[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 15]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 21645]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 A DAY IN HONOR OF JANET LANGHART COHEN

                                  _____
                                 

                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, December 18, 2015

  Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Emmy nominated 
journalist, author and playwright Janet Langhart Cohen's one-act play, 
``Anne & Emmett.'' On October 23, 2015, at the MIST Harlem Cultural 
Center, I joined with the New Heritage Theatre Group, the Greater 
Harlem Chamber of Commerce and MIST Harlem to welcome playwright Janet 
Langhart Cohen to the Village of Harlem, where she presented the one-
act play ``Anne & Emmett,'' directed by Thomas W. Jones II. The play, 
``Anne and Emmett,'' focuses on an imaginary conversation between Anne 
Frank and Emmett Till, who were victims of religious intolerance and 
racial hatred. That evening, ``Anne and Emmett'' was filmed by The New 
Heritage Group under the supervision of celebrated director/producer 
and former Chair of Columbia University's Graduate Film Program, 
Professor Jamal Joseph.
  The presentation of ``Anne and Emmett'' was made possible by RARIA 
(Race and Reconciliation in America), a not for profit organization co-
founded by Janet Langhart Cohen, New York City Police Commissioner 
William J. Bratton and the New York City Police Academy. First 
premiered in 2009 at the United States Holocaust Museum, ``Anne & 
Emmett,'' was conceived by Janet Langhart Cohen. The plays two main 
characters were Emmett Till, a 14-year-old boy whose brutal murder in 
Mississippi sixty years ago which sparked the modern civil rights 
movement; and the young Holocaust victim Anne Frank, a Jewish girl who 
had to go into hiding during World War Two to avoid the Nazis and after 
almost two years in hiding she was discovered and deported to Bergen-
Belsen Concentration Camp where she died. The play has received rave 
reviews during performances in Washington, DC, Indianapolis and 
Chicago.
  Mrs. Cohen is passionate about ensuring Emmett Till's story is never 
forgotten; which she does daringly throughout the play. It has been 
presented to dignitaries, students, Supreme Court justices, and now, 
the NYPD and its recent classes of recruits. Her commitment and 
understanding of how vital Emmett Till's story is to our nation was 
heralded by the Till family last spring when they honored Mrs. Cohen 
with the ``Women of Courage'' award established to honor the memory of 
Emmett's mother, Mamie Till Mobley. Additionally, in 2014 Mrs. Cohen 
led the way to have a tree planted in memory of Emmett Till, at the 
United States Capitol.
  To understand why she produced the play, one needs to learn where she 
came from. Janet Langhart Cohen grew up in segregated housing in 
Indianapolis, where the Indiana Ku Klux Klan rose to prominence in the 
early 1920s. Janet went on to attend Crispus Attucks High School and 
later moved to New York City, where she began her career in television. 
Her television career included stints at NBC, America Alive with Bruce 
Jenner, AM New York on ABC, WPIX-TV Channel 11, 9 Broadcast Plaza on 
WOR-TV and Entertainment Tonight. Mrs. Cohen has had the privilege of 
interviewing such luminaries as President Jimmy Carter, Margaret 
Thatcher, Rosa Parks, Mel Gibson, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Denzel 
Washington, Dan Rather, Oprah Winfrey, Whoopi Goldberg, Barbara Walters 
and Larry King, as well as David Duke former head of the Ku Klux Klan.
  Janet married William S. Cohen, who at the time served as Secretary 
of Defense, under President William Jefferson Clinton, and became known 
as ``First Lady of the Pentagon'' due to her active and visible public 
role at the Defense Department. Mrs. Cohen spurred several initiatives 
aimed at morale and well-being of military and civilian employees at 
the Pentagon; which included the Military Family Forum, the Pentagon 
Pops concert series, the Secretary of Defense Annual Holiday Tour, and 
her own series of interviews on Pentagon TV, Special Assignment. She 
was given a volunteer position as ``First Lady of the USO'' and helped 
recruit celebrities and civilians to work with the United Service 
Organizations. Her many awards and honors include Hadassah Woman of the 
Year and The Zachary and Elizabeth Award for Distinguished Civilian 
Humanitarian Service for her work on behalf of members of the U.S. 
Armed Forces and their families. In President Bill Clinton's last State 
of the Union Address, he praised Mrs. Cohen for her enormous 
contribution to the welfare and morale of our men and women in uniform 
and their families.
  Mr. Speaker, I joined with the New Heritage Theatre Group, the 
Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce, MIST Harlem and the Village of 
Harlem to dedicate Friday, October 23, 2015 in honor of Janet Langhart 
Cohen for her life-long commitment to ending racial and religious 
intolerance and hatred in our Nation. I ask you and my colleagues to 
join me in recognition
of this great unheralded American, Janet Langhart Cohen.

                          ____________________