Bill Text: VA HR171 | 2018 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Celebrating the life of Paul Robert Booth.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2018-03-08 - Bill text as passed House (HR171ER) [HR171 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2018-HR171-Enrolled.html
WHEREAS, Paul Robert Booth, a revered and beloved leader of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, many members of which are Virginia residents, died on January 17, 2018; and
WHEREAS, Paul Booth was born on June 7, 1943, in Washington, D.C., and attended Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania; and
WHEREAS, Paul Booth was a founder and leader of the Students for a Democratic Society, which opposed the Vietnam War and promoted public service work as an alternative to the draft; and
WHEREAS, Paul Booth was a passionate and effective organizer for civil rights, anti-poverty efforts, and university reform; and
WHEREAS, Paul Booth joined the labor movement in 1966 as research director for the United Packinghouse Workers of America and then became organizing director and executive assistant to Gerald McEntee, the president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME); and
WHEREAS, Paul Booth continued to serve as a leader of AFSCME until 2017, and according to president Lee Saunders, he was "an organizer's organizer, a man of great generosity and integrity, a friend and mentor to so many people in AFSCME, the labor movement and the progressive community"; and
WHEREAS, Paul Booth was dedicated to his beloved family, and he will be fondly remembered and greatly missed by his wife, Heather, a prominent progressive leader; his sons, Dan and Gene, and their families; and numerous other family members, friends, and colleagues; and
WHEREAS, many people in the labor union and progressive movements in Virginia and elsewhere viewed Paul Booth with great affection, respect, and admiration, charmed by his warmth and wit and inspired by his powerful intellect and dedication to dignity and fairness for working people; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Delegates hereby note with great sadness the loss of Paul Robert Booth; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Paul Robert Booth as an expression of the House of Delegates' respect for his memory.
