IV 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 739 
Celebrating the 20-year commemoration of the International Underground 
Railroad Memorial Monument, comprised of the Gateway to Freedom 
Monument in Detroit, Michigan, and the Tower of Freedom Monument 
in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 21, 2021 
Ms. TLAIB (for herself and Mrs. LAWRENCE) submitted the following resolu-
tion; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in 
addition to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subse-
quently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Celebrating the 20-year commemoration of the International 
Underground Railroad Memorial Monument, comprised 
of the Gateway to Freedom Monument in Detroit, Michi-
gan, and the Tower of Freedom Monument in Windsor, 
Ontario, Canada. 
Whereas millions of Africans and their descendants were 
enslaved in the United States and the American colonies 
from 1619 through 1865; 
Whereas Africans forced into slavery were unspeakably de-
based, humiliated, dehumanized, brutally torn from their 
families and loved ones, and subjected to the indignity of 
being stripped of their names and heritage; 
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Whereas tens of thousands of people of African descent si-
lently escaped their chains to follow the perilous Under-
ground Railroad north toward freedom in Canada; 
Whereas the Detroit River played a central role for these pas-
sengers of the Underground Railroad on their way to 
freedom; 
Whereas in October 2001, the city of Detroit, Michigan, 
joined with Windsor and Essex County in Ontario, Can-
ada, to memorialize the courage of these freedom seekers 
with an international memorial monument to the Under-
ground Railroad, comprising the Tower of Freedom 
Monument in Windsor and the Gateway to Freedom 
Monument in Detroit; 
Whereas the deep roots that the formerly enslaved, refugees, 
and immigrants who reached Canada from the United 
States created in Canadian society remain as tributes to 
the determination of their descendants to safeguard the 
history of the struggles and endurance of their 
forebearers; 
Whereas the observance of the 20-year commemoration of the 
Underground Railroad Memorial will be celebrated on 
October 21, 2021, and may include the designation of an 
International Gateway to Freedom National Heritage 
Corridor and the nomination of the historic Detroit River 
jointly by the National Park Service and the Parks Can-
ada Agency for inclusion on the World Heritage Site list 
of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cul-
tural Organization (‘‘UNESCO’’) as a testament to the 
shared history of the United States and Canada; 
Whereas UNESCO has stated it is essential for the field of 
memorial sites linked to the slave trade and slavery to be 
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open to new dynamics, to become stronger in terms of 
geographical coverage, in-depth historical research, and 
repossession of the history and mobilization of new audi-
ences; 
Whereas UNESCO has emphasized the importance within the 
field of revisiting core concepts, redefining the cultural 
and ethical challenges, building capacities for managing 
sites, developing professional networks, developing lively 
interactive activities, and regularly assessing experiences 
and practices; 
Whereas UNESCO’s Slave Route Project: Resistance, Lib-
erty, Heritage encourages countries not only to identify, 
assess, restore, preserve, and promote their memorial 
sites and itineraries, but also to identify the heritage sites 
considered to be of Outstanding Universal Value, and en-
courages the designation of ‘‘Sites of Memory associated 
to the Slave Route’’ to assist the identification and rec-
ognition of sites and places with a particular significance; 
Whereas a cooperative international educational partnership 
project known as the Detroit River Project is dedicated 
to education and research with the goal of promoting 
cross-border understanding as well as economic develop-
ment and cultural heritage tourism, and includes an edu-
cational curriculum known as ‘‘Resistance Along the 
Fluid Frontier: The Detroit River Project International 
Freedom Curriculum’’; 
Whereas the designation of an International Gateway to 
Freedom National Heritage Corridor would include the 
States of Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin, Missouri, 
Indiana, and Kentucky; the Detroit, Mississippi, and 
Ohio Rivers, which traverse portions of those States; and 
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any other sites associated within the International Gate-
way to Freedom National Heritage Corridor; 
Whereas over the course of history, the United States has be-
come a symbol of democracy and freedom around the 
world; and 
Whereas the legacy of African Americans is interwoven with 
the fabric of democracy and freedom in the United 
States: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) celebrates the 20-year commemoration of 
the International Underground Railroad Memorial 
Monument, comprised of the Gateway to Freedom 
Monument in Detroit, Michigan, and the Tower of 
Freedom Monument in Windsor, Ontario, Canada; 
(2) supports— 
(A) the designation of an International 
Gateway to Freedom National Heritage Cor-
ridor; 
(B) the recognition of a transnational edu-
cational curriculum known as ‘‘Resistance 
Along the Fluid Frontier: The Detroit River 
Project International Freedom Curriculum’’; 
(C) the designation of the International 
Underground Railroad Memorial Monument, 
comprised of the Gateway to Freedom Monu-
ment in Detroit, Michigan and the Tower of 
Freedom Monument in Windsor, Ontario, Can-
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ada, as a ‘‘Site of Memory associated to the 
Slave Route’’ pursuant to the Slave Route 
Project: Resistance, Liberty, Heritage of the 
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cul-
tural Organization; and 
(D) the nomination of the historic Detroit 
River jointly by the National Park Service and 
the Parks Canada Agency for inclusion on the 
World Heritage Site list of the United Nations 
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organiza-
tion; 
(3) recognizes that the Underground Railroad 
Special Resource Study, published by the National 
Park Service and dated September 1995, included 
findings that suggest an International Gateway to 
Freedom National Heritage Corridor may be appro-
priate based on national significance, suitability, and 
feasibility; and 
(4) acknowledges that National Heritage Areas, 
including National Heritage Corridors— 
(A) are designations that do not require 
establishing new units of the National Park 
System; and 
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(B) allow the National Park Service to 
take on a primary role in supporting State and 
local initiatives to preserve resources. 
Æ 
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