WASHINGTON - The Gullah, members of a black community unique to South Carolina and neighboring coastal states, are fading fast.

On Tuesday, a congressional subcommittee got its first chance to help the Gullah in the form of a bill that would create a Gullah "cultural corridor" in South Carolina and Georgia, where the community is most strongly rooted.

Descended from West Africans brought to colonial America as slaves, the Gullah lived isolated - first as slaves and then by choice - as fishermen and farmers.

They speak a language heavily tinged with African words and phrases. They live in multigenerational family homes headed by elders.

Their crafts - especially their sweetgrass basketry - are on display in museums throughout the world.

Scholars estimate that about 250,000 Gullah live in the Southeastern coastal region.

But modern life and its pressures to assimilate threaten Gullah culture.

"This has been a passion of mine," U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., told a panel of the House Resources Committee. "I have learned to respect the culture, and I would like to do everything I can to preserve it for future generations."

To that end, Clyburn introduced the bill to create the corridor, which would run along the coast and include land 30 miles inland.

The bill would provide for three visitors' centers - two in South Carolina and one in Georgia - to help explain Gullah culture.

The legislation also would set aside $10 million to establish the corridor and pay for projects, such as building restorations, that would help sustain the Gullah culture.

Clyburn also testified that the corridor would boost tourism in the region.

Cynthia Porcher of Mount Pleasant, who spent more than three years researching the Gullah for a National Parks Service study initiated by Clyburn, testified to the House panel about the urgency for action on the bill.

"They need financial support," she said. "And they need it quickly to ensure the survival of their unique American culture."

Fearing the extinction of the Gullah, The National Trust for Historic Preservation this year named the Gullah coast as one of the 11 most endangered historical sites in the nation.

Prospects for passage of Clyburn's bill this year look somewhat dim.

There are few days of the congressional session remaining, and lawmakers are overwhelmed with major budget bills and the upcoming election.

And the bill has few co-sponsors.

In addition to Clyburn, U.S. Rep. Henry Brown, R-Hanahan, has signed his name to it. Brown's district runs from south of Charleston to north of Myrtle Beach and includes much of the proposed corridor in South Carolina.

U.S. Rep. Donna Christensen of the Virgin Islands, the ranking Democrat on the House subcommittee to which the bill has been assigned, supports it.

The corridor also passes through U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson's district, in the southeast corner of the state. Wilson, a Republican from Lexington, plans to sign on to the bill as a co-sponsor.