H. Res. 1133 

In the House of Representatives, U. S., 

March 19, 2010. 

Whereas from 1654 until 1865, slavery for life was legal 

within the boundaries of much of the present United 

States; 

Whereas slaveholders limited or prohibited education of 

enslaved African-Americans because they believed it 

would empower them; 

Whereas African slaves, because they were not considered 

citizens, could not register any invention with the U.S. 

Patent Office; 

Whereas any free person wanting to patent a scientific invention could not acknowledge any contribution from a slave; 

Whereas there is a strong likelihood that scientific innovation 

during the period of slavery may have been undocumented or stolen; 

Whereas after slavery had been abolished, the majority of African-Americans lived in poverty and faced legal and social discrimination; 

Whereas Historically Black Colleges and Universities were 

founded because few institutions of higher learning in the 

United States admitted students of African-American descent; 
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Whereas Historically Black Colleges and Universities have 

contributed and continue to contribute significantly to 

the overall percentage of African-Americans who receive 

undergraduate and graduate degrees in the fields of 

science, including agriculture (51.6 percent), biology 

(42.2 percent), computer science (35 percent), physical 

science (43 percent), and social science (23.2 percent); 

Whereas many African-Americans have overcome extraordinary odds to advance scientific contributions to mankind; 

Whereas the Nation’s transportation system has been greatly 

enhanced due to the contributions of Richard Spikes, who 

invented the automatic gear shift technology, Joseph 

Gambol, who invented the super charge system for internal combustion engines, Garrett Morgan, who invented 

the automated traffic signal, and Elbert Robinson, who 

invented the electric railway trolley; 

Whereas modern-day high-density cities and the United 

States unique architectural development of high rise 

buildings and modern-day skyscrapers were enhanced by 

Alexander Mills, who invented key elevator technology; 

Whereas health and medicine in the United States have been 

advanced by Otis Boykin, who invented the pacemaker, 

Dr. Ben Carson, who led a medical team who became the 

first to separate conjoined twins successfully, Dr. Charles 

Drew, who found the method to preserve and store blood 

which led to the world’s fist blood bank, and Dr. Daniel 

Williams, who performed the first successful open heart 

surgery; 

Whereas press and media have been strengthened by Will 

Purvis, who invented the improved fountain pen, Lee 
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Burridge, who invented typewriting machine advancements, and W.A. Love, who contributed to the advanced 

printing press; 

Whereas home appliances have been improved by Frederick 

Jones, who invented the portable air conditioner, Lewis 

Latimer, who helped pioneer the electric light bulb, 

George Sampson, who invented the clothes dryer, and 

John Standard, who enhanced the refrigerator; 

Whereas historically, African-Americans have faced unprecedented inequities which have caused a disparity in the 

number of undergraduate and advanced degrees in the 

sciences, described as ‘‘the achievement gap’’; 

Whereas many Members of Congress have proposed that this 

gap can and will be eliminated through progressive policies such as desegregation and Federal outreach and 

training programs; 

Whereas many studies suggest that the achievement gap of 

African-Americans in the sciences has been lessening due 

in part to the effectiveness of these policies and programs; 

Whereas the United States has vast untapped potential because African-Americans and other minorities remain 

underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and 

math (STEM) disciplines; and 

Whereas society in the United States today would not be the 

same without African-American innovations in the 

sciences: Now, therefore, be it 

Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

(1) recognizes the extraordinary number of AfricanAmericans who have overcome significant obstacles to 
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enhance innovation and competitiveness in the field of 

science in the United States; 

(2) honors and recognizes all African-American 

innovators who have contributed to scientific education 

and research, directly and indirectly, whose contributions 

have increased economic empowerment in the United 

States; and 

(3) encourages the Administration to invest in programs that are proven effective to lessen the achievement gap of African-Americans as well as other minority 

and disadvantaged groups in the sciences and ultimately 

strengthen competitiveness in the United States. 

Attest: 

Clerk.