sign in sign up
<<
Home , Bobby Rush, Carolyn McCarthy, Charles Rangel, Ciro Rodriguez, David Bonior, Grace Napolitano

E710 — Extensions of Remarks April 29, 2004 Today, the vast majority of the Puerto (D–PA), James A. Barcia (D–MI), Chaka coma from a backwater log port to become Rican society favors the immediate and per- Fattah (D–PA). the fifth largest container port in North manent cessation of the bombings and f America. shellings. Past Presidents of the United During his 55 years on the waterfront, Phil States, under similar circumstances, have RECOGNIZING THE PASSING OF served as Port of Tacoma commissioner, Pro- ordered the immediate and permanent ces- PHIL LELLI peller Club president, Tacoma Longshore sation of military operations in other loca- pension club president, and University of tions. For instance, in 1975, President Gerald Washington Harry Bridges History Chair Ford, by an Executive Order, terminated the HON. NORMAN D. DICKS trustee. The Propeller Club awarded Philip use of the island of Culebra for military pur- OF WASHINGTON its highest honor, Master Mariner, in 1982. poses. Likewise, President George Bush, on IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES The Harry Bridges Chair designated him its October 22, 1990, directed the Secretary of Distinguished Supporter in 2003. Defense to discontinue the use of the island Thursday, April 29, 2004 After Phil and Joanne’s youngest son died of Kaho’olawe for bombing and target prac- Mr. DICKS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to rec- in a waterfront accident in 1989, the Pro- tice. ognize the passing of Phil Lelli, a good friend peller Club created the Ross E. Lelli Memo- Your fellow Americans are seriously con- rial Scholarship Fund. cerned about the ailing health, the violation of mine and a great leader of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union from Ta- Phil Lelli learned the meaning of commu- of human and civil rights of the Viequenses, nity service from his father, Martin, who as well as the impact on their environment coma, Washington. taught his son to care for other people, espe- and natural resources. Under the Constitu- Philip M. Lelli was a born longshoreman; he cially the poor. In the 1980s Phil and Father tion of the , you have the au- began his career on the Tacoma, Washington William Bischel S.J. organized the Hospi- thority to call for the immediate cessation waterfront in 1949 and retired in 1993. He was tality Kitchen to serve hot lunches to the of the bombing and the shelling that are af- President of the Tacoma Longshore Union Tacoma homeless. Phil rescued a stove from fecting these rights. Therefore, the under- Local 23 from 1966 to 1993, and I recall quite the old Knights of Pythias Temple. signed urge you to order an immediate and Longshore workers trucked the stove to the permanent end of the bombing in Vieques. well the advice and counsel he freely gave to me and to other political leaders throughout Kitchen, took out a wall, installed the stove, Respectfully, and rebuilt the wall. The longshore union Anibal Acevedo Vila´ (D–PR), Luis Gutier- his tenure of Union leadership. Afterward, he continues its support of the Kitchen, which rez (D–IL), Jose Serrano (D–NY), Nydia remained deeply engaged in community affairs serves 450 meals a day. Vela´ zquez (D–NY), (D–AZ), Ruben in the Puget Sound area, serving as a Port of Visitation will be from 8 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. Hinojosa (D–TX), George Miller (D–CA), Saturday, May 1 (International Workers (D–NY), (D– Tacoma Commissioner and the Harry Bridges NY), Patsy Mink (D–HI), Neil Abercrombie History Chair Trustee at the University of Day), followed by the Funeral Mass at 10:00 (D–HI), (D–IL), Washington. a.m. at St. Andrews , 1401 (D–NJ), Edward Markey (D–MA), Today in the House of Representatives, I Valley Ave., Sumner. Rosary services will be (D–CA), (D–NY), would like to express my sincere wishes of at 7 p.m. Friday at St. Martin of Tours Church 2303–54th Avenue East, Fife. Grave- (D–CA), (D–CA), Elliot Engel (D– sympathy to the Lelli Family, Mr. Speaker, and NY), Cynthia McKinney (D–GA), Carrie Meek side services will be at Gethsemane Ceme- to extend my thanks and the appreciation of a tery, 37600 Pacific Highway, at noon May 1. (D–FL), Eva Clayton (D–NC), Louis Slaugh- grateful community for the many contributions ter (D–NY), (D–TX), Nita The Longshore Union will honor brother Phil Lowey (D–NY), John Larson (D–CT), Juanita that Phil has made. I would also like to include with an open house from 1 to 4 p.m. There is Millender-McDonald (D–CA), Brad Carson in the RECORD the notice that was printed in an online guest book at (D–OK) Mark Udall (D–CO) Tom Udall (D– today’s News Tribune newspaper from Ta- www.mountainviewtacoma.com NM), (D–CA), Charlie Gon- coma, Washington. Arrangements are by Mountain View Fu- neral