To celebrate the 500th anniversary of the first use of the name "America", and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, today we celebrate the 500th anniversary of the first use of the name America, to describe areas in the Western Hemisphere. These areas are named after Amerigo Vespucci, an Italian Explorer on a quest to find new lands. He is one of many from that era who craved the exploration of new worlds and ideas. Although Vespucci's intention was to conquer land for Italy, he ultimately helped to create a place that today is one of the most diverse places on earth. Vespucci took a bold step, defying previous thinking that the land we live on was part of India.

Today we recognize the anniversary of Amerigo's discovery as a reminder of how important it is to challenge preconceived notions, and how critical it is that we keep exploring new ideas and sciences.

We are a people who live and breathe discovery. Our history holds many examples of our desire to explore. This country has gone to the Moon and intertwined computers into our everyday lives. We have created vaccines to help eradicate polio and other life threatening diseases. We use our ambition to explore, and as a means to be competitive in the world we live in.

Today we must continue to honor our historical drive for exploration. Unlike Vespucci's quest which was to only benefit a small subset of people, today we must give anyone the opportunity to be involved with the exploration and to partake in the benefits of our successes. Only about 6 percent of practicing physicians are Latino, African American and Native American today, and according to an analysis by the Commission on Professionals in Science and Technology, the percentage of African Americans receiving bachelor's degrees in engineering is only 4.7 percent of all engineering graduates. Minorities and women are often left out of these fields. There is no reason for these discriminations. We should push all young people to discover science and mathematics and to understand there are jobs that interact with those fields. We especially need to push minorities and women who have not gotten those opportunities to achieve in those fields.

We have made progress since the last election in helping every young person to become involved with math and science. The house recently passed The 21st Century Competitiveness Act of 2007, which establishes, revises, and extends specified science, mathematics, education, engineering, technology, research, and training programs, however; we need to keep improving math and science education for young people. We should increase computer interaction in poverty stricken areas and increase young minority student's interactions with math and science at a younger age.

In the celebration of America and Amerigo Vespucci, let us pledge to continue our quest for exploration and discovery. Let us continue to take bold steps as he once did to move in a direction where we can use new technology and discoveries to improve the lives of millions not just those in positions of power, but for even the most underprivileged in our society.

Mrs,. MALONEY of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 287 which honors the 500th Anniversary of the name ``America.''

The story of the origin of our country's name is one of great discovery and dedication that embodies our national spirit.

On April 25, 1507 cartographer Martin Waldseemuller of the research group Gymnasium Vosagense in Saint-Die, France changed the way Europeans perceived the world by first depicting the Western Hemisphere in his 1507 World Map. He labeled the land ``America,'' marking the first official use of the word. The only remaining copy of this map is housed next door in the Library of Congress.

Waldseemuller named the land after Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci. Although explorers like Christopher Columbus already discovered what we now know to be the Western Hemisphere, Vespucci was the first to realize that it was not India but an entirely new continent.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to honor the name ``America.'' Truly encompassing the American spirit, this name was derived from those challenging the status quo to improve our world and persevering in the face of doubt. Today we are not only honoring the name America but all Americans who have the great privilege of sharing this name and all it embodies.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 287) to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the first use of the name ``America'', and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution and yield myself as much time as I may consume.

Let me first of all thank our colleague, Congressman Alcee Hastings, for introducing this meaningful measure that speaks to the very heart of our Nation, as well as its history.

The resolution before the House today acknowledges the 500th anniversary of the use of the name ``America'' which first appeared on a map of the world drafted by a German cartographer, Martin Waldseemuller in 1507. The only known surviving copy of the first printed edition of this map is now housed in our own Library of Congress. It was the first map to depict the continent beyond Europe's western horizon, with the Pacific shown on its opposite shore as a separate ocean.

This measure also acknowledges the contribution of explorer Amerigo Vespucci in radically shifting human understanding of world geography. No longer was the globe thought to be divided only among Europe, Asia and Africa. This, in turn, inspired Martin Waldseemuller to adopt Vespucci's given name and to confer it on the newly charted Western Hemisphere. Mr. Speaker, this might be called the first act of immigration.

It is important that we celebrate this historic occasion because ``America'' has come to symbolize much more than a name placed on a map half a millennium ago. For centuries, it has been seen by many as a promised land, where a new start offers endless possibilities. So many have come to our shores, seeking opportunity, fleeing persecution, fleeing prosecution against those values that they hold so dear, and looking for economic opportunity. And for decades, this country has played a global leadership role, offering hope for relief from oppression and tyranny.

Our Independence Day festivities which we just celebrated with great gusto last week reminds Americans and the world every year of a unique place in history this country holds.

I, for one, held the first Citizenship Day in the history of Houston on Independence Day. It was a joyful celebration of the freedom and the independence of those great days of this great Nation.

I would like to acknowledge the Americans Abroad Caucus, which saw this resolution as an opportunity to promote international geographical understanding and to celebrate the expansive symbolism of this great and wonderful country. As well, it comes as an opportunity to support and emphasize the symbolism of the word ``America'' and what it has come to signify.

