[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 95 (Friday, June 8, 2018)] [Extensions of Remarks] [Page E803] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] RECOGNIZING REPRESENTATIVE BARBARA LEE FOR 20 YEARS OF CONGRESSIONAL SERVICE ______ HON. BETO O'ROURKE of texas in the house of representatives Friday, June 8, 2018 Mr. O'ROURKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Representative Barbara Lee, a native of El Paso, Texas, who this year is celebrating her 20th year as a Member of Congress. On June 10, her milestone will be honored with a portrait dedication ceremony at the McCall Neighborhood Center in our mutual hometown, and I rise today to note her achievements and congratulate her on a distinguished career thus far. Representative Lee was born in El Paso, Texas, where she attended St. Joseph's Catholic School. During her childhood, El Paso remained a segregated community. For instance, Representative Lee and other African American citizens were not able to enter landmark buildings in El Paso such as the Plaza Theatre due to segregation laws. Despite this adversity, her family achieved milestones for racial equality in El Paso: her mother was one of the first African Americans to graduate from Texas Western College (now the University of Texas at El Paso) and her father was the first African American mail carrier in El Paso. Her upbringing and experiences in the diverse community of El Paso inspired in her a passion for justice and equality, a quality that endured when she moved away from El Paso to California when she was 13 years old. Following high school, she not only raised two sons as a single mother and worked to create a better life for her family, but also attended Mills College, served as president of the school's Black Student Union and later received her master's degree from the University of California at Berkeley. Her ensuing career in politics further demonstrates her resiliency and determination: she rose through Congressman Ron Dellums' congressional office over the course of 11 years, beginning as an intern and eventually earning the title of Chief of Staff. Similarly, she was elected a California State Assembly member in 1990, a California State Senator in 1996, and a Congresswoman for California in 1998. During her time as a state representative and the 20 years she has served as a Member of Congress, she has made it a priority to represent some of the most underserved Americans by fighting for justice, equality, and peace. Through that desire, she helped found the Out of Poverty Caucus and the Congressional HIV/AIDS Caucus. She also began serving as chair of the Democratic Whip Task Force on Poverty, Income Inequality and Opportunity in 2013. Furthermore, she has consistently been a leader in opposing our involvement in endless war, even when it was not politically popular to do so. She was the only member of the House to vote against the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force, which demonstrated her foresight on the open-ended authorization. To recognize her work on these issues, she was nominated, as part of a group of 1000 women around the world, for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003 to recognize her dedication to peace and human welfare. Please join me in recognizing Congresswoman Lee's successful and distinguished career and her roots in El Paso, Texas. ____________________