Home, 253–564–0252. In lieu of flowers, zalez (D–TX), Donna Christensen (D–Vl), [From the News Tribune, Apr. 28, 2004] Danny K. Davis (D–IL), Albert Wynn (D–MD), donations may be made in the name of Philip (By Philip Lelli) (D–CA), (D–CA), Lelli to the Ross E. Lelli Memorial Scholar- Robert C. Scott (D–VA), (D– HANGS HIS HOOK ship, PO Box 453, Tacoma, WA 98401, or the TX), Anthony D. Weiner (D–NY), Lucille Longshore leader Philip Martin Lelli was Hospitality Kitchen, 1323 S. Yakima Ave., Roybal-Allard (D–CA), Sanford D. Bishop Jr. born December 4, 1929, in Edgewood and Tacoma, WA 98405. (D–GA), (D–NY), Stephanie passed away April 25, 2004, in Puyallup. He f Tubbs Jones (D–OH), Robert Underwood (D– was the son of Martin and Mary (Baller) GU), (D–IL), Sherrod Brown Lelli and attended Fife schools and Pacific REMEMBERING CHERNOBYL (D–OH), (D–CA), Peter DeFazio Lutheran University. He married Joanne (D–OR), Karen McCarthy (D–MO), David Williams April 18, 1953, in Fife. Phil and Jo- HON. Phelps (D–IL), Nick Rahall (D–WV), Eni anne were the proud parents of five sons: Jay Faleomavaega (D–AS), (D–NJ), (Judith E. Peterson), Marty, Dean (Susan), OF David Bonior (D–MI), (D– Vance (Kimberlie) and Ross, and grand- IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CA), Bernard Sanders (I–VT), William Jeffer- parents of Janelle, Jayson A. (Jennifer), Thursday, April 29, 2004 son (D–LA), (D–MI), Sen. John Paula, Rori, Scott, Mathew, and Marina. Corzine (D–NJ), Betty McCollum (D–MN), There are three great-grandchildren, Mac- Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to Jesse L. Jackson Jr. (D–IL), (D– Kenzie, Kailee and Ryan. Also surviving is remember those who lost their lives and those CA), William Lacy Clay (D–MO), Ted Strick- his brother Tom (Phyllis) Lelli. One son, who are suffering the aftereffects of the land (D–OH), (D–IL), Dennis Ross, and a sister, Jeanne Retallick, pre- world’s worst nuclear accident—Chernobyl, Kucinich (D–OH), Robert Brady (D–PA), Jim ceded him. April 26, 1986. McDermott (D–WA), John Olver (D–MA), Phil Lelli was a dominant figure on the Ta- The suffering extends outside ’s bor- (D–CA), (D–CA), coma waterfront from the moment he lifted (D–CA), Sen. Charles Schumer his first 180–pound sack of wheat in 1949 until ders to Russia, Belarus and beyond. I ask my (D–NY), Sen. (D–NY), Alcee he retired as a gearman in 1993. He was a colleagues to take a moment to honor those L. Hastings (D–FL), Melvin Watt (D–NC), born longshoreman: a practical physicist innocent lives that will be forever changed by (D–MS), Jerrold Nadler who could come up with the most effective such a horrific event. (D–NY), James E. Clyburn (D–SC), James method of moving any size or weight of I applaud the efforts of the United States McGovern (D–MA), (D–TX), cargo; a leader of men in times of great tech- Department of Energy, the International Atom- Jr. (D–MI), Martin Meehan (D– nological change; and a stalwart ally who ic Energy Association, and other donor nations MA), (D–MD), Barney won hundreds of friends in ports all over the in remediation and containment efforts in Frank (D–MA), Jerry F. Costello (D–IL), world. Diana DeGette (D–CO), Carolyn McCarthy His mentor was T. A. ‘‘Tiny’’ Thronson, a Ukraine. Estimates indicate that these projects (D–NY), Michael McNutty (D–NY), Joseph veteran of the Great Strike of 1934. may last at least 100 years. Our commitment Crowley (D–NY), (D–TX), Caro- Thronson’s advice, ‘‘Do a hard day’s work must remain firm. lyn Maloney (D–NY), Earl Hilliard (D–AL), and you’ll get rewarded with more oppor- I am including for the RECORD an article (D–CA), James Oberstar (D– tunity,’’ was Phil’s guiding principle as highlighting some of the challenges ahead and MN), Janice Shakowsky (D–IL), Nick President of Tacoma Longshore Union 23 devastation many have already faced. Lampson (D–TX), Bill Delahunt (D–MA), El- from 1966 until 1983. He never abandoned his [From CBS News, Apr. 26, 2004] eanor Holmes Norton (D–DC), William Lipin- belief that port-union cooperation would re- ski (D–IL), Tammy Baldwin (D–WI), Thomas sult in a Golden Age. He teamed with Port REMEMBERING CHERNOBYL Allen (D–ME), Carolyn Kilpatrick (D–MI), Executive Director E. L. Roy Perry, Union Across the former Soviet Union, people lit (D–NY), John LaFace (D– Business Agent George Ginnis, and Port candles, laid flowers and held demonstra- NY), Lynn Rivers (D–MI), Robert A. Borski Commissioner Robert Earley to raise Ta- tions Monday to mark the 18th anniversary

