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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are pleased to honor the staff and management
4of Ebony magazine on the 65th anniversary of publication; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Ebony is the number one source for a unique
6perspective on the African-American community; Ebony combines
7news items with cultural items, celebrity news with fashion
8trends, and covers items of interest to its readership; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Negro Digest was first published in November of
101942 and led to the founding of Ebony magazine in November of
111945 by John H. Johnson; John Johnson was born in poverty but
12rose to be included in the Forbes list of the 400 richest
13Americans; and
 
14    WHEREAS, He was a member of the Publishing Hall of Fame,
15the National Business Hall of Fame, the Advertising Hall of
16Fame, and the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame; he received the
17Spingarn Medal, the highest award of the NAACP, and the Salute
18to Greatness Award, presented by Martin Luther King Jr. Center,
19for his contributions to civil rights; and
 
20    WHEREAS, He was named the Publisher of the Year in 1972 by
21the Magazine Publishers Association; in 1974, he was named "The

 

 

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1Most Outstanding Black Publisher in History" by the National
2Newspapers Publishers Association; and in 2003 he was named
3"The Greatest Minority Entrepreneur in U.S. History" by Baylor
4University and saw the naming of the journalism school at
5Howard University to the John H. Johnson School of
6Communications; and
 
7    WHEREAS, John Johnson passed away on August 8, 2005, the
860th anniversary year of the first publication of Ebony
9magazine; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Linda Johnson Rice currently serves as the
11Chairman of Johnson Publishing Company, Desiree Rogers is the
12Chief Executive Officer, and Rodrigo Sierra serves as Chief
13Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President of the company;
14therefore, be it
 
15    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
16NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
17congratulate the staff and management of Ebony Magazine on this
18special anniversary year and wish them continued success for
19years to come; and be it further
 
20    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
21presented to Linda Johnson Rice as a symbol of our respect and
22esteem.