RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The theme of Black History Month for 2016 - "Hallowed Grounds: Sites of African American Memories" - aims to recognize the legacy of African-American accomplishments embedded in historical sites across the United States, such as Chicago's Pullman District, which was recently designated as a National Monument; and
WHEREAS, The first Africans in the Americas were brought here involuntarily as early as the 17th century; and
WHEREAS, African-Americans suffered enslavement, and then faced lynch mobs, segregation, and the denial of their fundamental rights; and
WHEREAS, In the face of these cruel injustices, African-Americans have made countless invaluable contributions throughout the history of the United States, including, to name only a few examples:
The writings of Booker T. Washington, Phyllis Wheatley, James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Ralph Ellison, Zora Neale Hurston, Richard Wright, Margaret Walker, Gwendolyn Brooks, Ama Bontemps, Lorraine Hansberry, and Ta-Nehisi Coates;
The music of Mahalia Jackson, Billie Holiday, John Coltrane, Bessie Smith, Duke Ellington, B.B. King, Lou Rawls, Curtis Mayfield, Minnie Riperton, Frankie Knuckles, Kanye West, and Chance the Rapper;
The resolve of athletes such as Jackie Robinson, Althea Gibson, Jesse Owens, Wilma Rudolph, Jack Johnson, Arthur Ashe, Hank Aaron, Joe Louis, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Ernie Banks, Gayle Sayers, Frank Thomas, Muhammad Ali, and Michael Jordan;
The scientific advancements of Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, George Washington Carver, Charles Drew, Benjamin Banneker, Percy Julian, and Mae Jemison; and
The vision of leaders such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Mary McLeod Bethune, Thurgood Marshall, Malcom X, Martin Luther King, Jr., Fred Hampton, Jesse Jackson, Shirley Chisholm, Harold Washington, and Barak Obama; and
WHEREAS, The birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass inspired the creation of Negro History Week, the precursor to Black History Month; and
WHEREAS, Negro History Week represented the culmination of Dr. Carter G. Woodson's efforts to enhance knowledge of Black history, efforts that began with the Journal of Negro History, published by Woodson's Association for the Study of African-American Life and History; and
WHEREAS, February's official designation as Black History Month dates back to 1926, when Dr. Woodson set aside this special period of time to recognize the heritage and achievement of Black Americans; now, therefore,
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BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and Members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, assembled this tenth day of February, 20>6, do hereby celebrate Black History Month, and encourage all Chicagoans to join in the celebration.
ima M. Mitts Alderman, 37th Ward
Carrie M. Austin Alderman, 34th Ward
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and Members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, assembled this tenth day of February, 2Q>6, do hereby celebrate Black History Month, and encourage all Chicagoans to join in the celebration.
ima M. Mitts Alderman, 37th Ward
Carrie M. Austin Alderman, 34th Ward