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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The Illinois House of Representatives is pleased
3 to acknowledge the outstanding achievements of those
4 individuals who strive to improve not only themselves, but the
5 world around them; and
 
6     WHEREAS, Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah, from the African country of
7 Ghana, is a man who has excelled both as an athlete and as a
8 champion for the rights of the disabled; and
 
9     WHEREAS, Mr. Yeboah had many challenges to overcome in his
10 early life; he was born without a tibia in his right leg, which
11 left his leg useless and withered; and
 
12     WHEREAS, In Ghana, at the time, it was a commonly-held
13 belief that a deformity of a child was caused by a sin of the
14 mother; because of his son's deformed leg, Mr. Yeboah's father
15 abandoned his family, and the friends of Mr. Yeboah's mother
16 encouraged her to kill or, at the very least, abandon her
17 disabled son; and
 
18     WHEREAS, Comfort Yeboah, Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah's mother,
19 chose, instead, to nurture and encourage her firstborn son;
20 Comfort Yeboah made the radical decision to send her disabled
21 son to primary school instead of sending him to the streets as
22 a beggar; and
 
23     WHEREAS, Comfort Yeboah died when her son was 13, and
24 Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah was forced to drop out of school; he
25 moved to Accra, the capital of Ghana, where he shined shoes for
26 $2 a day; and
 
27     WHEREAS, Seeking to prove that a disability is not an
28 insurmountable challenge, in September of 2001, Mr. Yeboah,
29 with the support of the Challenged Athletes Foundation,

 

 

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1 embarked on a bicycle ride across his home country; with the
2 use of only one leg and wearing a shirt that read "The Pozo",
3 which is slang for a disabled person, Mr. Yeboah completed the
4 379-mile ride across Ghana; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Mr. Yeboah's courageous efforts garnered media
6 attention both in Ghana and around the world; Mr. Yeboah has
7 used that media attention to champion the rights of the
8 disabled; and
 
9     WHEREAS, In cooperation with King Osagyefuo Amotia Ofori
10 Panin of Akyem Abuadwa and with the Free Wheelchair Mission,
11 Mr. Yeboah has helped provide free wheelchairs to disabled
12 persons around the world; since 2001, the Free Wheelchair
13 Mission has distributed more than 24,000 wheelchairs in 37
14 developing countries, including Afghanistan, Angola, Egypt,
15 Ghana, Haiti, Iraq, Liberia, Rwanda, and Zambia; and
 
16     WHEREAS, In his home country, Mr. Yeboah has started a
17 cycling team, a wheelchair basketball team, and a running team
18 for physically challenged athletes, and he is currently working
19 on starting a sports academy for disabled athletes; and
 
20     WHEREAS, The government of Ghana is taking steps to improve
21 the quality of life for its disabled citizens; in September of
22 2005, the government of Ghana indicated that, during its next
23 session, the Parliament of Ghana would pass a Disability Bill
24 to help remove barriers and obstacles that obscure the
25 developmental efforts of people with disabilities; and
 
26     WHEREAS, The efforts of Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah, King
27 Osagyefuo, the Parliament of Ghana, and countless others have
28 gone a long way toward allowing persons with disabilities to
29 live with purpose and dignity, but, as always, more can be
30 done; therefore, be it
 

 

 

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1     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
2 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
3 we recognize and applaud the outstanding achievements of
4 Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah both as an athlete and as a champion for
5 the rights of the disabled; and be it further
 
6     RESOLVED, That we urge the Parliament of Ghana to increase
7 its efforts to protect and improve the lives of its disabled
8 citizens and to pass conscientious legislation to ensure the
9 rights of the disabled; and be it further
 
10     RESOLVED, That we applaud King Osagyefuo Amotia Ofori Panin
11 of Akyem Abuadwa for using his name and authority to improve
12 the status of Ghana's many physically disabled persons; and be
13 it further
 
14     RESOLVED, That we urge the citizens of Illinois to take
15 part in the continuing efforts around the globe to make it
16 possible for those with physical disabilities to live their
17 lives with purpose, dignity, and value; and be it further
 
18     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
19 delivered to Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah, King Osagyefuo Amotia Ofori
20 Panin, and the Parliament of Ghana.