NEW YORK: In a historic ceremony, the US Congress’ House Fine Arts Board, the Committee on House Administration, the Congressional Asia Pacifc American Caucus and the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans unveiled a portrait of Congressman Dalip Singh Saund, the first Asian American in Congress (1957-1963).
The unveiling ceremony was held in the Rayburn Room on Capitol Hill. In 2002 the House Fine Arts Board established a program to enhance the fine arts collection of the House to include historically important members of the House.
The program is administered by the Office of History and Preservation under the jurisdiction of the Clerk of the House. Since its inception, the program collection has been expanded to include portraits of the following US Representatives: James Madison of Virginia (1789-1797); John Quincy Adams of Massachusetts (1831-1848); Abraham Lincoln of Illinois (1847-1849); Jeannette Rankin of Montana (1917-1919; 1941-1943), the first woman elected to the US Congress; Joseph Rainey of South Carolina (1869 -1879), the first African American elected to the US Congress; and Romulado Pacheco of California (1877-1883), the first Hispanic American elected to the US Congress.
Saund’s portrait is the seventh in this series. Dalip Saund’s story is a story of courage, hard work, and just rewards. Saund, who had fought successfully for citizenship rights for Indian Americans in the early 1950s, was elected to the US House of Representatives from the 29th congressional district of California in 1956. He served for three Congresses (January 3, 1957-January 3, 1963); he was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1962. At the conclusion of his congressional career, he returned to California. Saund died on April 22, 1973, in Hollywood, California.
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