HR0696 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0696 LRB103 40202 MST 72059 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated was founded on December 4, 1906 by seven college men, respectfully known as the "Seven Jewels", on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York and became the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established by and for African Americans; and

WHEREAS, The Seven Jewels of the fraternity, Henry Arthur Callis, Charles Henry Chapman, Eugene Kinckle Jones, George Biddle Kelley, Nathaniel Allison Murray, Robert Harold Ogle, and Vertner Woodson Tandy, recognized the need for a strong bond of brotherhood among African descendants in this country and the need to help correct the educational, economic, political, and social injustices faced by African Americans and other people of color; and

WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha initially served as a study and support group for minority students who faced racial prejudice, both educationally and socially, at Cornell University; the Jewel founders and early leaders of the fraternity succeeded in laying a firm foundation for Alpha Phi Alpha's principles of scholarship, fellowship, good character, and the uplifting of humanity; and

WHEREAS, While stressing academic excellence among its members since its founding, Alpha Phi Alpha has consistently supplied its voice and vision to the struggle of African Americans and people of color and to issues of civil rights around the world; and

WHEREAS, The aims of Alpha Phi Alpha are manly deeds, scholarship, and love for all mankind; and

WHEREAS, The mission of Alpha Phi Alpha is to develop leaders, promote brotherhood and academic excellence, and provide service and advocacy for communities, as exemplified through its national programs, including "Go to High School, Go to College", which focuses on the educational achievement of students in elementary, secondary, and post-secondary schools and has given thousands of dollars in scholarship funds to deserving students, "Project Alpha", which teaches teenage pregnancy prevention and sexually transmitted disease prevention to young males, and its "A Voteless People is a Hopeless People" campaign, a voter registration and education program through which thousands of voters have been educated and registered; the fraternity also focuses on providing service through its strategic partnerships with Big Brothers Big Sisters, the Boy Scouts of America, the March of Dimes, the American Heart/American Stroke Association, and the American Cancer Society; and

WHEREAS, For more than 117 years, Alpha Phi Alpha has played a fundamental role in the positive development of the character and education of more than 200,000 men around the world; and

WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha has over 700 college and alumni chapters in the U.S., Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Europe; this total includes 141 chapters in the Midwestern Region, and 32 of those chapters are in Illinois; the fraternity's presence started in Illinois with the founding of the first college chapter in Illinois, the Theta Chapter, in 1910 and the first alumni chapter, the Xi Lambda Chapter, in 1924, both in Chicago; and

WHEREAS, Members of Alpha Phi Alpha include many noteworthy leaders in the areas of government, business, entertainment, science, and higher education, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, W.E.B. DuBois, John Hope Franklin, John H. Johnson, Adam Clayton Powell, Andrew Young, Robert Smith, and Cornel West; its membership also includes federal, State, and local elected officials, including U.S. Representative Danny K. Davis, former U.S. Senators Edward Brook and Roland Burris, former State Senator Donne E. Trotter, former State Representative Al Riley, former State Representative Art Turner Jr., former Cook County Board Presidents John and Todd Stroger, and former Mayor of Chicago Eugene Sawyer, among countless others who have long stood at the forefront of the fight for civil and human rights and social change for all Americans; and

WHEREAS, Several Alpha Phi Alpha members have served in the Illinois General Assembly, and members currently serving in the 103rd General Assembly are Speaker of the House of Representatives Emanuel "Chris" Welch, Representative Justin Slaughter, and Senator Elgie R. Sims Jr., who also served as the 26th Vice President of the Midwestern Region; and

WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha continues to enrich the lives of its members, who, in turn, provide service and advocacy for the communities they serve; and

WHEREAS, On May 1, 2024, Illinois members of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. will participate in Alpha Day at the Illinois State Capital; and

WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. have joined together for this year's Alpha Day at the Capitol in a collective effort to advance the priorities of the communities they serve; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize the 2024 Alpha Phi Alpha Day held at the Illinois State Capitol and welcome the members of Alpha Phi Alpha to the Capitol; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we declare May 1, 2024 as Alpha Phi Alpha Day in the State of Illinois in honor of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated and its continued impact on the communities it serves.