Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

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Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. President, today I introduce the National DWI Victims Memorial Designation Act of 2010, which is cosponsored by my colleague Senator Jeff Bingaman. This legislation would designate the DWI Victims Memorial of Perpetual Tears in Moriarty, New Mexico, as the National DWI Victims Memorial.

Opened in 2008, the DWI Victims Memorial of Perpetual Tears is the Nation's first and only memorial of its kind. The Memorial Perpetual Tears helps raise awareness of the devastation caused by driving while impaired, DWI, crashes by recognizing their victims, educating the public, and encouraging preventive measures. The memorial aims to give comfort to the innocent victims of drunk driving and raise awareness of the devastating toll of DWI deaths on our nation's roadways. Located on a four-acre site next to Interstate 40, the Memorial of Perpetual Tears attracts passersby in addition to those who travel specifically to visit the memorial.

The National DWI Victims Memorial Designation Act of 2010 would require that any reference to this memorial in a law, map, regulation, document, record, or other official paper of the United States government refer to the site as the National DWI Victims Memorial. As a Senator from New Mexico, I am proud to seek such an official designation for the DWI Victims Memorial of Perpetual Tears. It is fitting that such a national memorial should be located in the State that once led the Nation in DWI fatalities and now leads the way in drunk driving prevention.

Compared to 20 years ago, our roads are much safer today. Yet even as the overall number of people killed on our roadways has declined, drunk driving still accounts for one third of all traffic fatalities nationwide. In 2008, drunk driving killed about 12,000 Americans, including 143 people in my home State of New Mexico. That is an average of 32 people killed every day by drunk driving. This unacceptable death toll is all the more shocking when you consider that each one of those deaths was preventable.

Although other communities have established remembrance gardens and monuments honoring drunk driving victims, the DWI Victims Memorial of Perpetual Tears is unique. The memorial resembles a veterans cemetery with markers representing the most recent 5-year period of deaths in New Mexico attributed to DWI. The memorial includes a site dedicated to victims of DWI nationwide. The Memorial of Perpetual Tears gives further recognition to innocent victims of DWI nationwide by displaying Victim Tribute books in the memorial visitor center. The Victim Tribute books include stories and pictures submitted by injured victims and family members of those killed in DWI crashes.

The Memorial of Perpetual Tears is a testament to the hard work and dedication of local volunteers who have made this memorial possible. Sonja Britton, the mother of a DWI victim, saw the need for a memorial to those killed by drunk driving on our Nation's roadways. For years, she rallied support and found many local residents and others nationwide who were willing to help. Mike, Mary, and Ralph Anaya and their family provided key support by donating prime real estate next to Interstate 40 to give the memorial a fitting location. Thanks to the efforts of so many, the Memorial of Perpetual Tears today provides a focal point where families can gather to mourn the loss of loved ones as well as join with others to promote DWI awareness and prevention.

Having a National DWI Victims Memorial gives us another resource in the fight to end drunk driving. I share Sonja's vision that one day we will have no more senseless deaths caused by DWI crashes. As she says most eloquently, ``My dream will be realized when this mission is achieved and when our loved ones will no longer be injured or killed by alcohol-related traffic crashes. We must stop this carnage.''

Working together, we can make Sonja's dream a reality.

I urge all my colleagues to support this legislation and to join Senator Bingaman and me in celebrating the work of the volunteers who have made the DWI Victims Memorial of Perpetual Tears possible.

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