IV
119THCONGRESS
1
STSESSION H. RES. 151
Expressing support for the designation of February 16, 2025, as
‘‘International Black Aviation Professionals Day’’.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY21, 2025
Ms. W
ILLIAMSof Georgia (for herself, Mrs. MCBATH, Mr. BISHOP, Mr.
J
OHNSONof Georgia, Ms. ADAMS, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. BUDZINSKI, Ms.
B
YNUM, Mr. CARSON, Ms. DAVIDSof Kansas, Mr. FIELDS, Ms. KELLY
of Illinois, Mrs. M
CIVER, Ms. NORTON, Ms. PLASKETT, Ms. STRICKLAND,
Ms. T
ITUS, Mr. TURNERof Texas, and Mrs. WATSONCOLEMAN) sub-
mitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the Committee on
Education and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by
the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall with-
in the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
RESOLUTION
Expressing support for the designation of February 16,
2025, as ‘‘International Black Aviation Professionals Day’’.
Whereas since the birth of aviation, Black Americans have
made and continue to make significant contributions to
flight, space exploration, and the aviation industry as a
whole despite significant adversity;
Whereas aviation trailblazers like Emory C. Malick, the first
licensed Black pilot, James H. Banning, the first Black
pilot to fly across the United States, and Bessie ‘‘Queen’’
Coleman, the first licensed Black woman pilot,
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barnstormed through barriers such as racism and sexism
to have careers in aviation;
Whereas visionaries like William J. Powell, Jr., established
the Bessie Coleman Flying Club, sponsored the first all-
Black American airshow, wrote the book entitled ‘‘Black
Wings’’, produced a documentary film entitled ‘‘Unem-
ployment, the Negro and Aviation’’, and worked tirelessly
to mobilize Black American youth to pursue careers in
aviation;
Whereas Cornelius Coffey, a skilled Black American auto me-
chanic who dreamed of flying, and Willa Brown, the first
Black woman to earn both a pilot’s license and a com-
mercial license and the first Black woman to become an
officer in the Illinois Civil Air Patrol, organized a group
of Black air enthusiasts, established training classes and
a school of aeronautics, and helped promote the 1939
flight of Chauncey Spencer and Dale White from Chicago
to Washington, DC, to campaign for an end to racial seg-
regation in aviation;
Whereas the Tuskegee Army Airfield, after which the
Tuskegee Airmen were named, became a vital center for
Black American servicemen and servicewomen to train as
mechanics, control tower operators, and pilots of military
aircrafts, launching the careers of many notable Black
aviators, including General Benjamin O. Davis, Jr.,
Amelia Jones, Linkwood Williams, Lieutenant Colonel
Lee A. Archer, Major Charles Hall, Brigadier General
Charles McGee, and many others;
Whereas the Red Tails of the 99th Fighter Squadron and
later the 332d Fighter Group known as the Tuskegee
Airmen made pioneering contributions to the United
States war effort during World War II and the subse-
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quent drive to end racial segregation in the United States
Armed Forces;
Whereas, in 1958, Ruth Carol Taylor became the first Black
regional flight attendant in the United States;
Whereas, in 1956, Patricia Banks-Edmiston filed, and, in
1960, ultimately won, a discrimination case against Cap-
ital Airlines, paving the way for her to become the first
Black commercial flight attendant in the United States;
Whereas these historic firsts opened the skies for Black flight
attendants, including Joan Dorsey, Diane Hunter, Patri-
cia Grace Murphy, Undra Mays, Sheila Nutt, and Mar-
garet Grant;
Whereas Oscar Wayman Holmes was the first Black air traf-
fic controller and served as the first Black aircraft pilot
and the first Black commissioned officer in the Navy,
and Eleanor Williams became the first Black woman air
traffic controller in 1971;
Whereas Black scientists reached the stars through the bril-
liance and fortitude of historically overlooked and
unappreciated figures, including Katherine Johnson,
Dorothy Vaughn, and Mary Jackson, whose contributions
in astrophysics allowed the United States to send people
into space;
Whereas Black Americans soared amongst the stars when
Guion ‘‘Guy’’ Bluford and Mae Jemison became the first
Black American man and woman, respectively, to venture
into space;
Whereas former astronaut Charles F. Bolden, Jr., the first
