Sheila Jackson Lee: “I thank the gentleman very much for yielding, and I thank him for his leadership and the leadership of Chairman…”

“I thank the gentleman very much for yielding, and I thank him for his leadership and the leadership of Chairman Grijalva, for the full committee, and, certainly, the ranking member for his courtesies. I thank the manager tonight, a friend from Utah, for their kindness in yielding to me. This is an emotional moment for me and, as well, for many in my constituency, and I am delighted to be able to rise to give strong support to H.R. 434, the Emancipation National Historic Trail Study Act. I thank all of the Members, as I have indicated, and also thank Congresswoman Haaland, chair of the Natural Resources Committee's Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands, for holding the hearing that allowed the committee to learn of the strong support enjoyed by H.R. 434 and the hard work of dedicated historic preservationists to preserve the rich history of former slaves. I also thank Naomi Mitchell Carrier of Houston, Texas, for her stalwart efforts to share the stories of newly freed slaves who settled in Freedmen's Town, a section of Houston, to begin their lives as free persons during the end of the Civil War. I want to thank Ms. Carrier as an educator, historian, and author with expertise in African American music, Texas history, and heritage tourism. I also thank Ms. Eileen Lawal for her April 2019 oral testimony before the Natural Resources Committee in an amazing, passionate expression of how vital this trail will be. Ms.…”