Holcombe Rucker Park National Commemorative Site Act

Floor Speech

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Mrs. GILLIBRAND. Mr. President, if you have ever had kids, you know how important it can be to encourage their education. But with many competing priorities, you sometimes need to use creative strategies to inspire success.

That is something that Holcombe Rucker did. Rucker was a Black World War II veteran and teacher in the 1940s in Harlem. He started a small outdoor basketball team for Black youth and encouraged his players to maintain good grades and decorum. Some say he is the father of outdoor organized basketball for youth and helped give thousands of kids better pathways to higher learning.

Holcombe Rucker grew up a poor parentless kid from 141st Street. He served in the Army during World War II before earning his bachelor's degree from City College. He then taught English at a Harlem junior high school, while also serving as a recreation director for both the St. Phillip's Church Community Center and the city parks department.

When Rucker formed his youth basketball tournament in the late 1940s, however, he didn't get much support from city recreational leaders. So he often paid out of his own shallow pockets to provide refreshments and T-shirts and other essentials for players. Rucker would even share his lunch with his students, often coming home to his wife with an empty stomach.

Rucker believed education and supervised recreation could make an enormous difference in the lives of his students. It is no surprise then why many of his players saw him as a father figure and credited him with helping to set them on a better path.

As Rucker's summer tournaments grew in popularity, parks department officials finally moved them to a more desirable location. That would ultimately become the Holcombe Rucker Park. The court attracted the city's most talented young basketball players, including future professional basketball stars like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, and Julius ``Dr. J'' Erving.

I want to thank Congressman Espaillat for championing this bill, and I am proud to lead the effort in the Senate to designate this park, which is located on 155th Street, on the banks of the Harlem River, as the ``Holcombe Rucker Park National Commemorative Site.''

This bill would allow for an educational exhibit, a plaque or another marker to be installed that would help memorialize the legacy of Mr. Rucker for generations to come.

I want to thank Senator Rubio for his assistance.

6852 and the Senate proceed to an en bloc consideration of the following bills: H.R. 8012, which was received from the House and is at the desk; and H.R. 6852.

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