Full Text of SR0866 103rd General Assembly
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION | 2 | | WHEREAS, During Women's History Month, the members of the | 3 | | Illinois Senate wish to honor the life and contributions of | 4 | | former State Representative and State Senator Lottie Holman | 5 | | O'Neill, the first female state legislator of Illinois; and | 6 | | WHEREAS, On January 23, 1923, Senator O'Neill was escorted | 7 | | by more than 1,000 women to take the first seat ever held by a | 8 | | woman in the Illinois General Assembly, where she served as | 9 | | the lone female legislator for two years; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, The Illinois House of Representatives' gallery | 11 | | was packed with suffragists who, just two years earlier, had | 12 | | finally secured their right to vote, helping to make Illinois | 13 | | the first state in the nation to ratify the 19th amendment; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, Senator O'Neill's husband, William, led the crowd | 15 | | in cheers of "District 41, District 41, woman's work has just | 16 | | begun"; and | 17 | | WHEREAS, Senator O'Neill served 13 terms in the Illinois | 18 | | House of Representatives and three terms in the Illinois | 19 | | Senate; and | 20 | | WHEREAS, Senator O'Neill focused on legislation to improve |
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| 1 | | care for mothers and babies, to fund schools for disabled | 2 | | children, and to secure better industrial conditions for | 3 | | women, including an eight-hour workday; and | 4 | | WHEREAS, Senator O'Neill introduced legislation year after | 5 | | year to allow women to sit on juries which, thanks to her | 6 | | perseverance, finally became law in Illinois in 1939; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, Senator O'Neill was a proud resident of Downers | 8 | | Grove Township, where she lived with her husband and two sons; | 9 | | she was an activist for equal voting rights, served as | 10 | | president of the Parent Teachers Association (PTA), and was a | 11 | | leader in the Downers Grove League of Women Voters, the Red | 12 | | Cross, the Campfire Girls, and the Downers Grove Women's Club; | 13 | | and | 14 | | WHEREAS, Senator O'Neill retired from the Illinois General | 15 | | Assembly at the age of 84 in 1963 as one of the State's most | 16 | | notable Republican leaders; and | 17 | | WHEREAS, Senator O'Neill's life and achievements are | 18 | | commemorated with a statue of her likeness in the Illinois | 19 | | State Capitol; and | 20 | | WHEREAS, Senator O'Neill became the namesake of O'Neill | 21 | | Middle School in Downers Grove, and its students continue to |
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| 1 | | proudly represent her as the O'Neill Senators; and | 2 | | WHEREAS, Senator O'Neill is considered the great matriarch | 3 | | of the Illinois Senate Republican Caucus, whose members today | 4 | | strive to continue her work towards providing more | 5 | | opportunities for all; therefore, be it | 6 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL | 7 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we honor the life, | 8 | | legacy, and leadership of former State Representative and | 9 | | State Senator Lottie Holman O'Neill; and be it further | 10 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 11 | | presented to the O'Neill Middle School as an expression of our | 12 | | respect and esteem. |
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