,,iv  #aacth ,,congress  #ast ,session  
,h4 ,,res4 #cig  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of
 ,,representatives  ,october #cj1 #bjac 
,mr4 ,hastings of ,florida 7for himself1
 ,ms4 ,brown of ,florida1 ,ms4 ,clarke1 
,ms4 ,wilson of ,florida1 ,mr4          
,jeffries1 ,mr4 ,conyers1 ,ms4 ,norton1 
and ,mr4 ,lewis7 submitted the following
 resolution2 which was referred to the  
,committee on ,foreign ,affairs         
,,resolution  ,recognizing the #djth    
anniversary of the independence of the  
,bahamas4  ,whereas the proud history   
and rich culture of the ,bahamian people
 date back centuries1 having evolved    
amid significant influence from foreign 
settlers and traders who were drawn to  
their islands' ecological beauty1       
resources1 and strategic location2      
,whereas the islands of the ,bahamas    
were settled by the ,lucayan ,indians   
from #ijj to #aejj ,,ad and1 following  
,christopher ,columbus' landfall in the 
,new ,world on ,san ,salvador in #adib1 
about #dj1jjj natives were sent to work 

in the mines of ,hispaniola2 ,whereas   
,british settlement began in #afdh with 
the arrival of ,english ,puritans led by
 ,captain ,william ,sayle1 known as     
,eleutheran ,adventurers1 who sought    
religious freedom2 ,whereas the capital 
of the ,bahamas1 ,nassau1 was           
established around #afgj as a commercial
 port1 and experienced several decades  
of conflict between ,spanish1 ,french1  
and ,british military forces1 as well as
 privateers and pirates2 ,whereas by    
#agah1 the ,king of ,england appointed  
,captain ,woodes ,rogers to serve as the
 first ,royal ,governor and restore     
order in the ,bahamas1 now a crown      
colony2 ,whereas following the ,american
 ,war of ,independence1 the ,british    
issued land grants to ,american         
,loyalists who went into exile in the   
,bahamas1 bringing with them slaves and 
forcing the ,spanish to retreat from the
 region2 ,whereas the majority of       
,bahamians today trace back their roots 
to the thousands of ,west ,africans who 

were enslaved and brought to the islands
 in order to work on cotton plantations 
by those loyal to the ,british ,crown2  
,whereas ,britain abolished its slave   
trade in #ahjg1 and resettled thousands 
of liberated ,africans from foreign     
slave ships as free persons in the      
,bahamas2 ,whereas in the early #ahbjs1 
hundreds of ,american slaves and ,black 
,seminoles escaped from ,florida1 with  
many of them settling on ,andros ,island
 in the ,bahamas2 ,whereas ,britain     
officially abolished slavery throughout 
most of the ,british ,empire in #ahcd1  
thereby ending plantation life in the   
,bahamas and giving rise to a nation of 
seafarers2 ,whereas the ,hotel and      
,steam ,ship ,service ,act of #ahih     
marked the beginning of a vibrant       
tourism industry for the ,bahamas1      
providing the government support needed 
for the construction of hotels and      
subsidized steamship service2 ,whereas  
in #aifd1 ,bahamians were granted       
self-rule1 and in #aifi became members  

of the ,commonwealth of ,nations2       
,whereas in ,december #aigb1 the        
,government of the ,bahamas headed by   
,prime ,minister the ,rt4 ,hon4 ,lynden 
,pindling and the ,opposition headed by 
,sir ,kendal ,isaacs led a delegation to
 ,london to discuss the ,independence   
,constitution2 ,whereas1 on ,april #b1  
#aigc1 the ,minister of ,home ,affairs1 
the ,hon4 ,r4,f4 ,anthony ,roberts1     
announced in the ,house of ,assembly    
that the ,bahamas had a new flag1 and in
 the same year ,timothy ,gibson's ,march
 ,on1 ,bahamaland was adopted as the    
country's national anthem2 ,whereas1 on 
,july #aj1 #aigc1 the ,bahamas became a 
free and sovereign country1 ending #cbe 
years of peaceful ,british rule2 and    
,whereas ,bahamians typically           
commemorate their independence with a   
week-long celebration beginning on ,july
 #c1 consisting of a number of ,junkanoo
 street parades1 fireworks1 political   
speeches1 and other events3 ,now1       
therefore1 be it  ,that the ,house of   

,representatives--  7#a7 joins the      
people of the ,bahamas and the ,bahamian
 diaspora worldwide in commemorating the
 #djth anniversary of the independence  
of the ,bahamas2  7#b7 recognizes that  
the ,united ,states and the ,bahamas are
 united by a shared history1 common     
values1 and a commitment to democracy   
and human rights2 and  7#c7 encourages  
both nations to continue strengthening  
their friendship and bilateral          
partnership1 especially in promoting    
greater security1 economic development1 
and people-to-people exchanges1         
expanding opportunities for the next    
generation of leaders1 addressing the   
effects of climate change1 and advancing
 gender equality throughout the         
,caribbean region4