American 
Heritage Month an annual tradition, but to express my appreciation to 
you for organizing this event tonight.
  I rise to mark the contributions of Jewish Americans to the rich 
culture and history of our Nation during this Jewish American Heritage 
Month.
  Jewish tradition embraces the concept of Tikkun Olam, repairing the 
world. Indeed, our actions in Congress are aimed at that concept--
helping to improve our society and create equity for all Americans 
through quality health care, education, and economic opportunity, 
regardless of their ethnic, cultural, or socioeconomic background. What 
I am very proud of is that our commitment to justice reaches beyond our 
borders.

                              {time}  2000

  The history of the Jewish people reminds us of our unique 
responsibility in the international community to stand up for what is 
right, speak out against hatred and injustice, and ensure that the 
lessons of the Holocaust are not lost to history. We have a 
responsibility, and we must defend those unjustly persecuted, no matter 
where they are, and we must stand by our ally, Israel, in the face of 
continued threats.
  I hope you will join me in celebrating the rich history of Jewish 
Americans and in looking forward to an even more vibrant and just 
future for all people.
  Thank you.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Thank you so much, Congresswoman Lowey. Thank 
you for your leadership and your commitment as a Jewish American woman, 
and for blazing a trail. And thank you for acknowledging my daughter 
and son's bar and bat mitzvah.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Oh, it's the twins?
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. It was the twins, yes, both of them, and it 
was a pretty incredible weekend. It was really amazing to, 
coincidentally, have the B'nai Mitzvah service and ceremony during 
Jewish American Heritage Month. Their birthday is May 15, and we had a 
wonderful celebration last weekend.
  Thank you so much. And thank you for being an incredible example. As 
a Jewish mother who is raising Jewish daughters, thank you for being an 
incredible example for them.
  Mrs. LOWEY. Well, as a Jewish mother and a Jewish grandmother, I am 
very proud of my three children and my 8 grandchildren. And I just want 
to say, again, that you are really a role model for all women, not just 
Jewish women, a strong woman with integrity, who is committed to her 
Judaism, her family, and yet you understand so well that we have an 
obligation beyond ourselves, as we lift people up and hope that all 
people, in the United States of America and around the world, have the 
opportunity to raise children and have a good life, and can have a 
future.
  So I want to thank you because you are a role model that just does it 
all. In fact, it's amazing to me that you've done it all. So 
congratulations. Thank you again for marking this important month for 
all of us.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Thank you for joining us. Thank you so much.
  It is now my privilege--boy, it's hard to say enough good things 
about an incredible woman, a fighter, someone who has been a champion 
for the values that I know I was raised to believe in around my family 
dinner table growing up, the epitome of Tikkun olam.
  Mr. Speaker, let me--we're going to use some Yiddish phrases here and 
Hebrew expressions tonight that some may not understand. But the 
foundation of the Jewish community, and our commitments to service and 
our commitment to fighting injustice, is based in the notion of Tikkun 
olam, which means repairing the world. And so often, we have mountains 
in front of us that seem so tough to climb, and repairing the world can 
seem like an insurmountable obstacle. But working together to address a 
little bit of injustice, just a small bite at a time, but banding 
together to do it, is something that the Jewish community has stood for 
for many years.
  And there is no finer example of someone--I have to tell you that Jan 
Schakowsky, as a representative from Illinois, and as someone who had a 
reputation that I became aware of long before I actually had the 
privilege of serving in this institution, was someone I wanted to be 
like when I grew up because she has been the absolute epitome of what I 
know I was taught to believe in around my family table, which was that 
we should stand up for people who have no voice, fight for the civil 
rights and civil liberties that are instilled as Jewish values. And I'm 
so thrilled that you joined us here tonight, Congresswoman Jan 
Schakowsky from the great State of Illinois.
  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Thank you so much, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, for your 
leadership role in making Jewish American Heritage Month a reality. 
Really, this was your idea, and you mobilized the Members of the House 
in a bipartisan way to make this happen, and we're so appreciative.
  I think Jews and non-Jews alike realize that it's important that we 
honor the culture and the heritage of the Jewish community. Throughout 
American history, Jewish Americans have helped shape American culture 
and society. For over 350 years, Jewish Americans have made untold 
contributions to our country, through science, art,

