Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Tuskegee Airmen National Museum in Detroit for securing $500,000 in grant funding for its pilot training program from the Federal Aviation…
Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Tuskegee Airmen National Museum in Detroit for securing $500,000 in grant funding for its pilot training program from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The Tuskegee Airmen National Museum was originally founded to record and honor the unsung but substantial contributions of our Nation's first Black military airmen.
Madam Speaker, the museum has grown to operate from three different locations across the city of Detroit, including the Charles H. Wright African American History Museum, historic Fort Wayne, and the Coleman A. Young municipal airport, where it offers career training programs for young people interested in aviation and aerospace science.
The museum takes particular pride in its community engagement around aviation training, which has been in operation for more than 30 years. $500,000 will go a long way in their flight training program which is offered to young people age 14-19 in the metropolitan Detroit area and puts students on the path toward obtaining a private pilot's license. I wish you could have seen the excited faces when I went to one of their events for young people, again, learning to fly.
The museum works in partnership with many of our local organizations and universities to connect the many interested students with training and resources.
I say this wholeheartedly, I am so proud that our own government, the Federal Aviation Administration, sees the gem that the Tuskegee Airmen National Museum is. Their training program and the unique opportunities they offer to our young people is truly a huge contribution to Wayne County, Michigan. Again, I am pleased to see the FAA see a tremendous value in their work.
War in Yemen
Madam Speaker, I rise today to uplift the Yemeni people who have been suffering from the inhumane and violent war. We are approaching the eighth anniversary of the start of the war in Yemen.
We must stop U.S. participation in this war. It is far past time for us to reiterate our support for ending U.S. ties to and support for the Saudi coalition.
After over 10 months now without airstrikes in Yemen, the Yemeni people want to ensure that these airstrikes never resume.
Indiscriminate bombing of civilian targets, including hospitals, schools, water treatment plants, as well as blockading Yemeni ports-- committed largely with U.S. weapons and logistical support--have resulted in what the U.N. has described as the world's worst humanitarian crisis with millions of Yemenis pushed to the edge of famine.
Again, the United States must stop any participation in this horrific war.
Over 11,000 children have died of hunger or been maimed as a result of the conflict in Yemen, according to UNICEF, an average, Madam Speaker, of four a day since the escalation of the conflict in 2015. Across Yemen, 23.4 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance.
The Yemeni-American families in my district are devastated to see their families, their native cities, the neighborhoods they all grew up in completely ripped apart with death, famine, and violent attacks.
``May Allah cure you.'' ``Allah yshfeekom.''
Violence Against Women in Politics
Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of Women's History Month. I cannot think of any better way to recognize and honor women than to take active steps in protecting them.
This week, I am reintroducing House Resolution 801 that recognizes violence against women in politics is a global phenomenon now and that more research should be conducted to examine its extent and effects in the United States.
There is a disturbing rise of violence against women in politics. We have all experienced it in this Chamber. The never-ending string of ignorant, hateful, and downright threatening rhetoric against colleagues in this room is extremely unacceptable, and it is the same kind of hate that is directed against countless women all around the globe, especially women of color and those with cross-cutting identities.
Madam Speaker, women have been on the frontlines of social justice movements around the world and throughout our Nation's history. Violence against women in politics is a specific, gendered phenomenon, stemming from a resistance to increased political participation by women intended, again, to undermine women as political actors.
According to the ``2018 Violence Against Women in Politics Report'' by U.N. Women and U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, it says that women of color are increasingly more affected by this crisis.
A recent study by U.S. mayors found that women mayors are more likely than men to experience most types of violence and abuse and indicates such incidents are not out of the ordinary for women in U.S. politics generally.
In honor of Women's History Month, I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.
