2 days ago
Congress Agrees on One Thing: National Seersucker Day
Congress can't seem to agree on anything these days with Republicans and Democrats seemingly at loggerheads over every piece of legislation.
But Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana, and Rev. Raphael Warnack, a Democrat from Georgia, have put aside party politics to partner on a resolution marking Thursday, June 12, National Seersucker Day. This is the 12th year that Cassidy has championed the cause, which celebrates the summer fabric, since he revived the tradition in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2014.
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'Seersucker Day honors the New Orleans invention that's made America fashionable — and the summer heat bearable — since 1909,' Cassidy said. 'For one day a year, the Capitol looks a little more like the French Quarter. We might not always agree on policy, but we can all agree: wool in June is a mistake.'
'I'm excited to return as the co-chair for the annual Seersucker Day in our nation's capital and continue celebrating this iconic Senate tradition,' said Warnock. 'Seersucker is more than just a fabric, it is a material deeply woven into Southern culture. National Seersucker Day is a proud bipartisan tradition, and I look forward to working alongside Senator Cassidy to carry it on.'
The use of seersucker was popularized in 1909 by New Orleans businessman Joseph Haspel Sr., who brought the puckered cloth popular in India to his home town and created suits that would stand up to the city's scorching summer heat and humidity. Haspel's great granddaughter Laurie Haspel Aronson still runs the company today.
In 1996, former Mississippi Sen. Trent Lott brought Seersucker Thursday to Congress, where it was observed for several years. After falling by the wayside in 2012 and 2013, Cassidy revived it.
The senator has invited other members of Congress to don their seersucker outfits for an official photograph at the Ohio Clock in the U.S. Capitol on Thursday at 12:30 p.m. ET, and he also encouraged all Americans to wear the fabric as well.
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