Bill Text: GA SR1214 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Ossie Davis Parkway; Ware County; dedicate
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-03-21 - Senate Read and Referred [SR1214 Detail]
Download: Georgia-2011-SR1214-Introduced.html
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Senate
Resolution 1214
By:
Senator Goggans of the 7th
A
RESOLUTION
Honoring
the life of Mr. Ossie Davis and dedicating a road in his honor; and for other
purposes.
WHEREAS,
the State of Georgia mourns the loss of one of its most distinguished citizens
with the passing of Mr. Ossie Davis; and
WHEREAS,
Mr. Raiford Chatman Davis, better known as Ossie Davis, was born in Clinch
County, Georgia, on December 18, 1917, and graduated from Center High School in
1934; and
WHEREAS,
he was a member of the Rose McClendon Players acting group in Harlem before
enlisting with the United States Army to serve as a guardian of this nation's
freedom and liberty during World War II; and
WHEREAS,
during his time in the military, Mr. Davis wrote performances and put on shows
for his fellow troops; and
WHEREAS,
after the war, Mr. Davis made his Broadway debut in
Jeb
in 1946 and went on to star in such plays as
A Raisin in the Sun,
Jamaica, I'm Not Rappaport, and
Purlie
Victorious; and
WHEREAS,
he appeared in numerous film, television, and radio works, including
The Ossie Davis &
Ruby Dee Story Hour,
The
Scalphunters,
Do the Right Thing,
Get on the Bus,
The
Stand,
The Client, Roots: The
Next Generation,
Evening
Shade, and
With Ossie &
Ruby; and
WHEREAS,
Mr. Davis authored several books for young readers, including
Escape to Freedom: A
Play about Young Frederick Douglass,
Langston,
and Just Like
Martin; and
WHEREAS,
he was well respected among Civil Rights activists for his work as master of
ceremonies for the 1963 March on Washington, raising money for Freedom Riders
arrested in the South for violating segregation laws, and championing the work
of Paul Robeson, W.E.B. DuBois, A. Philip Randolph, Malcolm X, Martin Luther
King, Jr., and Frannie Lou Hammer; and
WHEREAS,
Mr. Davis was recognized with numerous honors and accolades, including the
Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award, the NAACP Image Award, the Marian
Anderson Award, a Grammy Award for Spoken Word, the National Medal of Art, and
the Kennedy Center Honors; and
WHEREAS,
it is only fitting and proper that a lasting memorial to Mr. Davis's life of
service to this state be established.
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED AND ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA that
this body hereby joins in honoring the life and memory of Mr. Ossie Davis and
dedicates the portion of U.S. Highway 1/State Route 4 Business within the city
limits of Waycross in Ware County as the Ossie Davis Parkway.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Transportation is authorized and
directed to erect and maintain appropriate signs dedicating the Ossie Davis
Parkway.
BE
IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed
to transmit appropriate copies of this resolution to the family of Mr. Ossie
Davis and to the Department of Transportation.
