Gabe Amo: “I thank Representative Magaziner for the warm introduction. I thank Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, who…”

“I thank Representative Magaziner for the warm introduction. I thank Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, who, alongside Representative Magaziner and I, make up our small but very mighty Rhode Island congressional delegation. Of course, I am grateful for my predecessor, former Representative David Cicilline. I am grateful for his service to Rhode Island, and I look forward to our work together in both of our new roles. To my family, friends, community leaders, and all those who have supported me along the way, I thank them. Of course, I thank the people of the First Congressional District and those across Rhode Island for giving me the opportunity to serve in the people's House. Mr. Speaker, I want to tell you a story about Rhode Island. Reverend Mahlon Van Horne was elected to the Rhode Island General Assembly in 1885, making him the first Black person elected to serve in the State legislature. Just think, Mr. Speaker, Reverend Van Horne was elected as a Black man nearly two decades after the end of the Civil War. In an 1887 sermon, the Reverend said: ``I believe the day is coming, is not far off, when in the commonwealth of Rhode Island, the stomping ground of soul liberty will become the home of the free and the land of the truly brave--the home of the free, where fair play in all the walks of life will be accorded.'' Those words are at top of mind for me today.…”