109TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 44 Recognizing the historical significance of the Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo. IV IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 2, 2005 Mr. BACA (for himself, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. GONZALEZ, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. HINOJOSA, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Mr. LANTOS, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. ORTIZ, Mr. OWENS, Ms. LINDA T. SÁNCHEZ of California, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. UDALL of New Mexico, Ms. LEE, and Mr. PASTOR) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations CONCURRENT RESOLUTION Recognizing the historical significance of the Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo. Whereas May 5, or Cinco de Mayo in Spanish, is celebrated each year as a date of great importance by the Mexican and Mexican-American communities; Whereas the Cinco de Mayo holiday commemorates May 5, 1862, the date on which the Battle of Puebla was fought by Mexicans who were struggling for their independence and freedom; Whereas Cinco de Mayo has become one of Mexico's most famous national holidays and is celebrated annually by 2 nearly all Mexicans and Mexican-Americans, north and south of the United States-Mexico border; Whereas the Battle of Puebla was but one of the many battles that the courageous Mexican people won in their long and brave struggle for independence and freedom; Whereas the French, confident that their battle-seasoned troops were far superior to the almost amateurish Mexican forces, expected little or no opposition from the Mexi can army; Whereas the French army, which had not experienced defeat against any of Europe's finest troops in over half a century, sustained a disastrous loss at the hands of an outnumbered, ill-equipped, and ragged, but highly spirited and courageous, Mexican force; Whereas after three bloody assaults upon Puebla in which over a thousand gallant Frenchmen lost their lives, the French troops were finally defeated and driven back by the outnumbered Mexican troops; Whereas the courageous and heroic spirit that Mexican General Zaragoza and his men displayed during this historic battle can never be forgotten; Whereas many brave Mexicans willingly gave their lives for the causes of justice and freedom in the Battle of Puebla on Cinco de Mayo; Whereas the sacrifice of the Mexican fighters was instrumental in keeping Mexico from falling under European domination; Whereas the Cinco de Mayo holiday is not only the commemoration of the rout of the French troops at the town of Puebla in Mexico, but is also a celebration of the virtues of individual courage and patriotism of all Mexicans 3 and Mexican-Americans who have fought for freedom and independence against foreign aggressors; Whereas Cinco de Mayo serves as a reminder that the foundation of the United States is built by people from many nations and diverse cultures who are willing to fight and die for freedom; Whereas Cinco de Mayo also serves as a reminder of the close spiritual and economic ties between the people of Mexico and the people of the United States, and is especially important for the people of the southwestern States where millions of Mexicans and Mexican-Americans make their homes; Whereas in a larger sense Cinco de Mayo symbolizes the right of a free people to self-determination, just as Benito Juarez once said, "El respeto al derecho ajeno es la paz" ("The respect of other people's rights is peace"); and Whereas many people celebrate during the entire week in which Cinco de Mayo falls: Now, therefore, be it 1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 2 concurring), That Congress recognizes the historical strug3 gle for independence and freedom of the Mexican people 4 and requests the President to issue a proclamation recog5 nizing that struggle and calling upon the people of the 6 United States to observe Cinco de Mayo with appropriate 7 ceremonies and activities. Mr. RYAN of Ohio (for himself, Mr. TURNER, Mr. INSLEE, Mr. FORD, Mr. GRIJALVA, MS. MCCOLLUM of Minnesota, Mr. CONYERS, MS. KILPATRICK of Michigan, Mr. McGOVERN, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. Towns, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. WAXMAN, Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode Island, Mr. TIBERI, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. GILLMOR, Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania, Mr. EVANS, Mrs. JONES of Ohio, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Ms. KAPTUR, and Mr. STRICKLAND) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations CONCURRENT RESOLUTION Whereas Sister of Notre Dame de Namur Dorothy Stang, moved to the Amazon 22 years ago to help poor farmers build independent futures for their families, and was murdered on Saturday, February 12, 2005, at the age of 73, in Anapu, Para, a section of Brazil's Amazon rain forest; Whereas, a citizen of Brazil and the United States, Sister Dorothy worked with the Pastoral Land Commission, an organization of the Catholic Church that fights for the 2 rights of rural workers and peasants, and defends land reforms in Brazil; Whereas her death came less than a week after meeting with the human rights officials of Brazil about threats to local farmers from some loggers and landowners; Whereas, after receiving several death threats, Sister Dorothy recently commented, "I don't want to flee, nor do I want to abandon the battle of these farmers who live without any protection in the forest. They have the sacrosanct right to aspire to a better life on land where they can live and work with dignity while respecting the environment."; Whereas Sister Dorothy was born in Dayton, Ohio, entered the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur community in 1948, and professed final vows in 1956; Whereas, from 1951 to 1966, Sister Dorothy taught elementary classes at St. Victor School in Calumet City, Illinois, St. Alexander School in Villa Park, Illinois, and Most Holy Trinity School in Phoenix, Arizona, and began her ministry in Brazil in 1966, in Coroata in the state of Maranhao; Whereas, last June, Sister Dorothy was named "Woman of the Year" by the state of Para for her work in the Amazon region, in December 2004, she received the Humanitarian of the Year award from the Brazilian Bar Association for her work helping the local rural workers, and earlier this year, she received an "Honorary Citizenship of the State" award from the state of Para; and Whereas Sister Dorothy lived her life according to the mis sion of the Sisters of Notre Dame: making known God's goodness and love of the poor through a Gospel way of |