[[Page 7979]]

medicine, education, sports, technology, entertainment, and government. 
Jewish Americans have served in the military and in government, have 
helped build and grow our economy, and have served their communities as 
teachers, nurses, organizers, and in countless other critical roles.
  American Jews played a critical role in creating and sustaining a 
homeland for all Jews around the world--the State of Israel, our 
beloved State of Israel, first, as a refuge for those who survived the 
Holocaust, continuing to be a place where all Jews are welcome, and 
today, an enduring and essential ally of the United States of America.
  As a first-generation Jewish American, I have personally witnessed 
the struggles and successes of Jewish immigrants who came to this 
Nation in order to create a better life for themselves, their families, 
and future generations, the reasons that all immigrants seek out the 
United States. Like other important immigrant communities, the Jewish 
experience in the United States represents the promise, the 
opportunity, and the freedom of America.
  I think today about my grandparents, Sam and Mary Cosnow, who settled 
in Chicago with three of their four children. The fourth was born in 
the United States. My mother was not. They came from Russia. They left 
a place that they knew they would never return to, left a place where 
there were pogroms, where it was dangerous for the Jews, and came to 
Chicago, Illinois.
  And every Sunday we would go to my grandparents House in Humboldt 
Park, and I would rush out to what is now the garage, but then was the 
barn, where Teddy, the horse, was there. And I would say hello first to 
Teddy, I think, even before my grandparents.
  Teddy would pull the cart that my grandfather, a peddler, would--
every weekday he would get up at the crack of dawn and take Teddy and 
the wagon to the vegetable and fruit market several miles away and load 
up the cart and carry bags of potatoes up several flights of stairs in 
the alleys of Humboldt Park to his customers.
  My grandmother stayed home. She made the clothes for her children and 
was a homemaker. And they put all of their children through college. 
That was the American Dream.
  My grandfather, as a peddler--now, college tuition wasn't what it is 
today and it was easier to do that, but two teachers, one lawyer, one 
business college student, all of those children of Sam Cosnow, the 
peddler, could make it in America. That is the American Dream. It's the 
immigrant dream. It's the dream of hardworking people who believed that 
if you are willing to get up at the crack of dawn and carry potatoes up 
the back porch that you could do it here. That's the America we dream 
for everyone and for our children and their children; that they can 
have a good life if they are willing to work hard.
  An estimated 250,000 Jews live in Chigago today. Chicago's vibrant 
Jewish community has been home to countless prominent figures, from 
sports to the arts to politics. Saul Alinksy, the father of community 
organizing, came from a Russian Jewish immigrant family. Nobel Prize-
winning author Saul Bellow grew up in Chicago, a Jewish--from Humboldt 
Park, as my grandparents and my parents lived. And his work strongly 
reflects both his Jewish roots and the city of Chicago.
  Actors Jeremy Piven and Mandy Patinkin were both raised in Jewish 
households in Chicago. And Benny Goodman, the clarinetist known as the 
``King of Swing,'' called Chicago home.

