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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are pleased to honor Reverend Jesse L. Jackson,
4Sr. as one of America's foremost civil rights, religious, and
5political figures; and
 
6    WHEREAS, For 40 years, Reverend Jackson has played pivotal
7roles in movements for peace, civil rights, gender equality,
8and economic and social justice; on August 9, 2000, President
9Bill Clinton awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the
10nation's highest civilian honor; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Reverend Jackson's work in human and civil rights
12has garnered him more than 40 honorary doctorate degrees, and
13he frequently lectures at major colleges and universities
14including Howard, Yale, Princeton, Morehouse, Harvard,
15Columbia, Stanford, and Hampton; in November of 2007, he was
16made an Honorary Fellow of Regents Park College at Oxford
17University in the United Kingdom and received an Honorary
18Fellowship from Edge Hill University in Liverpool, England; in
19March of 2010, he was inducted into England's prestigious
20Cambridge Union Society and in April of 2010, he was awarded an
21honorary doctorate from the University of KwaZulu-Natal in
22South Africa; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, In December of 1971, Reverend Jackson founded
2Operation PUSH (People United to Serve Humanity), with the goal
3of economic empowerment and expanding educational, business,
4and employment opportunities for the disadvantaged and people
5of color; in 1984, he founded the National Rainbow Coalition, a
6social justice organization devoted to political empowerment,
7education, and changing public policy; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Reverend Jackson's presidential campaigns of 1984
9and 1988 broke new ground in United States' politics; he won
10historic victories, coming in first or second in 46 out of 54
11contests; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Reverend Jackson has always had a commitment to
13youth; he has visited thousands of high schools, colleges,
14universities, and correctional facilities encouraging
15excellence, inspiring hope, and challenging young people to
16study and stay drug-free; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Reverend Jackson has been a consistent and
18vigorous supporter of the labor movement in the U.S. and around
19the world and is known as someone who has walked more picket
20lines and spoken at more labor rallies than any other national
21leader; and
 
22    WHEREAS, Reverend Jackson has received numerous honors for

 

 

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1his work in human and civil rights and nonviolent social
2change; in 1991, the U.S. Post Office put his likeness on a
3pictorial postal cancellation, only the second living person to
4receive such an honor; he has been on the Gallup List of the
5Ten Most Respected Americans for more than a dozen years, and
6he has received the prestigious NAACP Spingarn Award, in
7addition to honors from hundreds of grassroots, civic, and
8community organizations from coast to coast; in 2009, UK Prime
9Minister Gordon Brown bestowed the "Global Diversity and
10Inclusion Award" on him at 10 Downing Street; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Reverend Jackson has been called the "Conscience
12of the Nation" and "the Great Unifier", challenging America to
13be inclusive and to establish just and humane priorities for
14the benefit of all; therefore, be it
 
15    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
16NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
17we honor Reverend Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. as one of America's
18foremost civil rights, religious, and political figures; and be
19it further
 
20    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
21presented to Reverend Jackson, Sr. as an expression of our
22esteem and respect.