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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are saddened to learn of the death of Gloria
4"Mama Gloria" Allen of Chicago, who passed away on June 13,
52022; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Gloria Allen was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky
7on October 6, 1945; she was the child of Alma and grandchild of
8Mildred; she grew up in the Bronzeville neighborhood amid the
9legendary drag balls on Chicago's South Side; she attended
10Englewood High School, where she experienced and overcame
11traumatic violence; she transitioned with the love and support
12of her mother and grandmother well before the Stonewall Riots
13of 1969; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Gloria Allen became a licensed practical nurse
15(LPN), and she worked at the University of Chicago Hospital
16and in private homes as a nurse's aide; and
 
17    WHEREAS, In her later years, Gloria Allen established a
18charm school for young transgender people at Chicago's Center
19on Halsted, where she offered lessons on love, makeup, and
20manners and became affectionately known as "Mama Gloria" or
21simply "Mama" to her pupils; her work inspired the critically
22acclaimed play Charm, written by Philip Dawkins, which

 

 

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1premiered at Steppenwolf Garage Theater in Chicago in 2015
2before traveling to Minneapolis, Washington, D.C., Los
3Angeles, and New York; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Gloria Allen famously appeared on the cover of
5Jess T. Dugan and Vanessa Fabbre's book To Survive on This
6Shore, featuring photographs of and interviews with trans and
7non-binary elders; she became the subject of the 2020
8acclaimed documentary feature Mama Gloria, directed by Luchina
9Fisher, which was nominated for a 2022 GLAAD Media Award;
10through the documentary, she rose to national prominence,
11gaining new audiences and fame; her life and work were
12featured in the Chicago Tribune, People magazine, the 19th
13News, the BBC, NowThisNews, the Washington Post, and other
14publications; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Gloria Allen received a number of accolades for
16her activism, including the Living Legend Award by Janet Mock
17and Precious Brady-Davis at the 2014 Trans 100 Awards and
18SAGE's Carmen Vázquez Advocacy Award for Excellence in
19Leadership on Aging Issues at the National LGBTQ Task Force's
20annual Creating Change Conference in 2021; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Gloria Allen's life and the impact she had on the
22LGBTQ community were highlighted by President Joe Biden at the
23signing of an executive order to advance equality for LGBTQI+

 

 

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1individuals at the White House two days after her death on June
215, 2022; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Gloria Allen lived her life as an out and proud
4Black transgender woman; she will be remembered as a
5trailblazer, an activist, an icon, and a beloved elder of her
6community; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Gloria Allen is survived by her brothers,
8Herbert, Albert, Michael, and Phillip, and her sister, Sharon
9Smith; therefore, be it
 
10    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
11HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
12we mourn the passing of Gloria "Mama Gloria" Allen and extend
13our sincere condolences to her family, friends, and all who
14knew and loved her; and be it further
 
15    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
16presented to the family of Gloria Allen as an expression of our
17deepest sympathy.