Bill Text: IL SR0643 | 2011-2012 | 97th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Recognizes all Native American peoples whose ancestors once lived on, temporarily resided in, or traveled through the great State of Illinois. Designates November 2012 as Native American History Month and joins governmental and public organizations in paying tribute to the rich ancestry and traditions of Native Americans.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2)

Status: (Passed) 2012-04-26 - Resolution Adopted [SR0643 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2011-SR0643-Introduced.html

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SENATE RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Native American Peoples have been disassociated
from their traditional homelands contrary to a universal belief
that all persons have inherent worth and dignity; human
relations should be based on justice, equity, and compassion;
this world should be a community of peace, liberty, and justice
for all; and our communities should seek to live in peace with
our fellow human beings, both as individuals and as peoples;
and
WHEREAS, The Doctrine of Discovery was a principle of law
developed in a series of 15th century papal bulls and royal
charters by European monarchs by which the Americas were first
explored, and was the legal authority used by those who
colonized the Americas, appropriated lands and resources, and
attempted to dominate Native American Nations and undermine
inherent Native American sovereignty; and
WHEREAS, After the United States Revolutionary War, the
tenets of the Doctrine of Discovery were continued by the new
states and courts, controlling all purchase of lands and any
foreign, personal, or commercial interactions with tribes; and
WHEREAS, Prior to and during the War of 1812, the
principles of the Doctrine of Discovery were practiced by both

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the British and the United States in relations and transactions
with the Native American tribes; and
WHEREAS, The Illinois Territory was on the border of this
conflict between Great Britain and the United States and used
by the British to conduct raids on American settlements during
the War of 1812; and
WHEREAS, Following the War of 1812, Native American peoples
who had supported either the United States or Great Britain
during the war continued to be subjected to the policies of the
Doctrine of Discovery resulting in the appropriation of their
lands and resources, the prohibition of their cultural and
spiritual practices, and the reduction of their sovereign
rights, resulting in the complete elimination of their land in
the Illinois Territory, which later became the State of
Illinois; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL
ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that during this
bicentennial remembrance of the War of 1812, and in recognition
of all Native American peoples whose ancestors once lived on,
temporarily resided in, or traveled through the great State of
Illinois, we designate November 2012 as Native American History
Month and join governmental and public organizations in paying
tribute to the rich ancestry and traditions of Native

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Americans; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
presented to the Illinois State Historical Society, the
American Indian Center in Chicago, the American Indian Museum
at the Smithsonian, in Washington, D. C. and the D'Arcy
McNickel Center for the History of the American Indian,
Newberry Library, in Chicago.