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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate wish to honor
3Black women, their accomplishments, and their contributions to
4the history of the United States; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Black women have shaped and molded U.S. history
6in innumerable and irrefutable ways, from the moment they
7arrived by means of the Middle Passage as slave labor to their
8arrival in the White House as the vice president of the United
9States; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Even in the face of unimaginable racism rooted in
11our violent origins in America, and continued for over 400
12years, Black women have risen above their circumstances in the
13face of adversity, not just to survive but also to thrive,
14imagine, create, achieve, inspire, and excel; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Black women have been the bedrock of the
16community, the foundation of the family, the cornerstone of
17the Black church, the innovator, the explorer, the
18entrepreneur, and so much more; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Instead of accepting discrimination as their
20reality, Black women have instead built, created, developed,
21implemented, spearheaded, and maintained guilds, sororities,

 

 

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1non-profit organizations, clubs, scholarship foundations,
2medical associations, and philanthropic affiliations that have
3uplifted, improved, inspired, and supported multitudes of
4communities with diverse needs; and
 
5    WHEREAS, It is time to celebrate "Mama" and the ancestors
6who taught Black women to be strong, resourceful, and to do
7good for the greater good; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Black women nurture, guide, mentor, and inspire
9as they rise to unimaginable heights, overcoming intentional
10and systemic barriers; as Black women soar, communities are
11uplifted, and we all benefit; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Black women have excelled in all areas of life,
13including but not limited to journalism, education, medicine,
14art, law and government, and business; this is exemplified in
15the lives of Black women who hail from the State of Illinois,
16such as Dr. Carol Adams, Ida B. Wells Barnett, Rev. Willie
17Barrow, United States Ambassador and Senator Carol Moseley
18Braun, Gwendolyn Brooks, Margaret Burroughs, Bessie Coleman,
19Rev. Johnnie Coleman, Marva Collins, Lorraine Hansbury, Vivian
20Harsh, Jennifer Hudson, Mahalia Jackson, Mae Jemison, Jackie
21Joyner-Kersee, Chaka Khan, Annie Turnbo Malone, Mamie Till
22Mobley, Diane Nash, Michelle Obama, Shonda Rhimes, Georgiana
23Simpson, Jacqueline Vaughn, and Oprah Winfrey; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Black women have stood in solidarity with women
2and men of all backgrounds, sexual orientations, races,
3religious affiliations, and ethnicities across Illinois, the
4United States, and the world in an effort to demand parity and
5equity of all human beings in all areas of life; and
 
6    WHEREAS, February 28th intentionally connects the
7nationally recognized months of February with Black History
8Month and March with Women's History Month, uplifting the
9unique intersectionality of race and gender of being both
10Black and a woman; therefore, be it
 
11    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL
12ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare February
1328, 2023 as Black Women's History Day in the State of Illinois
14to honor the accomplishments, power, beauty, courage,
15intelligence, ingenuity, stewardship, and leadership of Black
16women; and be it further
 
17    RESOLVED, That we encourage all Illinoisans and their
18families to acknowledge, in word and in deed, the
19accomplishments of Black women in places where they live,
20work, and play, because doing so recognizes Black women's
21history as American history.