H. Res. 120
In the House of Representatives, U. S., 
February 7, 2007.
Whereas beginning in 1619, when slavery was introduced into 
the European colonies, enslaved Africans remained in 
bondage until 1865, when the United States ratified the 
13th amendment to the Constitution; 
Whereas during that period of the history of the United 
States, the first expression of that unique American 
music was created by enslaved African Americans who—
(1) used their knowledge of the English language 
and the Christian religious faith, as it had been taught 
to them in the New World; and 
(2) stealthily wove within the music their experience 
of coping with human servitude and their strong desire 
to be free;
Whereas, as a method of survival, enslaved African Ameri-
cans who were forbidden to speak their native languages, 
play musical instruments they had used in Africa, or 
practice their traditional religious beliefs, relied on their 
strong African oral tradition of songs, stories, proverbs, 
and historical accounts to create this original music, now 
known as spirituals; 
Whereas Calvin Earl, a noted performer and educator on Af-
rican American spirituals, remarked that the Christian 
lyrics became a metaphor for freedom from slavery, a se-
•HRES 120 EH 
cret way for slaves to ‘‘communicate with each other, 
teach their children, record their history, and heal their 
pain’’; 
Whereas the New Jersey Historical Commission found that 
‘‘some of those daring and artful runaway slaves who en-
tered New Jersey by way of the Underground Railroad 
no doubt sang the words of old Negro spirituals like 
‘Steal Away’ before embarking on their perilous journey 
north’’; 
Whereas African American spirituals spread all over the 
United States, and the songs we know of today may only 
represent a small portion of the total number of spir-
ituals that once existed; 
Whereas Frederick Douglass, a fugitive slave who would be-
come one of the leading abolitionists of the United 
States, remarked that the spirituals ‘‘told a tale of woe 
which was then altogether beyond my feeble comprehen-
sion; they were tones loud, long, and deep; they breathed 
the prayer and complaint of souls boiling over with the 
bitterest anguish. Every tone was a testimony against 
slavery and a prayer to God for deliverance from chains. 
. . .’’; and 
Whereas the American Folklife Preservation Act (Public Law 
94–201; 20 U.S.C. 2101 note) finds that ‘‘the diversity 
inherent in American folklife has contributed greatly to 
the cultural richness of the nation and has fostered a 
sense of individuality and identity among the American 
people’’: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives—
(1) recognizes that African American spirituals are 
a poignant and powerful genre of music that have be-
•HRES 120 EH 
come one of the most significant segments of American 
music in existence; 
(2) expresses the deepest gratitude, recognition, and 
honor to the former enslaved Africans in the United 
States for their gifts to our Nation, including their origi-
nal music and oral history; and 
(3) requests that the President issue a proclamation 
that reflects on the important contribution of African 
American spirituals to American history, and naming the 
African American spiritual a national treasure. 
Attest:
Clerk.