Kathy Castor: “I strongly support H. Res. 807, honoring the life of Marjory Stoneman Douglas, champion of the Florida Everglades, and…”

“I strongly support H. Res. 807, honoring the life of Marjory Stoneman Douglas, champion of the Florida Everglades, and founder of Florida's environmental movement. Marjory Stoneman Douglas's life was dedicated to the idea that my State of Florida, and indeed the United States has a great treasure in the Everglades, unlike any other in the world. When others were looking at the land of the Everglades with the hope of draining away the water, and building on the land, Marjory Stoneman Douglas allowed all of us to see Florida the way she saw it, in its utterly unique natural majesty. When she spoke, it was with the voice of the Everglades, and the natural places of Florida. Marjory Stoneman Douglas was a tireless advocate since her youth, writing as a voice for the voiceless and downtrodden, and fighting for equality of people of all races, genders, and for the conservation of the natural places. But it was not until she was almost 60 years old, that she wrote 'Everglades: River of Grass.' That book, in the simplicity, beauty and depth of its prose, opened the eyes of America to the significance of the Everglades, and the great danger of allowing that treasure to be squandered. Marjory Stoneman Douglas wrote 'Everglades: River of Grass in 1947.' By December of that year, the Everglades had been dedicated as a part of the National Parks System.”