ICYMI: Hoyer Welcomes Vice President Kamala Harris to the 40th Annual Black History Month Celebration

Wanted to be sure you saw news coverage of Saturday's 40th Annual Black History Month Celebration. For 40 years, Congressman Hoyer (MD-05) has brought together community leaders, elected officials, and Fifth District residents to the Black History Month Breakfast to celebrate the many achievements of Black Marylanders and Americans. This year he welcomed Vice President Kamala Harris, who served as the keynote speaker. See below for highlights from press coverage of the event.

Essence Magazine
Vice President Harris Keynotes Black History Month Event
"‘Speak truth.' ‘Have courage.' ‘Don't despair.' ‘Run your race' courageously, and blaze a path for future generations. Those pearls of wisdom were shared by Vice President Kamala Harris during a Black History Month celebration on Saturday filled with prayer, music and inspiration."

"Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), the house majority leader in Congress, started the annual breakfast 40 years ago. He told ESSENCE it seemed fitting this year to invite the nation's first female, Black and Southeast Asian American vice president."

"‘Vice President Harris has broken barriers throughout her career, and her extraordinary achievements have inspired countless Americans,' said Hoyer."

"A long, illustrious list of keynote speakers have lent their voices to the annual event. Past guests include former President Barack Obama, late Congressmen John Lewis and Elijah Cummings, and Rep. Val Demings (D-FL). Former Virginia Governor Doug Wilder, Dr. Lonnie G. Bunch III, director of the Smithsonian Institution, and Dr. Carla Hayden, librarian of Congress, are just a few of the newsmakers who have also participated."
https://www.essence.com/news/vice-president-harris-keynotes-black-history-month-event/

The Capital Gazette
Vice President Kamala Harris talks to Maryland residents on COVID vaccine, stimulus at Black History Month event
"Vice President Kamala Harris spoke to hundreds of Anne Arundel and Prince George's County residents Saturday as she joined Rep. Steny Hoyer's 40th Annual Black History Month Celebration, the first time in its 40 years the event was held online."

"Harris represents a litany of firsts: She is the first woman, Black person and Asian-American to serve as vice president, but ‘not the last,' she said."

"The annual gathering, in previous years held as a breakfast for residents of the 4th and 5th congressional districts, has long featured prominent Black Americans, including former President Barack Obama when he was a senator, former Attorney General Loretta Lynch and the late Rep. John Lewis."

"This year's celebration focused on Black families, many of whom have been disparately affected by the coronavirus pandemic, including in Anne Arundel and Prince George's counties. Despite accounting for only 17% of people living in Anne Arundel County, Black residents make up a full quarter of deaths from COVID-19. Even still, Black county residents have received just 10% of vaccines distributed thus far."

"Hoyer and Rep. Anthony Brown, who represent parts of both counties, introduced during the last congressional session the Health Enterprise Zone Act, a bill designed to boost assistance for communities experiencing lower access to health care and greater impacts from health conditions."

"Hoyer, who signed on as co-sponsor to the bill, said in an interview Friday he and Brown are ‘trying to get resources into areas where we know there are minority populations, that we know are much more vulnerable, much more challenged and need this kind of intervention that will stop this unacceptable disparity in health outcome.'"
https://www.capitalgazette.com/news/ac-cn-kamala-harris-black-history-month-address-20210227-o5eniaww6nfulnibmrnmx6n74u-story.html

Prince George's Suite
Keep On Pushing
"In 1981, the first year that Rep. Steny Hoyer has hosted his annual Black History Month breakfast, the Atlanta Child Slayings were emblazoned across national headlines. Four decades later, little has changed with racial assault and discrimination. But this year, Vice President Kamala Harris, the first black woman to become Vice President of the United States, joined the House Majority Leader in addressing what it might take to make sure things change for the better over the next 40 years."

"The vice president called black history makers 'visionaries' and 'innovators' while encouraging ongoing recognition of the contributions of African Americans. ‘We celebrate Black History Month in January, in March, in April, and all year round. But, yes, every February we take a time, and a more formal time, to remember and honor those who came before us,' she said."
https://www.pgsuite.com/news/2021/2/28/keep-on-pushing