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[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E946-E947]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CELEBRATING THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY SAINT PAUL'S STERLING CLUB
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HON. BETTY McCOLLUM
of minnesota
in the house of representatives
Thursday, July 18, 2019
Ms. McCOLLUM. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the centennial
anniversary of Saint Paul's Sterling Club, the oldest African American
men's club in the nation. Founded at a time when racism and segregation
were the norm, and African Americans could not access the same
accommodations as white community members, the Sterling Club provided a
strong community to allow neighbors to come together and to host and
celebrate visiting African American dignitaries.
On a bright and cold New Year's Day in 1918, men from Saint Paul's
Rondo neighborhood chartered a bus to spread the word of a new club
created for African Americans. The Sterling Club, and later the Women's
Auxiliary, would quickly become a cornerstone of the social and civic
strength of Saint Paul's African American community. During its first
hundred years, the Sterling club has hosted countless events, balls and
social gatherings. Above all, the organization's principal purpose was
``the proper entertainment of persons of note who may visit.''
Officially incorporated on August 28, 1919, the Sterling Club was not
a social club in the same vein as others, which typically only catered
to community elites and the professional class. Among its ranks one
could find, lawyers, architects, government employees and decorated war
veterans. Officers and members also included railroad workers,
janitors, meat packers, elevator operators and postal workers. Then as
now, the egalitarian ethos speaks to the community-building and
organizing principles of the Sterling Club.
In 1900s Saint Paul, African American community members were eager to
hear from leaders speaking about overcoming the adversity and racism
that was commonplace throughout our nation. To address this desire, the
Sterling Club began hosting notable and national leaders including
Booker T. Washington, William Monroe Trotter and W.E.B. Du Bois. The
club remains actively focused on civic engagement and has hosted forums
for generations of candidates seeking elected office in Saint Paul. The
development of the Sterling Club Charitable Fund has also contributed
greatly to the community, sponsoring student scholarships and honoring
volunteers who give back to our community.
Despite being a men's group, the longevity and success of the club
would not have been possible without the women of the Auxiliary.
Spouses of club members long played a significant role in fundraising,
planning and organizing. Without shrewd and savvy women of the
Auxiliary scraping together enough funding, the club likely would not
have been able to survive past the Great Depression and World War II to
flourish in the post-war years.
The Sterling Club has always relied on the collective experience and
abilities of members to organize, resist, thrive and give back to the
community. Founded in a time and place where the color of your skin
could mean the difference between a comfortable life or a life at the
margins, the Sterling Club stands tall as an example of how a community
coming together can claim the American Dream in the face of adversity
of prejudice and discrimination and forge a new and better future for
everyone. Madam Speaker please join me in celebrating 100 years of
Saint Paul Sterling Club.
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