WHEREAS, The City of Chicago has served as a beacon of hope for millions of people who migrated to the center of the Midwestern United States and forged one of the nation's most dynamic and diverse urban centers; and
WHEREAS, Soka Gakkai International President Dr. Daisaku Ikeda traveled to Chicago in October of 1960, as part of his worldwide mission to share the philosophy of peace and hope, which advocates that all people are worthy of respect and must be treated with the dignity they deserve; and
WHEREAS, During his trip to Chicago, Dr. Ikeda witnessed an act of racial injustice in Lincoln Park that reaffirmed his dedication to ridding the world of such inhumanity and intolerance, and inspired him to establish SGI-USA Chicago, which today includes 20,000 diverse members harmoniously working together to promote peace and justice; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Ikeda recognized that the key to everlasting peace is the continuous fostering of young. people; he returned to Chicago on several occasions to encourage SGI-USA youth to fearlessly challenge the ways of thinking that justify discrimination and violence, arid urged them to unite with people of all walks of life, to work toward developing a society based on the equality and happiness of all people; arid
WHEREAS, In 2018, inspired by Dr. Ikeda's exam pie and encouragement from former First Lady Michelle Obama, 50,000 youth from all backgrounds gathered in nine cities throughout the United States, including in Chicago at Wintrust Arena, to participate in the "Lions of Justice Festival", where they pledged to stand up in solidarity, across all differences of spiritual and cultural identity, to collectively confront the roots of hate - greed, anger and ignorance - that lie within people's hearts; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Ikeda expanded his efforts to support and encourage youth with the establishment of institutions of higher learning in four countries, including the highly-ranked Soka University of America in Aliso Viejo, California, which for nearly 20 years has helped educate global citizens who: are making major contributions to American society, including on the frontlines in the battle against COVID-19 in Chicago; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Ikeda's efforts to promote peace, culture, and education as cornerstones of a humane society were recognized by Chicago's DePaul University with the 2014 establishment of The Institute For Daisaku Ikeda Studies in Education to research Dr. Ikeda's philosophies and practices of student-centered education, along with the work of Dr. Ikeda's mentors, renowned Japanese educators Josei Toda and Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, and to provide workshops and symposia for students, educators, counselors, academics, and educational leaders in the Greater Chicago Area; and
WHEREAS, For over 60 years Dr. Ikeda has worked to promote equality and peace.through the citizen-diplomacy movement he pioneered, which included one-on-one dialogues with esteemed world leaders such as Rosa Parks and Nelson Mandela, and Nobel Peace Prize Laureates Adolfo Perez Esquivel and Linus Pauling, and the annual submission of Peace Proposals to the United Nations for close to 45 years; now, therefore
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayorand members of the City Council of the: City of Chicago, gathered here this ninth day of September, 2020, do hereby declare Dr. Daisaku Ikeda an Honorary Citizen ofthe City of Chicago for his life's work promoting peace, justice, and education, and in recognition of his enduring commitment and efforts to foster a society "worthy of our love and pride"; and
PATDOWELL Alderman, 3rd Ward
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be prepared and presented to Dr. Daisaku Ikeda as a token of our esteem, gratitude, and respect. r\