[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 8]
[EXTENS]
[Pages 11222-11223]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




COMMEMORATING THE 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ENACTMENT OF THE G.I. BILL OF 
                                 RIGHTS

                                  _____
                                 

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, June 30, 2014

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate the 70th 
anniversary of the enactment of the G.I. Bill.
  Seventy years ago this past Sunday, President Franklin Delano 
Roosevelt signed the bill that transformed American economic and social 
life and changed forever the way we live and work.
  The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the 
``G.I. Bill,'' opened the doors of higher education to millions of the 
veterans who risked their lives to save the world for freedom in World 
War II.
  Before World War II, college and homeownership were, for most 
Americans, an impossible dream. Because of the G.I. Bill, millions who 
would have flooded the job market instead opted for education.
  In the peak year of 1947, veterans accounted for 49 percent of 
college admissions and by the time the original G.I. Bill ended on July 
25, 1956, 7.8 million of 16 million World War II Veterans had 
participated in an education or training program.
  Millions also took advantage of the G.I. Bill's home loan guaranty 
and from 1944 to 1952, the federal government backed nearly 2.4 million 
home loans for World War II Veterans, which was then the largest 
expansion in home ownership in American history.
  Upon signing the G.I. Bill on June 22, 1944, two weeks and two days 
after D-Day, President Roosevelt stated:

       This bill gives emphatic notice to the men and women in our 
     armed forces that the American people do not intend to let 
     them down.
       * * *
       For they have been compelled to make greater economic 
     sacrifice and every other kind of sacrifice than the rest of 
     us, and are entitled to definite action to help take care of 
     their special problems.

  The lawmakers that passed the G.I. Bill had no idea the remarkable 
effect this bill would have in establishing a thriving middle class 
America. The legislation that they passed provided opportunity for 
individuals to succeed. It was an investment in our people and many 
Americans took that opportunity and thrived.

[[Page 11223]]

  The lesson in this is if you give average Americans an opportunity to 
succeed, then they will take advantage and do extraordinary things.

                          ____________________