IV 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. RES. 867 Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion and celebrating Black History Month. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 26, 2020 Mr. BROWN of Maryland (for himself and Ms. MOORE) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regard- ing the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion and celebrating Black History Month. Whereas, since 1976, the United States has celebrated Black History Month each February to seize the opportunity to honor the accomplishments of African Americans in every area of endeavor throughout the history of the United States; Whereas the people of the United States honor the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion (referred to in this preamble as the ‘‘6888th’’), which was the first and only African-American unit in the Women’s Army Corps to deploy overseas during World War II; Whereas the 6888th consisted of 855 Black women, both en- listed and officers, who served honorably in Europe dur- VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Feb 26, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR867.IH HR867 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HRES 867 IH ing World War II from February 1945 to February 1946; Whereas First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt encouraged the mili- tary to provide meaningful positions for Black women to serve in the war overseas; Whereas during World War II there was a significant short- age of postal workers across the European Theater; Whereas the 6888th was a self-sufficient unit consisting mainly of postal clerks, but also cooks, mechanics, and other support positions; Whereas the 6888th trained at Fort Oglethrope, Georgia, and deployed overseas to Birmingham, England, in February 1945; Whereas once the 6888th arrived in Birmingham, they were met with rooms full of mail stacked from floor to ceiling, dating as far back as 2 years; Whereas much of the mail was difficult to sort, often only ad- dressed to first names or nicknames; Whereas the 6888th devised a system to handle the backlog and worked in 3 shifts around-the-clock, sorting millions of pieces of mail; Whereas the project was estimated to take 6 months to com- plete, but the battalion finished the task in an impressive 3 months in May 1945; Whereas the 6888th went on to Rouen and Paris, France, to address other backlogs of mail as old as 3 years, again with remarkable speed, accuracy, and professionalism; Whereas members of the 6888th were awarded the Meri- torious Unit Commendation, the European-African-Mid- dle Eastern Campaign Medal, the Good Conduct Medal, VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Feb 26, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR867.IH HR867 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HRES 867 IH and the World War II Victory Medal during their service; and Whereas Black History Month provides all individuals in the United States an opportunity to celebrate the contribu- tions of African Americans, including the remarkable service of the 6888th: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) during Black History Month encourages all 2 individuals in the United States to celebrate the his- 3 tory of the United States and the important accom- 4 plishments and contributions of African Americans; 5 and 6 (2) appreciates the contributions of and sac- 7 rifices made by the soldiers of the Women’s Army 8 Corps assigned to the 6888th Central Postal Direc- 9 tory Battalion during World War II, who served 10 honorably and are members of the ‘‘Greatest Gen- 11 eration’’. 12 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:41 Feb 26, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR867.IH HR867 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS