December 5, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 194 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1541]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





                     TRIBUTE FOR MOHAMMED CHOWDHURY

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. MAX ROSE

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, December 5, 2019

  Mr. ROSE of New York. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Mohammed 
K. Chowdhury, a Staten Island resident. Mr. Chowdhury is an activist, 
community organizer, and civil servant who has spent his life fighting 
to make the world a better place.
   Mr. Chowdhury was born in rural Bangladesh. Beginning as a college 
student, he fought to better the lives of rural Bangladeshis in a whole 
host of areas, including education, infrastructure, healthcare, and 
communications. He also pushed for democratic reforms, fighting against 
autocratic government and ensuring that everyone would have the right 
to vote.
   Upon moving to the United States, Mr. Chowdhury did not stop trying 
to better his communities. He has served as a civil servant in both the 
New York City and New York State systems. In both jobs, he was an 
active union member. He currently serves as the Council Leader for the 
New York State Public Employees Federation (PEF) Division 349.
   Mr. Chowdhury has consistently fought on behalf of Staten Island's 
South Asian community. In 2015, he became the Staten Island Chapter 
Secretary of the Alliance of South Asian American Labor (ASAAL) in 
2015. By 2016, he had risen to become the National Secretary of the 
ASAAL. Under his leadership, ASAAL has grown to include 12 chapters 
across five states.
   Mr. Chowdhury's work to raise the voice for the voiceless and build 
coalitions between labor and community organizations should serve as an 
example to all of us. With a vision for the future, a desire to bring 
people together, and a tenacious work ethic, we truly can enact change.
   So, Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues in the House to join me in 
honoring Mohammed Chowdhury's work to make communities across the 
world, from Staten Island to rural Bangladesh, a better place

                          ____________________