                              {time}  2010

  Sidney Yates, my predecessor, served in the House for nearly 50 
years, passionately working for environmental protection and government 
funding for the arts. Also, two current members of the Chicago Bears 
NFL team, Gabe Carimi and Adam Podlesh, are Jewish Americans.
  So, Mr. Speaker, Jewish American Heritage Month is an opportunity to 
recognize the contributions of Jewish Americans to our community, to 
our country, to our culture. For 350 years, Jewish Americans have made 
extraordinary contributions to American life and culture; and in 
Chicago and throughout the country, American Jews continue to be 
leaders in their communities.
  All of those Jews in America today owe a thank-you to Congresswoman 
Wasserman Schultz for creating the Jewish American Heritage Month of 
May, so I thank you.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Thank you, Congresswoman.
  Let me also thank you for your leadership as a ranking member of the 
Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade for the Energy and 
Commerce Committee; and your leadership in the area of health care has 
been incredibly important for America.
  I think it's interesting. First of all, you taught me something that 
I didn't know tonight. I did not know that there are two Jewish players 
on the Chicago Bears. One of your staffers was joking with my staffer 
today, saying that there are actually more Jews on the Chicago Bears 
than there are in the Illinois delegation, which is really kind of 
ironic, actually. Thank you so much for being here.
  Now it is my privilege to introduce and acknowledge a friend and 
colleague from the neighboring district of mine, someone who is a 
relatively new Member, who had some big shoes to fill but who has done 
so capably. He serves as a member of the House Committee on the 
Judiciary and on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and he was a 
State senator in the State of Florida. I am fortunate that I don't need 
his bio as a cheat sheet because I know him so well. He is our 
colleague from the great State of Florida, Congressman Ted Deutch.
  Mr. DEUTCH. Thank you very much to my dear friend Congresswoman 
Wasserman Schultz, and thank you for your committed work in making sure 
that not only this Special Order hour takes place tonight but for your 
work in ensuring that Jewish American Heritage Month has become a 
reality. You are to be commended for that, and I think we are all the 
better for it. I appreciate it, and I appreciate the opportunity to be 
here tonight.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to celebrate the seventh annual Jewish American 
Heritage Month, which is an opportunity for our Nation to recognize the 
many contributions of Jewish Americans throughout our history. 
America's Jewish community has helped shape our country since its 
inception. Jewish Americans have courageously served in our Armed 
Forces in every major conflict of our Nation's history. They've also 
helped drive America as a powerhouse of economic innovation, 
contributing key advances in everything from science and medicine to 
the law and the arts.
  Today, as we mark this year's Jewish American Heritage Month here in 
Congress, I would like to highlight our community's tremendous 
contributions to American social policy. Jewish Americans have a long 
history of shaping our political priorities as a Nation. I am proud to 
be part of a community that has led efforts to protect the most 
vulnerable, to ensure fairness in our justice system, to promote 
economic opportunity, and to safeguard the religious freedoms and 
liberties of all Americans.
  We need look no further than Social Security, a program that helps 
keep 50 million Americans economically secure each year. Serving on the 
committee that helped establish Social Security was Wilbur Cohen, a man 
who was eventually appointed by President Kennedy as an Assistant 
Secretary for Legislation of Health, Education, and Welfare. As a 
member of President Johnson's Cabinet, Wilbur Cohen's influence over 
issues that impact America's seniors continue to grow, and many today 
regard him as the man who built Medicare.
  Jewish Americans also took an active role in our Nation's struggle 
for civil rights. In the 1950s and 1960s, Jewish Americans were 
passionately engaged in the struggle for civil rights:
  Rabbi Stephen Wise, the great American Jewish leader, was one of the 
founders of the NAACP. He made the case that civil rights were not only 
a Jewish issue but that civil rights were

[[Page 7980]]

a quintessential Jewish issue. He understood and believed firmly that 
the Jewish community and that the Nation--America--were stronger when 
prejudice was defeated and when equal rights were extended to all;
  Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel marched with Martin Luther King, Jr., in 
Selma. In reflecting upon that march, Rabbi Heschel said, When I 
marched in Selma, my legs were praying. It was his understanding, his 
commitment, to what he viewed as essentially the holy work of lifting 
up all Americans and of ensuring equal rights for all;
  Several prominent Jewish activists, including Michael Schwerner and 
Andrew Goodman lost their lives, along with African American activist 
James Chaney, while fighting for the right to vote alongside organizers 
in the South;
  And perhaps there is no greater indication of Jewish Americans' 
involvement in the struggle for civil rights than the fact that both 
the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965--two 
landmark pieces of civil rights legislation--were both drafted as 
legislation at the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism.
  As a Jewish American, I am honored to be part of a community that 
throughout our Nation's history has helped make America a more fair and 
a more just Nation--a Nation where opportunity extends to all, where 
everyone can be lifted up by being given the chance to succeed. It is a 
commitment to ensuring that seniors live lives of dignity and where the 
poor receive the support that they need when times are most difficult. 
Finally, it is the respect for every American--the dignity of every 
American--that is recognized and fought for still to this day by so 
many in the Jewish community.
  I am so grateful to my friend Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz for 
helping to ensure that we have the opportunity to share these thoughts 
here on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives this evening. I 
am grateful for that opportunity. I thank you for it.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Thank you so much for your commitment and for 
your leadership. It is really a privilege to fight side by side with 
you on behalf of our constituents in south Florida and on behalf of the 
values that matter so deeply to our community.
  For many years, actually, before you were elected to public office, I 
watched your commitment to the U.S.-Israel relationship and to a strong 
and vibrant Jewish State of Israel as an AIPAC activist and then as a 
State senator, now as a Member of Congress and as a colleague. I thank 
you so much for joining us here this evening.
  It is now my privilege to recognize a newer colleague and a newer 
friend but someone whom I have seen develop as a leader and someone who 
has stepped up to represent her constituents in the western part of our 
country, which I'm sure is a completely different Jewish experience 
than the east coast experience. Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici is a new 
Member who was elected in a special election not even a year ago--
actually, just a few short months ago. She has stepped up and 
represents the Portland area in Oregon. More importantly, she is a 
member of Congregation Beth Israel, and I am pleased to recognize her 
here tonight.
  Ms. BONAMICI. Thank you so much for yielding me this time, 
Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz, and for your leadership in Jewish 
American Heritage Month. It is great to join you and our other 
colleagues here this evening.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the contributions that so many 
Jewish Americans have made to our communities, to our States, to our 
country. There are many Jewish Americans who could be recognized here 
this evening and who deserve to be recognized for their contributions 
here this evening in honor of Jewish American Heritage Month.
  I rise to pay tribute to a great Jewish American, an Oregonian, Mr. 
Harold Schnitzer. Born in 1923, Harold Schnitzer was the fifth of seven 
children of Russian immigrants.

