Bill Text: CA SR54 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relative to Black History Month
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2016-02-12 - Read. Adopted. (Ayes 32. Noes 0. Page 3043.) [SR54 Detail]
Download: California-2015-SR54-Enrolled.html
BILL NUMBER: SR 54 ENROLLED
BILL TEXT
ADOPTED IN SENATE FEBRUARY 12, 2016
ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY JANUARY 4, 2016
INTRODUCED BY Senators Hall and Mitchell
JANUARY 4, 2016
Relative to Black History Month
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
HOUSE OR SENATE RESOLUTIONS DO NOT CONTAIN A DIGEST
WHEREAS, Dr. Carter Godwin Woodson, distinguished African American
author, editor, publisher, and historian, who is known as the
"Father of Black History," founded Negro History Week in 1926, which
became Black History Month in 1976, intended to encourage further
research and publishing regarding the untold stories of African
American heritage; and
WHEREAS, The history of African Americans here in the United
States, as well as throughout the ages, is indeed unique and vibrant,
and it is appropriate to celebrate this history during the month of
February 2016, which has been proclaimed as Black History Month; and
WHEREAS, There is even greater cause for reverent celebration in
2016 as Americans reflect on the significance of the 150th
anniversary of the proposal of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United
States Constitution, which granted due process and equal protection
under the law to all citizens, and at the same time granted
citizenship to African Americans; and
WHEREAS, The history of the United States is rich with
inspirational stories of great and noble men and women whose actions,
words, and achievements have united Americans and contributed to the
success and prosperity of the United States; and
WHEREAS, The slave trade was a tragic episode in African history
and began before August 1619 when the first slaves arrived in
Jamestown, Virginia. During the course of the slave trade, an
estimated 50 million African men, women, and children were lost to
their native continent, though only about 15 million arrived safely
to a new home. The others lost their lives on African soil or along
the Guinea coast, or finally in the holds of ships during the dreaded
Middle Passage across the Atlantic Ocean; and
WHEREAS, The first American to shed blood in the revolution that
freed America from British rule was Crispus Attucks (March 5, 1770,
Boston Massacre), an African American seaman and slave. African
Americans also fought in various wars, including the Battles of
Lexington and Concord in April 1775, the Battle of Rhode Island on
August 29, 1778, the Battles of Ticonderoga, White Plains,
Bennington, Brandywine, Saratoga, Savannah, Yorktown, Bunker Hill,
and other revolutionary war battles; the War of 1812, including the
Battle of New Orleans; the Civil War; the Spanish-American War; World
Wars I and II; Korea; and the Vietnam War; and
WHEREAS, In spite of the African slave trade, many Africans and
African Americans continued to move forward in society; during the
Reconstruction period, two African Americans served in the United
States Senate, and 14 sat in the House of Representatives; and
WHEREAS, From the earliest days of the United States, the course
of its history has been greatly influenced by Black heroes and
pioneers in many diverse areas, from science, medicine, business, and
education, to government, industry, and social leadership; and
WHEREAS, Africans and African Americans have also been great
inventors, inventing and improving things such as the
air-conditioning unit, almanac, automatic gearshift, blood plasma
bag, clothes dryer, doorknob, doorstop, electric lamp bulb, elevator,
fire escape ladder, fountain pen, gas mask, golf tee, horseshoe,
lantern, lawnmower, lawn sprinkler, lock, lubricating cup,
refrigerating apparatus, spark plug, stethoscope, telephone
transmitter, thermostat control, traffic signal, and typewriter; and
WHEREAS, A number of these brave and accomplished individuals,
such as Booker T. Washington, George Washington Carver, Matthew
Henson, Daniel Hale Williams, Dr. Charles Drew, Jackie Robinson,
Jessie Owens, Curt Flood, Medgar Evers, and, of course, Dr. Martin
Luther King, Jr., are noted prominently in the history books of
students nationwide, thus enabling them to learn about the important
and lasting contributions of these individuals; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, That the Senate
takes great pleasure in recognizing February 2016 as Black History
Month, urges all citizens to join in celebrating the accomplishments
of African Americans during Black History Month, and encourages the
people of California to recognize the many talents, achievements, and
contributions that African Americans make to their communities; and
be it further
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.
