The publication is reproduced in full below:
HONORING DR. JOSE CELSO BARBOSA
______
HON. JENNIFFER GONZALEZ-COLON
of puerto rico
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, July 27, 2021
Miss GONZALEZ-COLON. Madam Speaker, I rise to honor the memory of Dr. Jose Celso Barbosa, born 157 years ago today.
Dr. Barbosa, the father of the Puerto Rican Statehood movement, was a distinguished physician, politician and publisher, and founder of the Republican Party in Puerto Rico.
Born in the city of Bayamon, in a time when a black man had limited opportunities, he broke barriers and studied medicine at the University of Michigan, where he grew to understand the values of the United States, and when he came back to Puerto Rico in 1880 he began to challenge the Spanish colonial system, becoming active in seeking greater home rule.
When Puerto Rico became part of the United States after the Spanish American War, Barbosa saw in the American Constitution and in Statehood the way to ensure democracy, liberty and equality for the people of his Island. Establishing the Republican Party in Puerto Rico on the 4th of July 1899, he became the strongest and most fervent voice in favor of American law and institutions. From his positions both in the Executive Cabinet and later in the Senate of Puerto Rico, he steadfastly insisted that this should mean full equality as a State of the Union.
For a century since his passing, generations of leaders in Puerto Rico across all social divides have followed the inspiration of Barbosa, striving to make his aspiration a reality: for the people of Puerto Rico to fully participate as American Citizens, contributing to the nation and sharing in its future, by having our Island become a State of the Union.
That was his ideal and it is mine, and that of many in Puerto Rico. Just last November, a majority of our voters said Yes to Barbosa's vision, electing statehood. I am here to make sure that their voice is heard, as the best way to honor his memory and reaffirm his goal.
Barbosa's memory lives on, in everyone who seeks justice and equality for Puerto Rico.
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 131
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