                              {time}  2020

  He was born to Rose and Sam Schnitzer, who took a junk business and 
turned it into a steel empire.
  As a boy, Harold earned 25 cents a week for polishing metal at his 
father's scrap yard. He told his teachers at Lincoln High School in 
Portland that his future was in steel. By the age of 16, he came back 
here to the East and he was studying at the Massachusetts Institute of 
Technology, from which he graduated in 1944. He served in World War II. 
He dealt scrap metal during his time in the Army, and he was expected 
to take over the family business, but something happened. He didn't 
want to compete with his brothers. So he left to start his own real 
estate company, Harsch Investment Properties.
  Throughout his life, Harold, along with his wife Arlene Schnitzer, 
generously supported education, health care, and cultural and Jewish 
institutions and organizations not only in Portland, but throughout the 
State of Oregon. Harold Schnitzer lost his life last year in 2011 at 
the age of 87. There is no question that he embodied tikkun olam. He 
made the world a better place.
  I want to thank you for this opportunity, Congresswoman Wasserman 
Schultz, to pay tribute to a great Jewish American, but also to say 
thank you again for making Jewish American Heritage Month a reality so 
that others can learn about the contributions of Jewish Americans 
around this great country.
  Thank you again for this opportunity.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Thank you so much, and thank you for your 
service on the House committee on the Budget. We serve on that 
committee together, and you have represented your constituents well. I 
appreciate you honoring the contributions of Jewish Americans across 
this country here tonight.
  Now it is my privilege to bring to the rostrum--for lack of a better 
term--a friend and colleague who represents the southern region of 
California in San Diego, who has been an incredible leader on the Armed 
Services Committee, and who has definitely in her own right been a 
Jewish leader and as a Jewish woman someone who has taken a leadership 
role in the area of armed services, not only not traditional for women, 
but one that we have a story to tell about Jewish involvement 
throughout our American military history. And I'm going to share a 
little bit about that later, but thank you so much.
  Congresswoman Susan Davis.
  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Thank you.
  And I want to thank my colleague Debbie Wasserman Schultz for having 
us together to talk about Jewish American Heritage Month this evening. 
It's important for us to do that.
  Whenever we think of perfecting our union--the President spoke about 
this a little bit today as he hosted a number of individuals in the 
Jewish community and people from around the country. The thing that I 
always think about is tikkun olam, because it is part of our tradition 
to repair the world.
  Many Jewish people came to the United States having left a community 
in which they weren't able to make contributions, and I think that's 
partly why in bringing some talents and some skills--and, yes, in many 
cases they weren't skills that were honed very well when they first 
came to this country, but they developed those. And in developing those 
skills and making a contribution and becoming treasures for each of 
their communities, they clearly made a great deal of effort to repair 
the world. They continue to do that in so many ways.
  There is another tradition that we have. It's called tzedakah. It's 
about caring for others. It's about giving to others. It's about 
engaging people in that effort. It's about going down to soup kitchens 
from time to time. It's about bringing homeless people into your 
synagogue or into your temple during the winter. It's about engaging 
all the time because we know that that's important to do. That caring 
of tzedakah goes back to so many of the traditions that we all share. 
It's about

