21st Century Respect Act

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

Mr. Speaker, this bill could not be more straightforward. H.R. 995 would require the USDA and the Department of the Interior to change the terminology used to describe the racial background or place of origin of people.

These very outdated and offensive racial terms have no place in our Federal regulations. Modernizing these terms should be a continuous effort across all agencies. I want to thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Jeffries) for his leadership on this issue by pushing this legislation forward.

Mr. Speaker, I want to include in the Record the phrases that this bill would change: replacing the references to the term ``Negro'' with ``Black or African American;'' replacing the definition of ``Negro'' with the definition of ``African American'' as ``a person having origins;'' replacing the references of the term ``Oriental'' with ``Asian American;'' and replacing the references to the terms ``Eskimo'' and ``Aleut'' with ``Alaska Native.''

I think it is only fair that we move to pass this bill and finally address people as we should. I also want to bring attention to the title of the bill, which is the 21st Century Respect Act.

Mr. Speaker, I also want to add that the bill was reported out of committee by unanimous vote.

I want to read into the Record Representative Jeffries' remarks on H.R. 995, the 21st Century Respect Act, a bipartisan bill that will remove outdated and offensive racial labels from the Code of Federal Regulations:

I thank Ranking Member Grijalva and Mrs. Torres and

Chairman Bishop and Mr. LaMalfa for working with me to move

this important bill expeditiously through committee. I also

want to thank Congressman Chabot for his support and

partnership.

Words matter. They can cause great harm by making people

feel lesser or other, and when words are rooted in bigotry in

our Nation's laws, it signals that we, as a country, are

legitimizing and normalizing bigotry.

Unfortunately, there are still laws on the books that use

old offensive racial terms to refer to our fellow Americans.

These terms come from areas where intolerance was acceptable,

and they have no place in modern society.

For example, title 36 of this CFR still uses the term

``Eskimo'' to refer to certain indigenous Americans from

Alaska. People in many parts of the arctic consider

``Eskimo'' a derogatory term because it was widely used to

connote barbarism and violence. The 21st Century Respect Act

replaces ``Eskimo'' with ``Alaska Native,'' a modern term

embraced by the people that it describes.

Title 7 also includes the terms ``Oriental'' and ``Negro,''

which are terms that are disparaging today. H.R. 995 replaces

those old labels with ``Asian American'' or ``Pacific

Islander'' and ``Black'' or ``African American,''

respectively. These new terms reflect America's growth and

progress.

Now, more than ever, we need to be conscious of the signals

and messages that our

words and actions are sending to our fellow citizens. As

elected officials, it is our responsibility to lead by

example and make sure that our laws and institutions reflect

our best aspirations of unity and respect for Americans of

all backgrounds.

Passing the 21st Century Respect Act is a demonstration of

our commitment to ensuring that every person who pledges

allegiance to our flag feels valued and included by the

Nation it represents. I encourage all of my colleagues to

support H.R. 995.

Mr. Speaker, these are words from Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, who is on his way.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Demings).

Mr. Speaker, can you tell me how much time I have remaining?

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Jeffries).

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

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 995) to direct the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior to amend regulations for racial appropriateness, as amended.

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

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

Mr. Speaker, the United States is 241 years old. In that time, the country has seen an immense amount of change and growth. Over the course of history, laws and policies have been updated to be able to reflect this growth. However, some decades-old statutes and regulations still contain antiquated terms.

Enacted in 2016, Public Law 114-157 modernized antiquated ethnic terms related to minorities found in the Office of Minority Economic Impact of the Department of Energy and section 106 of the Local Public Works Capital Development and Investment Act of 1976 for racial appropriateness.

H.R. 995 would make similar changes to terms found in certain regulations of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of the Interior.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the sponsor of this bill, Mr. Jeffries, and I urge adoption of the measure.

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

House of Representatives,

Committee on Natural Resources,

Washington, DC, November 20, 2017.

Hon. K. Michael Conaway,

Chairman, Committee on Agriculture,

Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: We thank you for agreeing to discharge

the Committee on Agriculture from further consideration of

H.R. 995, the 21st Century Respect Act, that the Committee on

Natural Resources ordered favorably reported, as amended, on

November 8, 2017.

