Full Text of SR1070 97th General Assembly
SR1070 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Illinois State Senator James Meeks was born in | 3 | | Chicago; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks attended Harper High School in | 5 | | Chicago; he subsequently continued his education at Bishop | 6 | | College in Dallas, Texas, where he earned his bachelor's degree | 7 | | in religion and philosophy; this led to his eventual position | 8 | | as Pastor at the Salem Baptist Church in Chicago, where he | 9 | | oversaw the growth of the congregation to over 22,000 members; | 10 | | and
| 11 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks has been a long-time community | 12 | | activist, supporting many initiatives demonstrating his | 13 | | commitment to social justice, economic and educational | 14 | | equality, and civil rights, including sponsoring educational | 15 | | scholarships for children, feeding the homeless, and | 16 | | supporting drug rehabilitation programs; and
| 17 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks led the rally to "dry up" the | 18 | | Roseland community in 1998 by collecting votes to close 26 area | 19 | | liquor stores; and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks established the Salem Christian | 21 | | Academy School to provide quality education to hundreds of |
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| 1 | | children from preschool through 8th grade; he started the "It | 2 | | Takes a Village" mentoring program offering guidance and | 3 | | support for pregnant teenagers and teen mothers, which has | 4 | | benefitted countless young people since its founding; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks served as a member of the Board of | 6 | | Directors for the Chicago Fire Department, the Roseland | 7 | | Community Hospital, the Korean American Merchant Association, | 8 | | and the Olive Branch Mission; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks, since his election to the Illinois | 10 | | Senate in 2003, has demonstrated his commitment to improving | 11 | | the lives of underserved groups, particularly in his unceasing | 12 | | advocacy for education funding reform and access to affordable | 13 | | housing, while serving on the Senate Committees on Revenue, | 14 | | Elections, Housing & Community Affairs, Human Services, State | 15 | | Government & Veterans Affairs, Commerce & Economic | 16 | | Development, Education, Agriculture & Conservation, Senate | 17 | | Education Funding Reform, Appropriations, and Higher | 18 | | Education; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks was the chief architect of | 20 | | legislation that sought to eliminate the funding disparity | 21 | | between wealthy and poor communities by shifting school funding | 22 | | from property taxes to income taxes, allowing the State to | 23 | | maintain a consistent revenue source for Illinois children; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks served as Joint-Chair of the | 2 | | Illinois Legislative Black Caucus; and | 3 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks has successfully passed legislation | 4 | | that reduces racial profiling by establishing a camera grant | 5 | | fund to pay for cameras in police squad cars; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks has supported legislation to | 7 | | decrease recidivism rates and to keep communities safer by | 8 | | encouraging employers to hire ex-offenders; he has also | 9 | | championed legislation that would improve safety by bringing | 10 | | jobs and businesses to economically depressed areas; and | 11 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks currently serves as the Executive | 12 | | Vice President of the National Rainbow-PUSH Coalition, where he | 13 | | is able to expand his commitment to social justice, economic | 14 | | and educational equality, and civil rights; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks has received awards from the Better | 16 | | Funding for Better Schools Coalition, the Illinois Association | 17 | | of School Administrators, and the Illinois Farm Bureau for his | 18 | | outstanding service; and | 19 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks is blessed with his wife and | 20 | | partner, Jamell, as well as 4 children and one grandchild; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Senator Meeks' service to the 15th Legislative | 2 | | District and to the citizens of Illinois displays the utmost | 3 | | integrity, courage, and dedication; establishing a standard of | 4 | | virtue to be observed by all; therefore, be it
| 5 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL | 6 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we thank Senator James | 7 | | T. Meeks for his years of service to the people of Illinois and | 8 | | honor him with this resolution; and be it further
| 9 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 10 | | presented to Senator James Meeks as a symbol of our gratitude | 11 | | and with our best wishes for his future endeavors.
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