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HR0150 - 104th General Assembly
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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION | ||||||
| 2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
| 3 | Representatives wish to mark Black History Month by | ||||||
| 4 | congratulating Illinois House Speaker Emanuel "Chris" Welch | ||||||
| 5 | for his continued service as the leader of the chamber and for | ||||||
| 6 | his historic election as the first Black lawmaker to hold this | ||||||
| 7 | position in the state's 200-plus-year history; and | ||||||
| 8 | WHEREAS, Speaker Welch was re-elected as Speaker of the | ||||||
| 9 | House in both 2023 and 2025, continuing his leadership in | ||||||
| 10 | shaping Illinois' legislative agenda; and | ||||||
| 11 | WHEREAS, Speaker Welch has been an advocate for diversity | ||||||
| 12 | and inclusion; he championed legislation requiring | ||||||
| 13 | Illinois-based corporations to disclose the racial and gender | ||||||
| 14 | composition of their boards and led a comprehensive study on | ||||||
| 15 | improving representation of women and minorities in leadership | ||||||
| 16 | roles; and | ||||||
| 17 | WHEREAS, Speaker Welch's commitment to workers' rights is | ||||||
| 18 | deeply personal; growing up in the Chicago suburbs, he saw | ||||||
| 19 | firsthand how his father's union job was lost when it moved to | ||||||
| 20 | a right-to-work state; this experience fueled his efforts as | ||||||
| 21 | an elected official to defend collective bargaining rights, | ||||||
| 22 | ultimately leading to the adoption of the Workers' Rights | ||||||
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| 1 | Amendment in the Illinois State Constitution; and | ||||||
| 2 | WHEREAS, Education has also been a key priority for | ||||||
| 3 | Speaker Welch; before serving in the legislature, he spent 12 | ||||||
| 4 | years on the Proviso Township High School Board of Education, | ||||||
| 5 | including a decade as board chair; under his leadership, the | ||||||
| 6 | district established the Proviso Math and Science Academy, | ||||||
| 7 | which is now one of Illinois' top selective enrollment public | ||||||
| 8 | schools serving communities of color and has been recognized | ||||||
| 9 | by U.S. News & World Report for its excellence; and | ||||||
| 10 | WHEREAS, Speaker Welch continues to lead with a vision of | ||||||
| 11 | expanding opportunity, strengthening workers' rights, and | ||||||
| 12 | fostering a more inclusive and equitable Illinois; therefore, | ||||||
| 13 | be it | ||||||
| 14 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
| 15 | HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
| 16 | we celebrate the chapter of Black History written here in this | ||||||
| 17 | House by recognizing the historic speakership of Emanuel | ||||||
| 18 | "Chris" Welch; and be it further | ||||||
| 19 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
| 20 | presented to Speaker Welch as a symbol of our esteem and | ||||||
| 21 | respect. | ||||||