[[Page 7981]]

the golden rule. It's about taking care of one another. It's about 
treating people the way that we want to be treated. That's very much a 
part of our heritage.
  I'm going to share a little story today, and it's a story that I 
think my colleague is going to be laughing a little bit about because 
it's not something that I would ordinarily do. But I had a chance to 
read a little bit about a very special Jewish woman. Her name was 
Thelma Tiby Eisen, and she was born in 1922 and lives today. I tell 
this story because she was very famous as a professional athlete in 
America. Probably people who don't know about Jewish women in athletics 
or in baseball wouldn't know of her, but those who do would know that 
name.
  I bring that up because my colleague brought me into the first and 
only bipartisan women's softball team here in the Capitol. I have to 
share my story because I never played team sports in my life. In fact, 
I probably picked up a baseball maybe once to hit somebody, but I 
really don't remember doing that at all.
  So when I was asked by my colleague to join with her in this team, 
which is supporting young survivors of breast cancer, I thought, Well, 
that's crazy for me to even do this because I can't make a contribution 
to this team. But I've done it because I've cared about the cause 
certainly of young survivors who have breast cancer and largely because 
there are a number of Jewish women who by virtue of their genes have a 
propensity to develop breast cancer.
  Right around the time that I actually had agreed to be on this team--
actually, this even goes back to walking in the 3-day march for breast 
cancer--I learned that my sister had breast cancer. Fortunately, she 
has been able to overcome that. But it was something that I knew and I 
had to take account of in my own life, as well. But I wanted to share 
this story because I enjoyed reading about Thelma Tiby Eisen. I'm going 
to share that.
  One of the most versatile and talented professional athletes in 
America was Gertrude Tiby Eisen. She was born in Los Angeles in 1922, 
and she was a star of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball 
League, the only professional women's league in baseball history. The 
women's hardball league lasted from 1943 until 1954, and she was one of 
at least four Jewish women in that professional league. As its only 
Jewish superstar and a pioneer in American women's sports, she was an 
outstanding athlete in her native Los Angeles. She started playing 
semipro softball at age 14. When the league was formed in 1943, she won 
a spot on the Milwaukee team, which was moved the next year to Grand 
Rapids, Michigan. Her best season was in 1946, when she led the league 
in triples. She stole 128 bases and made the all-star team.
  The part of the story that I particularly like was that Eisen's 
family was very ambivalent about the career choice that this ``nice 
Jewish girl'' had made, although she ultimately won all of their 
respect.
  ``We played a big charity game in Chicago for a Jewish hospital,'' 
Eisen recalled in an interview with historian David Spaner. ``My name 
and picture were in every Jewish newspaper. My uncle, who had said, 
`You shouldn't be playing baseball--you'll get a bad reputation, a bad 
name,' was in the stands bursting with pride that I was there.''
  When she retired from professional baseball in 1952, she settled in 
the Pacific Palisades area and became a star for the Orange Lionette 
Softball Team, leading them to a world championship in 1993. She helped 
establish the women's exhibit at the Baseball Hall of Fame in 
Cooperstown, New York, and she wanted to have all this recorded to keep 
the baseball league in the limelight:
  ``It gets pushed into the background,'' she said, ``just as women 
have been pushed into the background forever. If they knew more about 
our league, perhaps in the future some women will say, `Hey, maybe we 
can do it again.' ''
  Well, that's probably how all of us feel here in our bipartisan 
effort in women's softball. We're going to play this game on June 20. 
We're going to play against all of our women colleagues in the media: 
TV, radio, and print.

