Full Text of HR0483 101st General Assembly
HR0483 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | HR0483 | | LRB101 13279 ALS 62121 r |
|
| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Following World War I, during the summer and fall | 3 | | of 1919, race riots occurred in more than three dozen cities, | 4 | | including Chicago; it was branded the "Red Summer" because the | 5 | | riots resulted in some of the worst violence in United States | 6 | | history; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, After World War I, an estimated 100,000 black | 8 | | veterans moved North, where they still encountered | 9 | | segregation, racism, and inequality; in Chicago, the "presence | 10 | | and inspiration of black veterans, particularly those of the | 11 | | 370th Infantry Regiment" was critical to black Chicagoans | 12 | | forced to "defend themselves from white aggression; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, One of the most severe race riots occurred in | 14 | | Chicago between July 25, 1919 and August 3, 1919; the riot was | 15 | | triggered when a black teen was stoned to death after crossing | 16 | | an invisible boundary between a segregated part of the Chicago | 17 | | beaches; when police refused to arrest the white man whom black | 18 | | observers held responsible for the incident, crowds began to | 19 | | gather at the beach; the riot left 38 people dead, more than | 20 | | 500 injured, and 1,000 black families homeless after fires | 21 | | burned their homes; and
| 22 | | WHEREAS, The Red Summer marked a new era of black |
| | | HR0483 | - 2 - | LRB101 13279 ALS 62121 r |
|
| 1 | | resistance to white injustice, with African Americans standing | 2 | | up in unprecedented numbers and killing some of their | 3 | | tormenters; researchers believe that in a span of ten months | 4 | | more than 250 African Americans were killed in at least 25 | 5 | | riots across the United States; the white mobs never faced | 6 | | punishment; many African American soldiers returning from the | 7 | | war were outspoken against the racial discrimination, | 8 | | inequality, and violence that continued to plague black | 9 | | communities; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, Black journalists, including Ida B. Wells, played | 11 | | an important role in getting the story told; black newspapers, | 12 | | like the Chicago Defender, were instrumental in providing an | 13 | | alternate voice that represented why African Americans | 14 | | deserved to be here, deserved equal rights, and were, in some | 15 | | cases, justified in fighting; and
| 16 | | WHEREAS, Nearly 100 years later, not many people know about | 17 | | the events of the Red Summer; there are no national | 18 | | observances, history textbooks ignore it, and most museums do | 19 | | not acknowledge it; therefore, be it
| 20 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | 21 | | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 22 | | we declare July 29, 2019 as "Red Summer Remembrance Day" in the | 23 | | State of Illinois in remembrance of the 100th anniversary of |
| | | HR0483 | - 3 - | LRB101 13279 ALS 62121 r |
|
| 1 | | the Red Summer and urge the City of Chicago to erect a monument | 2 | | that includes the names of the victims on the site of the riot | 3 | | along with additional historical signage placed on highway, | 4 | | street, and expressway signs leading to the site; and be it | 5 | | further
| 6 | | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | 7 | | presented to Governor JB Pritzker, Illinois Attorney General | 8 | | Kwame Raoul, and Mayor of Chicago Lori Lightfoot.
|
|