Black American to be permanently named NASA Admin-
istrator, inspired the next generation of aviators and
innovators;
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Whereas the research of Black Americans like physician
Vance H. Marchbanks and psychophysiologist Patricia
Cowings made it safer for astronauts to travel to space;
Whereas Black inventors helped revolutionize air and space
travel, including through the long-distance airplane de-
signed by Charles W. Chappelle, contributions by Gladys
West to the development of the Global Positioning Sys-
tem (GPS), technology created by George Robert Car-
ruthers that allowed for photography in space, and the
power source created by Lonnie Johnson for the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Galileo mission
to Jupiter;
Whereas Maynard Holbrook Jackson, Jr., the first Black
mayor of the City of Atlanta, Georgia, is renowned for
his diversity and inclusion plan to ensure Black business
owners had the opportunity to participate in the expan-
sion of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
into a major transportation hub, ahead of schedule and
under budget, all while paving the way for minority-
owned businesses to support the aviation industry
through construction, management, and concessions pro-
grams at airports across the United States;
Whereas, on February 12, 2009, on a flight from Atlanta to
Nashville, Captain Rachelle Jones Kerr, First Officer
Stephanie Grant, and flight attendants Robin Rogers and
Diana Galloway made history as the first all-female, all-
Black American flight crew;
Whereas Casey Grant, an author, aviator, and a pioneer as
one of the earliest Black flight attendants, has made it
her mission to honor the legacy and contributions of
Black pioneers in aviation through her books entitled
‘‘Stars in the Sky’’ and ‘‘Stars and Beyond’’ and her ef-
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forts to introduce a new generation of young Black indi-
viduals across the United States and in Ghana to the
field of aviation;
Whereas organizations including the Organization of Black
Aerospace Professionals, the Black Aviation Airline Pio-
neers, the Sisters of the Skies, the Bessie Coleman Avia-
tion All-Stars, the Black Flight Attendants of America,
Inc., the Airport Minority Advisory Council, and more
continue to preserve the legacy and support the future of
Black Americans in aviation;
Whereas Black Americans have long served in every aspect
of aviation, from skycaps who greet travelers arriving at
the airport, to ticketing agents who ensure travelers’
itineraries are in order, to ground crew, mechanics, and
many others who make the aviation industry safe and re-
liable;
Whereas the Federal Aviation Administration provides oppor-
tunities to eligible students from historically underrep-
resented backgrounds in the fields of aviation, aero-
nautics, and science, technology, engineering, and math
(STEM) through the STEM Aviation and Space Edu-
cation Program by recruiting candidates from Histori-
cally Black Colleges and Universities for programs such
as the Minority Serving Institutions Intern Program; and
Whereas public and private sector efforts to recruit, retain,
and support talented Black Americans through increased
emphasis on intentional diversity, equity, and inclusion
initiatives, programs, and commitments and investments
in programs that expose underrepresented groups to ca-
reers in aviation will ultimately help diversify the work-
force for decades to come: Now, therefore, be it
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Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1
(1) expresses support for the designation of 2
‘‘International Black Aviation Professionals Day’’; 3
(2) encourages the observation of ‘‘Inter-4
national Black Aviation Professionals Day’’ through 5
recognition and celebration of the contributions of 6
Black aviation professionals; and 7
(3) requests that the President issue a procla-8
mation calling upon the people of the United States 9
to— 10
(A) recognize the stories and contributions 11
of Black American aviation professionals who 12
broke barriers, innovated, and took aviation to 13
greater heights; 14
(B) provide enhanced curriculum in 15
schools, libraries, and other places of learning 16
to educate all people of the United States with 17
respect to the contributions of Black aviation 18
pioneers; and 19
(C) support greater opportunities for Black 20
Americans in all areas of aviation. 21
Æ
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