Congressman Gregory W. Meeks Special Order Remarks Congressional Black Caucus Dr. John Hope Franklin

(WASHINGTON, DC)– Congressman Gregory Meeks issued the following remarks during today’s CBC Special Order on the passing of Dr. John Hope Franklin:

Dr. John Hope Franklin was one of the most important Americans of the 20th century. He was a citizen of the world, a towering intellectual giant and scholar who ceaselessly endeavored, as one of the preeminent historians in our nation’s history, to ensure that the contributions of African-Americans would not be relegated to the status of a footnote. Rather, through dedicated scholarship, he brought to light the rich contributions African-Americans have made to the United States of America.

As he once said so eloquently, "My challenge was to weave into the fabric of American history enough of the presence of blacks so that the story of the United States could be told adequately and fairly." He understood intimately that the story of the greatest country on earth, the United States of America cannot be told without telling story of African-American history and that in fact, they are one and the same.

Dr. John Hope Franklin was considered the Dean of African American historians, John Hope Franklin was born on January 2, 1915 in Rentriesville, Oklahoma. His family relocated to Tulsa, Oklahoma shortly after the Tulsa Disaster of 1921. Franklin's mother, Mollie, was a teacher and his father, B.C. Franklin, was an attorney who handled lawsuits precipitated by the famous Tulsa Race Riot. Graduating from Booker T. Washington High School in 1931, Franklin received an A.B. degree from Fisk University in 1935 and went on to attend Harvard University, where he received his A.M. and Ph.D. degrees in history.

Franklin began his teaching career at Fisk University before moving on to St. Augustine's College. It was at North Carolina Central University, in 1945, with a $500 advance from Alfred A. Knopf, and help from his wife, Aurelia, that Franklin began writing the classic African American history text, From Slavery to Freedom. The book, co-authored by Alfred A. Moss, Jr., has been published in several different languages.

In the early 1950s, Franklin served on the NAACP Legal Defense Fund team led by Thurgood Marshall that helped develop the sociological case for Brown v. Board of Education. This led to the 1954 United States Supreme Court decision ending the legal segregation of black and white children in public schools.
Dr. Franklin taught at Howard University for nine years, before becoming the first black to chair the History Department at Brooklyn College in 1956. He was then hired by the University of Chicago in 1964 and chaired the History Department from 1967 to 1970. There, he served as the John Matthews Manly Distinguished Service Professor from 1969 to 1982, when he was made Professor Emeritus. In 1982, Franklin joined the faculty at Duke University as the James B. Duke Professor Emeritus of History.

Dr. Franklin was a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African Americans. He was an early beneficiary of the fraternity's Foundation Publishers, which provides financial support and fellowship for writers addressing African-American issues.

Active in professional organizations, Franklin served as president of the Southern Historical Society, the Organization of American Historians and the American Historical Association. He was a life-long member of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, where he served on the editorial board of the Journal of Negro History. In 1997, he was appointed by Former President Bill Clinton as chairman of the advisory board for One America, the President's Initiative on Race.

Dr. Franklin wrote hundreds of articles and at least 15 books. His recent works include Runaway Slaves: Rebels on the Plantations with Loren Schweninger, George Washington Williams: A Biography and a book about his father My Life and an Era: the Autobiography of Buck Colbert Franklin as well as his own autobiography, The Vintage Years. In 1978 Who's Who in America selected Franklin as one of eight Americans who have made significant contributions to society. Among his many other awards are the Organization of American Historians Award for Outstanding Achievement and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor.

Dr. Franklin was the personification of academic excellence, dignity, self empowerment and faith. He was the scribe of a generation of African-Americans who advocated, persevered, and helped to uplift our country to live up to its creed as the land of equal opportunity. On March 25, 2009, the world lost the beacon of light that was Dr. John Hope Franklin. To his family, I offer my deepest sympathies and condolences for their loss. And while our nation has lost one of its best and brightest, I know that his legacy is one that will surely endure.

Thank you and I yield back.