This concession in no way affects your jurisdiction over

the subject matter of the bill, and it will not serve as

precedent for future referrals. In addition, should a

conference on the bill be necessary, I would support your

request to have the Committee on Agriculture represented on

the conference committee. Finally, I would be pleased to

include this letter and your response in the bill report and

in the Congressional Record.

Thank you for your consideration of my request and for the

extraordinary cooperation shown by you and your staff over

matters of shared jurisdiction. I look forward to further

opportunities to work with you this Congress.

Sincerely,

Rob Bishop,

Chairman,

Committee on Natural Resources.

Mr. Speaker, I think the legislation that we are seeing on this floor today demonstrates addressing a variety of issues, be it on our public lands, needing that to be able to be updated, private property rights to be able to update it, but probably nothing is more personal than the legislation that we are addressing at this particular moment, to be able to be respectful of individuals and have that there to actually be able to be addressed.

This legislation is a long time coming--much like Mr. Jeffries, coming to the floor--to be able to address this important piece of legislation, for the House to be able to consider, as we move forward with our business.

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

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished gentlewoman from California for yielding and for her leadership as well as her support, in addition to Ranking Member Grijalva, Chairman Bishop, Chairman LaMalfa, and the entire committee for moving this bill expeditiously to the House floor and for their leadership and partnership in this regard. I also want to thank my good friend and fellow Judiciary Committee member, Congressman Chabot, for his support, leadership, and cosponsorship of this legislation.

Words definitely matter. They can cause great harm and division, particularly when they are embedded in Federal statute.

So this step that we are taking today, as it relates to the 21st Century Respect Act, is important, as a symbol from this Congress, the people's House, to the Nation that we can come together, that we are all fellow Americans, and that outdated, antiquated, and racially stereotypical terms like Negro and Eskimo and Oriental are not appropriate at this time in America. They reflect a more divisive bygone era.

Mr. Speaker, I am thankful to all of my colleagues for coming together in this regard, a small but meaningful step in an era otherwise characterized by great division, and perhaps an indication that we can come together as Democrats, as Republicans, and as people of diverse racial backgrounds to heal whatever divisions may remain in our society.

Mr. Speaker, I thank all of my colleagues for their leadership and support.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 995, the 21st Century Respect Act.

This legislation amends the naming conventions for certain racial and ethnic identities in official reports from the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of the Interior. Specifically this legislation replaces the terms ``Negro,'' ``Oriental,'' and ``Spanish Surname'' with ``African American,'' ``Asian American,'' and ``Hispanic.''

These terminology changes would most notably affect the USDA and Department of Interior programs for financing and insuring loans for properties in rural areas. By more accurately describing racial backgrounds and places of origin in official program documents, federal agencies can demonstrate a commitment to using respectful and appropriate language. In the current political climate, it is more important than ever to denounce the use of pejorative and historically discriminatory language. H.R. 995 provides a clear step we can take to promote equality in our country. The terms being replaced are outdated and it is distressing that the government has not updated these regulations sooner.

We must confront persistent forms of discrimination whenever possible, and H.R. 995 gives us an opportunity to do so. Eliminating derogatory identity labels from our lexicon is important both in federal program documents and in our everyday speech. I support this bill and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Kami Welch for being honored by the West Chamber of Commerce.

Kami graduated with a degree in Public Relations and Communications from the University of Oregon. She pursued a career in that field as well as in the nonprofit sector. Throughout her career, Kami has volunteered with nonprofit organizations that focus on children, education, homelessness and domestic violence.

Currently, Kami is the President of the Arvada Chamber of Commerce. Having worked in the Chamber sector for eight years, she has developed a passion for community, business growth and creative marketing strategies.

Outside of work, Kami participates on many boards and in several leadership roles such as Family Tree Next Gen, Arvada Vitality Alliance, Jefferson County Business Education Alliance, Red Rocks Community College Student Mentorship Program, Western Association of Chamber Executives Emerging Leaders Program and more. Additionally, Kami is a wife, mother of two little boys, a community volunteer and a leader of a local business.

I extend my deepest congratulations to Kami Welch for this well- deserved honor from the West Chamber of Commerce.

21ST CENTURY RESPECT ACT