Honoring Black History Month

HONORING BLACK HISTORY MONTH -- (Senate - February 01, 2007)

Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, today I join millions of people across our Nation to commemorate Black History Month.

Black History Month is a time to honor those heroes of the past and present who have played pivotal roles in African American history. During this month, we celebrate the lives of these extraordinary individuals and pay tribute to their many sacrifices and great accomplishments in strengthening the diverse cultural history we have in America. We are especially reminded during this month to renew our commitment to ensuring equality and justice for all Americans.

Black History Month was originally established as Negro History Week, later known as Black History Week, in 1926 by Dr. Carter G. Woodson, a son of former slaves who became the second African American to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University. Woodson chose the second week in February in remembrance of the birthdays of two prominent individuals in the history of African Americans--President Abraham Lincoln, who promulgated the Emancipation Proclamation, and Frederick Douglass, one of the most renowned black abolitionists. In 1976, Black History Week was officially expanded to a month-long celebration--Black History Month, or African-American History Month.

Since 1926, the Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History, ASALH, has established the national theme for Black History Month. This year's theme is ``From Slavery to Freedom: The Story of Africans in the Americas.' Long after slavery was abolished, people of African descent struggled for the basic rights afforded American citizens. This year's theme brings to light this quest for equality and freedom during the age of emancipation, when Africans throughout the Americas were emerging from the bonds of slavery to take their rightful place in society. The path was not an easy one--independence and liberty remained elusive for many. Yet through the work of visible leaders and heroes and those individuals who quietly persevered, we see great achievements in the African-American experience--triumph that went hand in hand with some of the greatest struggles and most severe obstacles.

In Idaho, many individuals have continued Woodson's vision to educate and inform our communities about the great contributions of African Americans. For over 85 years, Idaho's National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, NAACP--comprised of some of Idaho's finest citizens and humanitarians--has served as a leader for promoting cultural diversity and awareness in our state.

I also commend the work at the Idaho Black History Museum. Established in 1995, this museum is the only one of its kind in the Pacific Northwest. Through its exhibits and community outreach programs such as lectures, workshops, literacy courses, and musical performances, the Idaho Black History Museum successfully fosters a deeper understanding of cultural diversity in the State of Idaho.

HONORING MAMIE OLIVER

Today, I join with the Idaho Black History Museum in honoring a special Idahoan--Dr. Mamie Oliver--for her outstanding record of achievement and efforts on behalf of Idaho's communities. A historian, professor, and community leader, Dr. Oliver truly embodies what Black History Month is all about.

When Mamie Oliver accepted a position at Boise State University in 1972, she became Idaho's first African-American professor. At Boise State, Dr. Oliver and her students completed foundational research on African-American history in Idaho, launching the early development of what was previously untold history.

Dr. Oliver was influential in getting the St. Paul Baptist Church building on the Historical Register. The church, established in 1909, was one of two African-American churches in Idaho and is now the home of the Idaho Black History Museum. Together with her husband and fellow community leader, Dr. H. Lincoln Oliver, Ph.D., B.D., she sought to meet the needs of the less fortunate in the community by founding the Treasure Valley Council for Church and Social Action 25 years ago.

For her remarkable service, Dr. Oliver was recognized as a Distinguished Citizen by the Idaho Statesman and as one of the ten Outstanding Women in Idaho by the Boise March of Dimes. Dr. Oliver was selected for the Jefferson Award for Outstanding Public Service Benefiting Local Communities by the American Institute for Public Services and received the 2004 Women of Today and Tomorrow Award from the Girl Scouts of Silver Sage Council (Boise).

Dr. Oliver was appointed by Governor Evans to chair the first Martin Luther King, Jr., Task Force and by Governor Kempthorne to serve two terms on the Governor's Coordinating Council for Families and Children.

Dr. Oliver and her late husband, Dr. Lincoln Oliver, have two adult children and two grandchildren. Currently, she teaches at Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, ID.

We in Idaho are proud to have individuals such as Dr. Mamie Oliver in our community. It is through the dedication of people like Dr. Oliver that we realize as a Nation our strengths and are empowered by what is integrally part of our American history and brought to the forefront this February--Black History Month.

Our Nation has made great strides in putting civil and human rights challenges behind us. But we must be ever vigilant in pursuing the fundamental principles of equality and justice and in continuing the legacy that so many individuals have worked so hard to achieve. In Congress, one of our most important duties is to protect these core personal freedoms that we as American citizens enjoy.

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