I would also like to acknowledge the America 500th Birthday Organizing Committee and their ``Who Named America'' initiative which has coordinated a series of city, county and State proclamations consistent with the spirit of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support H. Res. 287.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I'm delighted to yield such time as he might consume to the sponsor of this bill, Representative Alcee L. Hastings, who is the chairman of the Rules Subcommittee on the Legislative and Budget Process and is also the international chairperson of the Helsinki Commission.

Let me thank the distinguished gentleman from Florida. Again, let me acknowledge Mr. Lantos, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen and Mr. Engel as well. This is an important piece of history, and I am very grateful for this legislation to provide us another chain link, if you will, another connection to the history of America.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to support this legislation, which is H. Res. 287.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend from Houston for yielding time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of House Resolution 287, a resolution, as has been stated by both my good friends, that celebrates the 500th anniversary of the first use of the name ``America.''

I'd like to especially thank the original cosponsors that worked with me to introduce the legislation: Majority Leader Steny Hoyer; and the leaders

of the Americans Abroad Caucus, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney and Congressman Joe Wilson.

I also want to thank the chairman and ranking Republican of the Foreign Affairs Committee, my good friend, Chairman Lantos, and my good friend from Florida, we came here together, my colleague, Representative Ros-Lehtinen, for supporting this legislation and bringing it to the floor today.

Finally, I would like to express my deep appreciation to Representative Eliot Engel and his staff for their help in moving this resolution forward. I would be terribly remiss if I did not mention a young man in my office, that this is among his first experiences, Alex Johnson, who found the work, not robbery, to bring this forward along with my legislative director, David Goldenberg.

It is important to recognize the collaborative community initiative that has emerged to commemorate this occasion. The Americans Abroad Caucus and the national initiative for similar proclamations in all 50 States coordinated by the America 500 Birthday Organizing Committee have established a foundation for this important resolution to be taken up for floor consideration today.

This resolution transcends the simple acknowledgment of the first use of a term on a map, but, rather, commemorates scientific achievement toward a shared understanding of the world. It is this world which increasingly exchanges culture, technology, and scientific advancement that thrives through shared understanding and the innovation we celebrate today.

When German cartographer Martin Waldseemuller first used America to identify a previously uncharted continent on his, previously mentioned by Ms. Jackson-Lee and Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, 1507 map of the world, I doubt that he truly realized the magnitude of his achievement. His choice of the term ``America'' to memorialize the voyages of Amerigo Vespucci shifted the geographical understanding of the world and established a term that would be attributed with symbolic identity in the centuries to come.

This symbolic identity is the source of pride that continues to motivate me and all of us to serve this great Nation. It is this American spirit which guides our role in the world and should motivate all Americans to work towards a renewed commitment to positive international relations.

My colleagues should know that the last remaining copy, and I believe Ms. Jackson-Lee pointed it out in her remarks, remains as a trust, as a top treasure of the Library of Congress. I would encourage my colleagues and citizens in this country to visit and see this treasure which established the geographical origin of the American identity.

Again, I thank Chairman Lantos, Ranking Member Ros-Lehtinen, and Representative Engel for their work on this. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution and join me to commemorate the origin of the term which has resulted in an international American identity.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution authored by my good friend and colleague, Mr. Hastings of Florida, a resolution that commemorates the first use of the name ``America'' by European map makers.

When Italian photographer and navigator Amerigo Vespucci, the merchant, explorer and cartographer, set sail on his first westward bound voyage across the Atlantic, probably in the year 1497, he did so in search of a faster trading route to China. But in the course of his travels, he set foot instead in what is now the continent of South America.

From widely published letters attributed to him at the time, Europeans first came to know of the vast continents of this new world, lands that would come to play such a dominant role in the history of the Old World during the next four centuries.

From these letters, Amerigo's destiny as a namesake for our home on the world maps that followed was assured.

This resolution of Mr. Hastings reminds us that no matter where we live in the northern or southern hemisphere, we are Americans, united by a common history.

I thank my colleague from Florida (Mr. Hastings) for offering this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of our time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 287 and thank our colleague, Congressman Alcee L. Hastings, for sponsoring this excellent resolution.

In 1507, German cartographer Martin Waldseemuller [VALD-say-meuller] drafted a map of the world that inaugurated the use of the name ``America,'' acknowledging the contributions of explorer Amerigo Vespucci, which forever altered the accepted geographical view of the world.

As Chair of the Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, with jurisdiction over the Americas--Latin America and Central America, North and South America--I am keenly aware that the use of this name has forever defined the region where we all live.

As we commemorate 500 years of the use of the name ``America'', let us rededicate ourselves to promoting better and closer relations between the United States and the countries of the Americas and hope that the next 500 years will be an era of peace and prosperity throughout the hemisphere.

I urge Committee Members to support H. Res. 287.