VerDate jul 14 2003 05:38 Apr 30, 2004 Jkt 029060 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 0626 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A29AP8.017 E29PT1 April 29, 2004 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks E711 of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, which cer, mental disorders and cancerous growths. The $137 million Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. spread radiation over much of northern Eu- The United Nations said in a statement that United States Courthouse, going up at 400 N. rope. in some areas of Belarus, thyroid cancer Ave., will be completed next year. In all, 7 million people in the former So- among children has increased more than 100– Only seven federal courthouses across the viet republics of Belarus, Russia and Ukraine fold when compared with the period before country are named after African-Americans. are estimated to suffer physical or psycho- the accident. Ferguson, who was 65 when he died last logical effects of radiation related to the Two years ago, the U.N. reported that year of leukemia, earned a reputation as an April 26, 1986, catastrophe, when reactor No. 200,000 people still live in highly contami- even-handed jurist who championed the un- 4 exploded and caught fire. nated areas and 4.5 million residents in three derdog. His friend, Miami civil rights attor- An area half the size of Italy was contami- countries are receiving financial help—drain- ney H.T. Smith, eulogized Ferguson as ‘‘the nated, forcing hundreds of thousands of peo- ing national budgets. judge for the least, the last, the lost, the ple to be resettled and ruining some of Eu- The explosion and fire at Chernobyl’s No. 4 looked-over and the left out.’’ rope’s most fertile agricultural land, the reactor contaminated 23 percent of Belarus, 5 In his most resonant federal court ruling, United Nations said. percent of Ukraine and 1.5 percent of Russia, Ferguson was credited with improving the Hundreds of Ukrainians filled the small according to the report. It also spewed a ra- lives of thousands of disabled Florida resi- Chernobyl victims’ chapel in the Ukrainian dioactive cloud across Europe. dents. In 1999, he held the state in contempt capital, Kiev, at 1:23 a.m. Monday (6:23 p.m. f of court, forcing it to increase funding for Sunday ET), the exact time of the explosion. home nursing care and other services. The Later, they laid flowers and lit candles at a CONSIDERATION OF S. 1904, WILKIE move allowed thousands of disabled people to small hill where marble plates are inscribed D. FERGUSON, JR. FEDERAL live at home rather than in institutions. with the names of hundreds of victims. Ferguson was born in May 1938 in Miami, Nearly 1,000 mourners gathered Monday COURTHOUSE where his father, Wilkie Sr., was founding afternoon at Kiev’s memorial to Chernobyl pastor of St. Andrew’s Missionary Baptist victims, a soaring statue of five falling me- HON. KENDRICK B. MEEK Church in Opa-locka. The elder Ferguson tallic swans. Some placed flowers and photos OF FLORIDA died last year at age 94. of deceased relatives at its base. His first landmark case came as a Miami- ‘‘Nothing can be compared with a mother’s IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Dade Circuit Court judge, when he ruled sorrow,’’ said Praskoviya Nezhyvova, an el- Thursday, April 29, 2004 blacks had been systematically excluded derly retiree clutching a black-framed pho- from a jury. He served on the state’s Third tograph of her son, Viktor. She said he died Mr. MEEK of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I ask District Court of Appeal in Miami from 1980 of Chernobyl-related stomach cancer in 1990 that the following newspaper articles from the to 1993, when President Clinton appointed at age 44. Miami Herald and the South Florida Sun-Sen- him to the federal bench. Volodymyr Diunych, a driver who took tinel appear in the CONGRESSIONAL RECORD Ferguson heard most of his cases in Fort members of the hastily recruited and inad- immediately following my statement: equately equipped cleanup crews to the site, Lauderdale. [From the Miami Herald, April 29, 2004] The new courthouse bearing his name is recalled watching as residents were evacu- U.S. HOUSE OKS BILL NAMING NEW FEDERAL taking shape as one of the most ated ‘‘in an awful rush’’ days after the dis- COURTHOUSE FOR LATE JUDGE WILKIE FER- architecturally distinctive buildings to ap- aster. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union’s tradi- GUSON pear on Miami’s skyline in years. It consists tional May Day celebrations went ahead in of two 15–story glass towers connected by an Kiev, 80 miles south of Chernobyl, only five (By Larry Lebowitz) atrium. When completed and landscaped, it days after the accident. The U.S. House of Representatives on Soviet authorities had withheld much in- Wednesday unanimously passed a bill that will resemble a ship afloat on a wavy sea of formation on the world’s worst nuclear acci- would name the new federal courthouse in grass. dent, both from its own people and from the downtown Miami after the late U.S. District The bill was backed by 19 South Florida rest of the world. Only last year, Ukraine’s Judge Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. and