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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
3to learn of the death of Robert L. Anderson Sr., who passed
4away on January 24, 2023; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson was born to Talmitch and Virginia
6Anderson in Greenwood, Mississippi on January 26, 1940; he and
7his family moved to Chicago in 1946; he attended Douglass
8Elementary School and Dunbar Vocational High School; he earned
9his bachelor's degree in education from Chicago State
10University; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson became a teacher at Harrison
12Technical High School in the South Lawndale neighborhood of
13Chicago, where he met Johnnie Mae, and they married on August
1421, 1965; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson earned his law degree from Kent
16College of Law at the Illinois Institute of Technology in
171973; he became an attorney with the State's Employment
18Security Department; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson was appointed as a member of the
20late Mayor Harold Washington's sub-cabinet in 1985, being
21named as deputy mayor and serving as a confidential advisor

 

 

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1and attorney to Mayor Washington; during his tenure, he worked
2with various city agencies and departments to better the
3quality of life for all Chicagoans and was directly
4responsible for a number of important projects, including the
5O'Hare Development Project, the construction of a direct L
6train connection to O'Hare International Airport, the
7Southwest Transit Project, and capital improvement programs to
8repair aging streets and sewers throughout the City of
9Chicago; he also helped design the Chicago "remap" and
10assisted in a case that led Mayor Washington to gain control
11over the Chicago City Council; his work helped pave the way for
12Blacks to be appointed to both the Chicago City Council and the
13Chicago Park District Board of Commissioners; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson then cofounded the Chicago-based
15law firm Krohn, Jenkins & Anderson; he served as a legal
16advisor to Bryn Mawr West Community Council, the Task Force
17for Black Political Empowerment, and the Jackie Robinson West
18Little League; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson served as an executive staff
20member of the Chicago Urban League, where he helped shape
21policy and implement programs; his skills as an educator were
22utilized to direct Job Corps training programs; he was also
23known for lending a hand to help various community members in
24finding jobs and other resources; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson was instrumental in the
2development of the Chicago Public Library's Harold Washington
3Archives and Collections by creating the Mayoral Records
4Infrastructure Sub-Cabinet Series; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson committed to his faith at a young
6age; as a teenager, he joined Second Mount Vernon M.B. Church,
7where he served the church community as resident attorney
8later in life; and
 
9    WHEREAS, In his retirement years, Robert Anderson enjoyed
10caring for his six grandsons and attending their various
11events and celebrating their achievements; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson, affectionately known as "The
13People's Attorney", stood strong in service to his faith,
14family, people, and community throughout his life as a son, a
15husband, a father, a servant, an intellectual, and an
16activist; he will be remembered for leaving a legacy of love,
17kindness, grace, integrity, faith, family, and strength; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Robert Anderson was preceded in death by his
19parents; his brothers, Horace C., John Edward Sr., Frank, and
20Gus; and his sister, Patricia Ann Williams; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, At the time of his passing, Robert Anderson was
2survived by his wife, Johnnie Mae Anderson; his sons, Ivan
3Clisby and Robert L. (Patrice) Anderson Jr.; his daughters,
4Gail Clisby and Alison Anderson Wright; his brother, Talmitch
5Anderson; his sister, Theresia Jackson; his grandsons, Jordan
6Jeffery Washington, Robert Malik Anderson, Ethan Jeremiah
7Anderson, Zachary Langston Anderson, Wynton Terrence Wright,
8and Myles Joshua Wright; and a host of nieces, nephews,
9great-nieces, great-nephews, family, and friends; therefore,
10be it
 
11    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL
12ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
13Robert L. Anderson Sr. and extend our sincere condolences to
14his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it
15further
 
16    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
17presented to the family of Robert Anderson as an expression of
18our deepest sympathy.