                              {time}  2030

  We certainly hope that we're going to bring back a victory here.
  If I may, Mr. Speaker, I wanted to just highlight a few people, 
really my contemporaries in San Diego, who have made such a 
contribution because they're well known in our community and certainly 
when we think of Jewish American Heritage Month, we can't help but 
think of these individuals who today are continuing to make a 
contribution. Two of them have passed on.
  One, of course, is Jonas Salk that we all know very well. The Salk 
Institute of San Diego continues to educate our scientists for our 
country and really for the world, globally. I've had an opportunity to 
meet with a number of young scientists there from time to time, and 
their enthusiasm and their desire to really cure diseases in our 
country are just always inspiring, and I think of them often when I 
think of the Salk Institute.
  The other person who I wanted to highlight very briefly is a 
gentleman named Sol Price. Sol Price was the founder of Price Club, he 
and his family. Whenever you think of ingenuity, innovation, 
entrepreneurs, he was great, great at this. He also founded an 
organization that I had an opportunity to be the executive director of 
in its early years, the Aaron Price Fellows Program, educating a very, 
very diverse group of young people to repair the world, to find in 
civic life as a student and then as they go on as adults, to find a way 
to really make a contribution to their community. It's a wonderful 
program and the young people come here to Washington every year.
  Finally, to just say, in regard to great contributors in our 
community and across, across the world today, Dr. Irwin and Joan 
Jacobs. Dr. Jacobs is the founder of Qualcomm along with Doctor Vitebi 
in San Diego, who have made such extraordinary, extraordinary 
contributions and continue to do that every day. It's a real honor to 
be in a community where their philanthropy is so well known.
  Finally, we have a very active group of Jewish war veterans in San 
Diego, and I just wanted to thank Alan Milefsky, who has been the 
Veteran of the Year in San Diego and continues to reach out and make a 
great contribution and remind everybody of his extraordinary story as a 
Jewish war veteran.
  Thank you very much to my colleague for bringing us together today, 
and it's been my honor to have an opportunity to speak about Jewish 
American Heritage Month.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Thank you so much. Thank you, Congresswoman 
Davis. Thank you for your leadership and for sharing the stories of the 
important contributions that Jews in the San Diego community in America 
have made through the fabric of American history.
  It's now my pleasure and my privilege to ask my colleague from the 
great State of Connecticut, Chris Murphy, to share some things.
  I had--this is a reunion of sorts. A number of years ago, when Mr. 
Murphy and I, along with Mr. Ryan of Ohio and our former colleague, 
Congressman Meek from Florida, we used to spend a little time down here 
on the House floor, around this time of night or later in the 30-
Something Working Group, and you may still actually be eligible to 
participate. I no longer would be.
  Mr. MURPHY of Connecticut. Barely.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Maybe I would be part of the ``something'' in 
30-something.
  I did have a chance to meet your fantastic Lieutenant Governor, Nancy 
Wyman, today at the Jewish American Heritage Month reception at the 
White House. She is obviously an incredible leader, an example of the 
political leadership that is part of the contributions that American 
Jews have made to American life.
  Mr. Murphy.
  Mr. MURPHY of Connecticut. Thank you very much, Congresswoman 
Wasserman Schultz. I don't think that we were ever allowed down on the

[[Page 7982]]

