SR0874 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0874 LRB095 22608 GRL 53015 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to learn of the death of Anna R. Langford of Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford was born to Arthur and Alice Riggs on October 27, 1917 in Springfield, Ohio; she was the youngest of three siblings; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford was raised by her grandmother after her parents died; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford moved to Chicago in 1933 to live with her aunt and uncle; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford graduated from Hyde Park High School and then attended the Washburn Trade School; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford started her professional career as a typist in the Social Security office; she then relocated to the Election Commissioner's office, where she aided in setting up a permanent registration system; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford later worked for and managed the old Secretary of State office on Cottage Grove Avenue in Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford married Larry Langford in 1947; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford attended John Marshall Law School to become an attorney; while pursuing her goal, she had a son, Larry Jr., in 1952; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford moved with her family to the Englewood neighborhood, integrating the 6000 block of Bishop Street; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford would later join Hope Presbyterian Church; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 1956; however, as a black attorney, she was refused office space in downtown Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford set up a neighborhood practice and provided legal representation to the poor on matters ranging from divorce to criminal defense to bankruptcy; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford spent much of her time in the 1960s providing free legal services to the residents of Mississippi, under dangerous conditions, as they sought to gain voting rights; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford worked closely with Dr. Martin Luther King and a young Jesse Jackson to protest segregation and discrimination in Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford successfully challenged the regular organization in 1971, winning the seat of Alderman of the 16th Ward and becoming the first black female alderman in the history of the Chicago City Council; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford went on to serve three terms and was an avid supporter of Mayor Harold Washington; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford retired from the Chicago City Council in 1991 but remained active in local politics, always working to improve her beloved neighborhood of Englewood, where she would spend the balance of her life; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford has received many humanitarian and civic awards and citations during her lifetime; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford was called home to glory on September 17, 2008; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford was preceded in death by her parents, Arthur and Alice Riggs, and her husband, Larry Langford; and

WHEREAS, Anna R. Langford is survived by her son, Lawrence W. Langford Jr., her grandchildren, Michael, Leslie, and Kris Hicks, her step grandson, Richard Pegue, her daughter-in-law, Marguerita, her great-grandson, Christopher; her niece, Cheryl Williams; her nephew, Arlester Jones; and her long-time friends, Nanny Ryan, Lillian Merrill, and Grace Edwards; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn, along with her family and friends, the passing of Anna R. Langford; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Anna R. Langford as an expression of our sympathy.