Caribbean American Heritage Month

Floor Speech

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Ms. PLASKETT. Madam Speaker, in recognition of Caribbean American Heritage Month, I honor influential Haitian leader Henri Christophe.

Born on the island of Grenada to immigrant parents, Christophe played a significant role in the American Revolution, serving as a sergeant in the French unit in Savannah, Georgia in 1780.

Christophe was among the 545 Haitian free slaves known as the Fontages Legion, fighting for the freedom of men and women who desired to be freed from the shackles of oppression.

After the French forces were defeated and Haiti was declared an independent republic in 1803, Christophe was elected president of the northern State of Haiti in 1807. He was responsible for the construction of Citadelle Henry in Haiti, introduced a monetary system based on gourds, declared Catholicism as a state religion, and established schools and hospitals, including a basic school of medicine.

Let us honor the legacy of this great man who fought for the freedom of those who refused to do the same.

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