Date: 2010-06-22
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I rise today to express my support of H. Res. 1369. which recognizes the significance of National CaribbeanAmerican Heritage Month. As a child of Jamaican parents. I understand the importance of recognizing the influence Caribbean cultures continues to have on the many facets of these United States. Growing up. my parents instilled in me a strong appreciation for the Caribbean values they learned in Jamaica: a strong work ethic and tremendous pride in my heritage. As a parent. I have passed on these same values to my own children. so they will develop a sense of pride in their Caribbean heritage and acknowledge the many roles Caribbean people play in shaping this nation. I wholeheartedly support this resolution that commemorates Caribbean heritage. history. culture and contributions to the United States. In her 1970 autobiography. Shirley Chisholm. the first black woman elected to Congress. credited her success to the education she received while attending school in Barbados. She wrote. "Years later I would know what an important gift my parents had given me by seeing to it that I had my early education in the strict. traditional. Britishstyle schools of Barbados. If I speak and write easily now. that early education is the main reason." This is a nation built by immigrants. From as early as the 17th century there have been individuals from the Caribbean Islands. working here in the United States as indentured servants in the colony of Jamestown. Virginia. They worked in fields picking cotton. tobacco and crops just as the slaves did. Caribbean immigrants have been contributing to the wellbeing of American society since its founding. Alexander Hamilton. the First Secretary of the Treasury was from the Caribbean island of St. Kitts. We count among our famous sons and daughters. Secretary of State Colin Powell. Cicely Tyson. W.E.B. Dubois. James Weldon Johnson. Harry Belafonte and Sidney Poitier to name a few. Moreover. this is a nation that reaches out to immigrants. None of us will forget the earthquake that shook Haiti to its very foundations in every sense of the word on January 12. 2010. Since then. we have all seen the outpouring of support to the Haitian people and their families on behalf of the American people. What fewer notice perhaps. are the powerful contributions that Haitians have made to America. its history and its culture. In 1779 soldiers from then Saint Dominique. now Haiti. fought alongside American revolutionaries. Despite the fact that the then slaveholding United States did not look favorably upon an Independence Movement it saw as a dangerous slave rebellion. many historians attribute the Louisiana Purchase partly to the fact that Haitian slaves rose up against their French masters from 1794 to 1801. Haitian born Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable founded Chicago. one of our great cities. And Americans from coast to coast have enjoyed the contributions Wyclef Jean. another of Haitis sons. has made to our musical culture. Indeed. from history to food to music. Haiti has a long history of helping to shape America. H. Res. 1369 recognizes the significance of Caribbean people and their descendants in the history and culture of the United States. Our nation would not be what it is today without these significant contributions of the Caribbean people and we should honor these accomplishments with the passing of this legislation. The contributions of CaribbeanAmericans are a significant part of the history. progress. and heritage of the United States and play an important role in the unique diversity that enriches and strengthens our nation. By passing this legislation we continue to honor the friendship between the United States and Caribbean countries. We are united by our common values and shared history. and we should celebrate the rich Caribbean Heritage and the many ways in which Caribbean Americans have helped shape this nation. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution to pay tribute to the common culture and bonds of friendship that unite the United States and the Caribbean countries.