November is Native American Heritage Month, and I would like to share with you a story, one unknown to most Americans, but one that Virgin Islanders learn at a young age. It is the Caribbean story of Europe's drive for conquest and the…

Tonight we will address mental health within the Black community, the lack of access to treatment, and the stigma of mental health within our community. The stigma of mental health and lack of access to treatment within the Black community…

I would like to also acknowledge the work that another Member of Congress, Max Rose, does in mental health related to veterans. We know so many of those veterans are, in fact, African American, coming back home after having served this…

This happens at the highest economic levels of Black women dying in great numbers after giving birth to children.

I thank the gentlewoman so much for her admonishment to us to continue working, to continue doing what is necessary for those of us who live in the Black community, for those who are affected by what is a lack of treatment in the Black…

I thank the gentlewoman from Illinois for what she has said, and, Mr. Speaker, I would engage the Congresswoman, through the Chair, in a discussion. I know that she has been going around the country to so many districts and talked with so…

One of the things, Mr. Speaker, that we wanted to talk about was Blacks being overrepresented in prison: 1 million of the total 2.3 million people incarcerated in the United States. One million of those 2.3 million are, in fact, African…

Because so many individuals in the African American community, if they are going to speak with a psychiatrist, a mental health professional, if that individual does not--never mind that they don't look like them, but if they are not…

I think about how, if a family has individuals with diabetes, hypertension, the other issues, and they are taking money and time to deal with that--if, in fact, they are--they are not considering going to counseling or going to some other…

I think so much about when the gentlewoman said people talk about post-traumatic stress disorder, and there are so many people in our country who are having present-day traumatic stress disorder. In the Black community, there is this…

I know that there have been studies, which you were just discussing, where Black women are historically mistreated by doctors because they do not believe African American women when they say that they are not feeling well or when they are…

I was looking at a statistic here that, according to the Health Resources and Services Administration, 89.3 million Americans live in federally designated mental health professional shortage areas, in contrast to only 55.3 million…

This cuts across all economics of African Americans. This is not just about poor Black women.

I thank Ms. Kelly for her leadership and continued support on this subject. For those who need a voice here in Washington, I know she is at the forefront, not just on mental health issues but all health issues, including the fact that she…

The other area is that those even who receive treatment, one of the things that we have noted is that African Americans are negatively affected by prejudice and discrimination when they are in the healthcare system. Missed diagnoses…

I recently spent time visiting schools throughout the Virgin Islands. While it is always exciting to spend time with our young people, it was sad to see that the school libraries across the territory are in dire need of books and…

I am happy to get back to you on the record or follow up with you on any particular vessel.

I realize this is a problem nationally, in light of multiple fatalities and other safety concerns from commercial passenger vessels.