sent it to Congress members; U.S. Sens. Bob Graham security service declassified secret files doc- the President for his signature. and Bill Nelson; the Dade County Bar Asso- umenting malfunctions and safety violations ‘‘His career is an inspiration to hundreds of ciation; the former Black Lawyers Associa- at the plant that caused the release of small young attorneys, and his honor and integrity tion, now known as the Wilkie D. Ferguson doses of radiation from time to time long be- make him a symbol of fairness on the federal Bar Association; the Caribbean Bar Associa- fore the explosion. bench,’’ said Rep. Kendrick Meek, D-Miami. tion; the Haitian Lawyers Association; the Ukraine shuttered Chernobyl’s last work- ‘‘. . . Naming the new federal courthouse Miami-Dade County Board of Commissioners ing reactor in December 2000, but many prob- after Judge Ferguson is an honor that will and the city of Miami. lems remain. reinforce his legacy for decades to come.’’ f Ukrainian experts say that the concrete- Only seven U.S. courthouses nationwide have and-steel shelter that was hastily con- been named for black jurists, none of them TRIBUTE TO DR. TOMAS A. structed over the damaged reactor needs ur- in Florida. The Senate version, introduced ARCINIEGA ON THE OCCASION OF gent repairs, but authorities claim that and co-sponsored by Florida Democratic HIS RETIREMENT there are no serious safety threats. Mean- Sens. Bob Graham and Bill Nelson, passed on while, many people injured or displaced be- March 12. cause of the explosion complain about inad- The $163 million courthouse, which will HON. CALVIN M. DOOLEY equate government support. feature two 14–story towers connected by a OF Sergei Shchvetsov, the head of Russia’s mammoth atrium, is located at 400 N. Miami IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Chernobyl Union, said that 40,000 people dis- Ave. It is slated to open in late summer 2005. Thursday, April 29, 2004 abled in operations to clean up the blast live in Russia and the ‘‘volume of benefits to [From the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Apr. Mr. DOOLEY of California. Mr. Speaker, I which (they) are eligible is narrowing every 29, 2004] rise today to congratulate Dr. Tomas A. year,’’ the ITAR-Tass news agency reported. MIAMI FEDERAL COURT BUILDING TO BE FIRST Arciniega for his 20 years of distinguished Greenpeace activists held a small protest IN STATE NAMED AFTER AFRICAN-AMERICAN service as the president of California State outside Russia’s Department for the Inspec- (By Ann W. O’Neill) tion of Radiation Security, carrying signs University-Bakersfield. His retirement in July that read ‘‘No more Chernobyls.’’ Congress unanimously approved legislation 2004 concludes a remarkable career noted for Meanwhile, in the Ukrainian town of naming Miami’s newest courthouse after the his leadership in the development of CSU-Ba- Slavutych—built to house Chernobyl work- late U.S. District Judge Wilkie D. Ferguson kersfield as a major regional university. ers displaced by the accident—people held a Jr., making it the first federal court building Throughout his career, Dr. Arciniega has been solemn memorial meeting early Monday to in Florida to bear the name of an African- a tireless advocate for expanded access to American. honor the memory of their relatives, friends higher education for low-income and minority and colleagues. The bill, sponsored by U.S. Rep. Kendrick The accident occurred after officials put B. Meek, was approved Wednesday by a 406– students in California’s San Joaquin Valley. the reactor through a test in which power 0 vote. Dr. Arciniega was born and raised in El was reduced and some safety devices were ‘‘Now, that’s consensus,’’ Meek said of the Paso, and earned a bachelor’s degree disabled. unanimous roll call vote. ‘‘People in South in teacher education from New State More than 2.32 million people have been Florida seeking justice can see an example of University and a master’s degree in edu- hospitalized in Ukraine as of early 2004 with a man who stood tall.’’ cational administration from the University of Meek, D-Miami, and other backers said illnesses blamed on the disaster, including . His early career included military 452,000 children, according to Ukraine’s naming the building after Ferguson shows Health Ministry. Ukraine has registered how South Florida has evolved from a seg- service as an officer in the some 4,400 deaths. regated society where, a generation ago, and an appointment by the United States For- The most frequently noted Chernobyl-re- some courthouses housed blacks and whites eign Service as a human resources advisor in lated diseases include thyroid and blood can- in separate holding cells. the during the late 1960’s.

VerDate jul 14 2003 05:38 Apr 30, 2004 Jkt 029060 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 0626 Sfmt 9920 E:\CR\FM\A29AP8.021 E29PT1