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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives are pleased to congratulate the Alpha Phi Alpha
4Fraternity on the occasion of its 105th anniversary and the
5Theta Mu Lambda Chapter of the fraternity on its 22nd Annual
6Black and Gold Ball; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. has supplied
8voice and vision to the struggle of African-Americans and
9people of color around the world since its founding on December
104, 1906; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha was founded at Cornell University
12in Ithaca, New York by 7 college men who recognized the need
13for a strong bond of brotherhood among African descendants in
14the United States; the visionary founders, known as the
15"Jewels" of the Fraternity, are Henry Arthur Callis, Charles
16Henry Chapman, Eugene Kinckle Jones, George Biddle Kelley,
17Nathaniel Allison Murray, Robert Harold Ogle, and Vertner
18Woodson Tandy; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha initially served as a study and
20support group for minority students who faced racial prejudice,
21both educationally and socially, at Cornell University; the
22Jewel founders and early leaders of the Fraternity succeeded in

 

 

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1laying a firm foundation for Alpha Phi Alpha's principles of
2scholarship, fellowship, good character, and the uplifting of
3humanity; and
 
4    WHEREAS, True to its form as the "first of firsts", Alpha
5Phi Alpha has been an interracial fraternity since 1945; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha recognizes the importance of
7stressing academic excellence among its members, as well as the
8need to help correct the educational, economic, political, and
9social injustices faced by African-Americans; Alpha Phi Alpha
10has long stood at the forefront of the African-American
11community's fight for civil rights through civil rights leaders
12such as W.E.B. DuBois, Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., Edward Brooke,
13Martin Luther King, Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Andrew Young,
14William Gray, Paul Robeson, and many others; and
 
15    WHEREAS, The Theta Mu Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha
16Fraternity was established on December 12, 1963 in Joliet to
17serve the needs of community residents in the South Suburban
18Chicago area; Theta Mu Lambda has served as a distinguished
19part of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity; and
 
20    WHEREAS, The members of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity serve as
21models of hard work, integrity, and dedication for the people
22of the State of Illinois; therefore, be it
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
2NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
3we congratulate the members of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity on
4the occasion of its 105th anniversary and congratulate the
5members of the Theta Mu Lambda Chapter of the fraternity on its
622nd Annual Black and Gold Ball, and wish them continued
7success and happiness in the future; and be it further
 
8    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
9presented to Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and the Theta Mu Lambda
10Chapter of the fraternity as a symbol of our esteem and
11respect.