House floor this early. It was normally close to the witching hour when 
I, Representative Ryan, you, and Representative Meek were down here, 
but it is wonderful to be back here.
  I was really touched when you approached me earlier today to ask me 
to come and say a few words, because the Murphys are not a very well 
known Jewish American family. Yet in Connecticut we are so, so proud of 
the legacy that we have helped contribute to with respect to Jewish 
American heritage, and this is a great way to be part of this month's 
celebration.
  You know, the list is long in Connecticut. You know, I think about 
somebody like Annie Fisher, who was one of the pioneers of special 
education in this country trying to segment out a different way to 
teach kids with learning disabilities. She was the first female 
principal, first female superintendent in Hartford, Connecticut.
  I think about a young guy by the name of Kid Kaplan, who was from my 
district, from Meriden, Connecticut, was a featherweight champion of 
the world, one of the top 10 featherweights by most people's estimates. 
But I think maybe most about some of the political legacy that Jewish 
Americans from Connecticut have left this country.
  I think a lot about Abraham Ribicoff. Abraham Ribicoff was everything 
in Connecticut. He was our Governor, he was our Senator, he was our 
Congressman. He faced, not so quietly, the prejudice that so many 
Jewish Americans faced as they entered into political life and 
commercial life throughout the last 100 years.
  He talked openly when he first ran for Governor about walking into 
social halls and hearing prejudiced whispers throughout the room as he 
walked in. He also talked about taking that prejudice head on. He would 
walk up to the podium, and he would talk about the fact that he had 
lived the American Dream as the son of Polish immigrants, as a young 
guy who grew up working in zipper and buckle factories throughout the 
Hartford region, that he was living the American Dream, that if he 
could do it so could everybody else and their kids in that room.
  He was probably best known for a moment at the podium of the 
Democratic National Convention in 1968 when Chicago police were outside 
treating protesters fairly roughly. He was the one member of the 
political elite to stand up on that podium and call them out for their 
tactics, and even with the mayor of that city sitting in the front row 
calling him some pretty unfriendly names. He kept his cool and is 
credited with essentially marginalizing that kind of violence, 
certainly with historical hindsight.
  Maybe most important is that Abraham Ribicoff also saw his role as 
one of the leading American Jewish political figures in this country to 
help pave the way for others. He had a young intern, not long after he 
became U.S. Senator, named Joe Lieberman. He hired, in the early 1970s, 
his administrative assistant, a young hot-shot lawyer named Richard 
Blumenthal.
  The two of them, both given their political sea legs by Abraham 
Ribicoff, are today proudly serving as Connecticut's two United States 
Senators, both part of our proud political tradition in Connecticut of 
Jewish American participation in American politics.
  I am really thrilled to be down here with you to share my gratitude 
for what Jewish Americans in Connecticut have meant to our cultural 
life, to our educational life, to our sporting life and, yes, to our 
political life. Representative Wasserman Schultz, thank you for your 
leadership and thank you for allowing me and asking me to come down 
this evening.
  Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. Thank you so much, Mr. Murphy, and thank you 
for your leadership as a member on the Foreign Affairs Committee, as 
well, and your commitment and support to a strong U.S.-Israel 
relationship, also an important issue to those of us in the Jewish 
community and important to Americans, as Israel is our strongest ally 
and friend.
  You are right, and the reason that I wanted you to come down tonight 
is because growing up as a nice Jewish girl on Long Island, I knew a 
few folks over your way in Connecticut, being a resident of the tri-
State area, and knowing the rich tradition of political activism and 
involvement of Jewish leaders in Connecticut and your leadership. You 
know, we will call you an honorary Jew tonight--Murphyberg, or 
something like that. But thank you so much for your leadership on 
behalf of your constituents and your State, and thank you for joining 
me this evening to honor the contributions of American Jews to the 
fabric and the tapestry of American life.
  Mr. Speaker, I am going to wrap up here in a few moments. I want to 
share a few other things to help tie a ribbon on the second-to-last day 
of Jewish American Heritage Month. We'll wrap up tomorrow.

                              {time}  2040

  I want to share a story of a Floridian, because oftentimes--
certainly, recently--Florida would be well-known for our significant, 
sizable, and accomplished Jewish community, particularly in south 
Florida, where my district is. I like to say that I'm the person that 
represents paradise down our way in south Florida. But the paradise 
that we see today in south Florida was mostly swamp land many, many 
years ago. And so the pioneers that blazed the trail that allowed for 
the vibrant communities that we have in our State really were just 
that--they were pioneers.
  I want to share a story of one of those pioneers. For example, Moses 
Elias Levy, who lived from 1782 to 1854, was one of the earliest and 
largest developers in the State of Florida. At his Pilgrimage 
Plantation, which was the first Jewish communitarian settlement in our 
country, Moses housed several Jewish German families while 
reintroducing sugarcane to our State. Thanks to his cultivation of the 
first sugarcane plantation in Alachua County, which also has the good 
fortune of being the home county to the University of Florida, my alma 
mater--go, Gators--Florida boasts a thriving sugar production market 
today, and that can be traced directly to Moses Elias Levy.
  As a civil rights activist, though--that's the contribution that I 
want to highlight--as America's first Jewish abolitionist author, Levy 
exemplified not only the American entrepreneurial spirit, but the 
Jewish value that we've been talking about here this evening of tikkun 
olam--repairing the world.
  He was an early and ardent advocate for public education for both 
boys and girls--and that also was not common back then. Education was 
typically more often left for boys, and girls were kind of lucky if 
they had someone in their lives that encouraged them to get an 
education and to continue it for any length of time.
  So I'm proud to remember Moses Elias Levy's early contributions and 
dedication to education and gender equality. Interestingly enough, Levy 
County today is named after this gentleman, as well as David Yulee 
Levy, who was our first United States Senator in the State of Florida, 
and who was also an American Jew.
  The other thing I want to mention, Mr. Speaker, is it is also not 
often that Americans are aware of Jewish contributions to our military 
history. And there is a way that people can get educated about American 
Jewish contributions to the military history throughout our history of 
involvement militarily by going and visiting the National Museum of 
American Jewish Military History, which is in our Nation's Capitol on 
Dupont Circle. I had an opportunity to host a Jewish American Heritage 
Month event month there a few years ago, and was really thrilled to 
learn about the contributions all the way back, Mr. Speaker, to the 
Revolutionary War.
  Jews were not only a part of fighting the Revolutionary War and 
fighting for freedom in the United States, but also financing and 
making sure--Haym Solomon was an important figure in ensuring that the 
Minutemen had the resources under George Washington's leadership to 
ultimately be able to make sure that we have a country and that we are 
the beacon of freedom across the world that we are today. That was in 
no small measures thanks to the contributions of Jews who were pioneers 
here in America.

