Full Text of HR0696 103rd General Assembly
HR0696 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY | | | HR0696 | | LRB103 40202 MST 72059 r |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION | 2 | | WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated was | 3 | | founded on December 4, 1906 by seven college men, respectfully | 4 | | known as the "Seven Jewels", on the campus of Cornell | 5 | | University in Ithaca, New York and became the first | 6 | | intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established by and for | 7 | | African Americans; and | 8 | | WHEREAS, The Seven Jewels of the fraternity, Henry Arthur | 9 | | Callis, Charles Henry Chapman, Eugene Kinckle Jones, George | 10 | | Biddle Kelley, Nathaniel Allison Murray, Robert Harold Ogle, | 11 | | and Vertner Woodson Tandy, recognized the need for a strong | 12 | | bond of brotherhood among African descendants in this country | 13 | | and the need to help correct the educational, economic, | 14 | | political, and social injustices faced by African Americans | 15 | | and other people of color; and | 16 | | WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha initially served as a study and | 17 | | support group for minority students who faced racial | 18 | | prejudice, both educationally and socially, at Cornell | 19 | | University; the Jewel founders and early leaders of the | 20 | | fraternity succeeded in laying a firm foundation for Alpha Phi | 21 | | Alpha's principles of scholarship, fellowship, good character, | 22 | | and the uplifting of humanity; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, While stressing academic excellence among its | 2 | | members since its founding, Alpha Phi Alpha has consistently | 3 | | supplied its voice and vision to the struggle of African | 4 | | Americans and people of color and to issues of civil rights | 5 | | around the world; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, The aims of Alpha Phi Alpha are manly deeds, | 7 | | scholarship, and love for all mankind; and | 8 | | WHEREAS, The mission of Alpha Phi Alpha is to develop | 9 | | leaders, promote brotherhood and academic excellence, and | 10 | | provide service and advocacy for communities, as exemplified | 11 | | through its national programs, including "Go to High School, | 12 | | Go to College", which focuses on the educational achievement | 13 | | of students in elementary, secondary, and post-secondary | 14 | | schools and has given thousands of dollars in scholarship | 15 | | funds to deserving students, "Project Alpha", which teaches | 16 | | teenage pregnancy prevention and sexually transmitted disease | 17 | | prevention to young males, and its "A Voteless People is a | 18 | | Hopeless People" campaign, a voter registration and education | 19 | | program through which thousands of voters have been educated | 20 | | and registered; the fraternity also focuses on providing | 21 | | service through its strategic partnerships with Big Brothers | 22 | | Big Sisters, the Boy Scouts of America, the March of Dimes, the | 23 | | American Heart/American Stroke Association, and the American | 24 | | Cancer Society; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, For more than 117 years, Alpha Phi Alpha has | 2 | | played a fundamental role in the positive development of the | 3 | | character and education of more than 200,000 men around the | 4 | | world; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha has over 700 college and alumni | 6 | | chapters in the U.S., Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Europe; | 7 | | this total includes 141 chapters in the Midwestern Region, and | 8 | | 32 of those chapters are in Illinois; the fraternity's | 9 | | presence started in Illinois with the founding of the first | 10 | | college chapter in Illinois, the Theta Chapter, in 1910 and | 11 | | the first alumni chapter, the Xi Lambda Chapter, in 1924, both | 12 | | in Chicago; and | 13 | | WHEREAS, Members of Alpha Phi Alpha include many | 14 | | noteworthy leaders in the areas of government, business, | 15 | | entertainment, science, and higher education, including Dr. | 16 | | Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, W.E.B. DuBois, John | 17 | | Hope Franklin, John H. Johnson, Adam Clayton Powell, Andrew | 18 | | Young, Robert Smith, and Cornel West; its membership also | 19 | | includes federal, State, and local elected officials, | 20 | | including U.S. Representative Danny K. Davis, former U.S. | 21 | | Senators Edward Brook and Roland Burris, former State Senator | 22 | | Donne E. Trotter, former State Representative Al Riley, former | 23 | | State Representative Art Turner Jr., former Cook County Board |
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| 1 | | Presidents John and Todd Stroger, and former Mayor of Chicago | 2 | | Eugene Sawyer, among countless others who have long stood at | 3 | | the forefront of the fight for civil and human rights and | 4 | | social change for all Americans; and | 5 | | WHEREAS, Several Alpha Phi Alpha members have served in | 6 | | the Illinois General Assembly, and members currently serving | 7 | | in the 103rd General Assembly are Speaker of the House of | 8 | | Representatives Emanuel "Chris" Welch, Representative Justin | 9 | | Slaughter, and Senator Elgie R. Sims Jr., who also served as | 10 | | the 26th Vice President of the Midwestern Region; and | 11 | | WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha continues to enrich the lives of | 12 | | its members, who, in turn, provide service and advocacy for | 13 | | the communities they serve; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, On May 1, 2024, Illinois members of Alpha Phi | 15 | | Alpha Fraternity, Inc. will participate in Alpha Day at the | 16 | | Illinois State Capital; and | 17 | | WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and Alpha Kappa | 18 | | Alpha Sorority, Inc. have joined together for this year's | 19 | | Alpha Day at the Capitol in a collective effort to advance the | 20 | | priorities of the communities they serve; therefore, be it | 21 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE |
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| 1 | | HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 2 | | we recognize the 2024 Alpha Phi Alpha Day held at the Illinois | 3 | | State Capitol and welcome the members of Alpha Phi Alpha to the | 4 | | Capitol; and be it further | 5 | | RESOLVED, That we declare May 1, 2024 as Alpha Phi Alpha | 6 | | Day in the State of Illinois in honor of Alpha Phi Alpha | 7 | | Fraternity, Incorporated and its continued impact on the | 8 | | communities it serves. |
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