HONORING DELTA SIGMA THETA SORORITY, INCORPORATED

HONORING DELTA SIGMA THETA SORORITY, INCORPORATED

Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 7 (Tuesday, January 14, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 7 (Tuesday, January 14, 2025)] [House] [Page H121] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] HONORING DELTA SIGMA THETA SORORITY, INCORPORATED The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Ohio (Mrs. Beatty) for 5 minutes. Mrs. BEATTY. Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of the celebration yesterday of my sorority, Delta Sigma Theta, Incorporated. Let me say that it was 112 years ago yesterday that 22 visionary, young, Black women at Howard University came together to create a sorority rooted in the ideas of change, justice, and empowerment. I am a proud life member of this esteemed sisterhood. For me, it started at the Delta Kappa chapter as a freshman at Central State University and then as a member of the Dayton alumni chapter and now the Columbus, Ohio, alumni chapter. I am honored to recognize the extraordinary legacy and contributions of this organization which have been a beacon of service, sisterhood, and social action since its beginning in 1913. These trailblazers envisioned an organization that would prioritize service over socialization, and they had the foundation for what would become one of the world's largest African-American women's organizations. Over the decades, this organization has tackled some of the most pressing challenges facing our community. The National Library Project provided books to underserved Black communities in the segregated South. Deltas became the first sorority to establish employment counseling and career development for Black women. They partnered with Habitat for Humanity, building homes for families in need at home and abroad. Delta Sigma Theta has earned special NGO status with the United Nations, ensuring our voices are heard on the world's stage. Delta Sigma Theta women are among the most powerful changemakers in history. Their history includes ceiling-shattering public servants like Lieutenant Colonel Charity Adams Earley, who I fondly called Aunt Edna, serving as the highest-ranking Black woman officer during World War II. It includes the Honorable Shirley Chisolm, the first Black woman elected to Congress, the first Black woman to seek a major party's nomination for President of these United States and, yes, the only female of the 13 Members who founded the Congressional Black Caucus. It also includes individuals like Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court. Delta has defined leadership in a broad spectrum of influence, from civil rights icons like Ida B. Wells to cultural legends like Aretha Franklin to leaders in this very Chamber like chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, Yvette Clarke, and our brilliant sisters who serve here: Congresswoman Valerie Foushee, Congresswoman Stacey Plaskett, Congresswoman Lucy McBath, Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett, Congresswoman Summer Lee, Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan, and Senator Angela Alsobrooks. Madam Speaker, as we celebrate Founders' Day in Ohio, we recommit ourselves to the mission and the vision of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated: Fostering economic empowerment, advancing education, improving physical and mental health, promoting international awareness, and, lastly, engaging in political advocacy. These values have guided us for 112 years and will continue to light our way forward. Let me add that I associate myself with every word that Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley said with respect to what we are rightly naming. When we think about this bill being proposed, it is really the child predator empowerment act. There is nothing fair or safe about a teacher, a counselor, a nonmedical professional asking a young child to remove their garments so they can be inspected. ____________________