[[Page 7983]]

  Lastly, Mr. Speaker, I want to share some of the really unique and 
wonderful events that have happened throughout Jewish American Heritage 
Month, and that we will continue to foster and thrive in and encourage 
both Jews and non-Jews to celebrate these rich traditions.
  Earlier this month, right at the beginning, on May 2, there was a 
focus and program on ``Religion and Politics: When General Grant 
Expelled the Jews.'' It's so important. And Jewish community leaders 
and religious leaders talk so often about the importance of not 
forgetting about previous persecution so that we can make sure that 
history doesn't repeat it. Having an opportunity at the National Museum 
of American Jewish History in Philadelphia to hold that lecture so that 
we are familiar with that history was important.
  There was also a program in Miami Beach, ``Coming to America: The 
Jewish Impact and the Jewish Response.'' We had some unique 
programming, ``The American Jewish Deli--A History,'' because food is 
so important to the Jewish way of life all over the world. That was 
held in New York City at the Park East Synagogue.
  Two other important events to highlight were the Jewish American 
Heritage Month Film Festival, which was held right here in Washington, 
D.C., in the Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial Library Auditorium. And 
lastly, the program held in Margate, New Jersey, by the Board of Jewish 
Education highlighting the contributions of Jewish women in America.
  As a Jewish woman in America, I am really proud to have been a part 
of introducing this resolution ensuring that ultimately we were able to 
honor the contributions of American Jews to our history, but also to 
make sure that we can help all Americans make it a priority that we 
promote tolerance, that we reduce anti-Semitism, reduce bigotry, and 
hopefully, Mr. Speaker, reach out to non-Jews across this country and 
help them learn a little bit more about a culture that they may be 
unfamiliar with, about a tradition and a history that might be a little 
bit foreign to them, so that we can all come together as we're so 
committed to do in America as one people standing for freedom, standing 
for tolerance, and standing for justice.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise to share a few words on 
the vast and significant contributions Jewish Americans have made 
towards making America the greatest country in the world.
  The first Jewish Americans arrived on our shores in 1654, for the 
same reason millions would follow in later years, as refugees from 
harm, poverty, and persecution.
  These first Jewish Americans would settle in New Amsterdam (now New 
York) and eventually spread throughout our country from places as 
dispersed as Charleston and Philadelphia in the 18th century to nearly 
every corner of our country today, including a large and thriving 
community in my hometown of Houston.
  The contribution of Jewish Americans to our Nation's history, culture 
and development are almost too numerous to list--from the legal 
contributions of Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, to the musical 
talents of Leonard Bernstein, to the athletic prowess of Sandy Koufax, 
to the unknown thousands of Jewish American men and women who struggled 
for equality, workers' rights, and fought and died bravely for our 
country against tyranny.
  Today, the Jewish American community, now over six million strong, 
continues this long and proud tradition as members of every segment of 
American society--from the classroom and the boardroom to the 
battlefield and the halls of Congress.
  I ask all my colleagues in this chamber to join me in celebrating May 
as Jewish American Heritage Month.

                          ____________________