Date: 2009-03-17
Speaker: CORRINE BROWN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support of House Resolution 211. a bill to support the goals and ideals of National Womens History Month. I would like to send a tribute out to all of the women trailblazers who have contributed so much to our country. And I think St. Patricks Day is the perfect time to remember them! I would like to begin by sending a very special .thank you to former Congresswoman Pat Schroeder of Colorado. Congresswoman Carrie Meek of Florida. and Congresswoman Barbara. Kennelly of Connecticut. and to some of the women Members who I had the honor to serve with in this body and recently passed: The Honorable Stephanie TubbsJones of Ohio. The Honorable Julia Carson of Indiana. and the Honorable Juanita MillenderMcDonaid of California. I would also like to discuss a few of the women who served as mentors to me over the years. I remember growing up in Jacksonville. back in the civil rights era in the United States. And I knew I wanted to do somethingget involved in something bigto make a difference. And I was inspired by a strong willed woman. Ms. Gwendelyn Sawyer Cherry. who would stop at nothing to change the terrible ills that our society. and in particular. African Americans. were facing in that time period. Ms. Sawyer Cherry was the first AfricanAmerican woman to practice law in Dade County. Florida. and became one of the first nine attorneys who initially served at Legal Services in Greater Miami in 1966. She was elected as a state representative in 1970. becoming the first AfricanAmerican woman to serve as a legislator for the State of Florida. She was elected to four terms and served until During her term. she introduced the Equal Rights Amendment in Florida. chaired the State of Floridas committee for International Womans Year in 1978. and coauthored Portraits in Color. I thank you. Ms. Sawyer Cherry. for all you have done for our nation and for the state of Florida. And the last woman I would like to mention is a very near and dear friend of mine. an African American woman who served with me both in the Florida state legislature and came up to Washington with me in 1993. I am referring to. of course. Ms. Carrie Meek of Miami. The granddaughter of a slave and the daughter of former sharecroppers. she spent her childhood in segregated Tallahassee. She then went on to graduate from Florida A&M University in 1946. at a time when African Americans could not attend graduate school in Florida. so she was forced to travel North to continue her studies and ended up graduating from the University of Michigan. Ms. Meek went on to become a Florida state representative in 1979. and was the first African American female elected to the Florida State Senate in 1982. As a state senator. Meek served on the Education Appropriations Subcommittee. and her efforts in the Legislature also led to the construction of thousands of affordable rental housing units. In 1992. Congresswoman Carrie Meek was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Floridas 17th Congressional District. This made Ms. Meek. along with myself and Congressman ALCEE HASTINGS. to serve as the first black lawmakers elected to represent Florida in Congress since Reconstruction. Upon taking office. Ms. Meek was faced the extreme task of helping her district recover from Hurricane Andrews devastation. and her efforts helped to provide $100 million in federal assistance to rebuild Dade County. As a powerful and hard working Member of the appropriations committee. Congresswoman Meek became a leader on issues from economic development. to health care funding. to education and housing. She also passed legislation to improve Dade Countys transit system. their airport and seaport. construct a new family and childcare center in North Dade County. and fund advanced aviation training programs at MiamiDade Community College. In recent times. the Honorable Carrie Meek has worked to become a civil rights advocate for senior citizens in the Miami area. as well for the Haitian community in South Florida. In closing. I want to thank these pioneers. those who have led the way for our daughters today and in the future.