SR0557 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0557 LRB099 12414 MST 35688 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, On May 17, 1954, the United States Supreme Court issued the landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, declaring unconstitutional any and all laws that established or maintained segregation in schools; and

WHEREAS, In 1957, in response to the ruling, 9 African-American students, working with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), registered to attend Little Rock Central High School; dubbed "The Little Rock Nine", they were denied entry to the school by Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus, who ordered the Arkansas National Guard deployed to deny the students access; and

WHEREAS, The Little Rock Nine were escorted into the school by the United States Army's 101st Airborne Division as ordered by President Dwight D. Eisenhower; the students encountered abuse and persecution at the hands of whites, but, in the end, enforced their civil rights by taking a stand for justice and equality; they have gone on to live lives dedicated to the proposition that racist ideology will not dictate educational policies and practices now or in the future; and

WHEREAS, The Little Rock Nine are: Dr. Melba Pattillo Beals, Elizabeth Eckford, Gloria Ray Karlmark, Ernest Green, Carlotta Walls LaNier, Dr. Terrence J. Roberts, Jefferson Thomas, Minnijean Brown Trickey, and Thelma Mothershed Wair; together they support The Little Rock Nine Foundation, which advances the ideals of justice and equal opportunity for all; and

WHEREAS, The many honors received by The Little Rock Nine include the NAACP's Spingarn Medal (1957), The Congressional Gold Medal of Honor (1999), a commemorative United States postage stamp (2005), and a commemorative 50th anniversary one-dollar coin issued by the U.S. Mint (2007); and

WHEREAS, The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Foundation has named The Little Rock Nine as its 2015 Lincoln Leadership Prize Recipients; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize The Little Rock Nine and the dedication they have shown to the advancement of civil rights; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we declare May 19, 2015 as The Little Rock Nine Day; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to The Little Rock Nine as an expression of our esteem and respect.