TITLE: Celebrating Black History Month and paying tribute to Dr. Carter G. Woodson.

SUMMARY: Celebrating Black History Month and paying tribute to Dr. Carter G. Woodson.

FULL TEXT:
WHEREAS, Each year, myriad events and activities signal the celebration of February as Black History Month, and commemorations in 2015 coincide with the 140th anniversary of the birth year of Dr. Carter Godwin Woodson, the eminent African American historian who, more than anyone, is responsible for this observance; and WHEREAS, Born in Virginia in 1875, Carter Woodson was the eldest son of two former slaves, Anna Eliza and James Woodson; he received little schooling as a child, spending most of his time doing farm work to help support his family, and in his teens he became a coal miner; when he at last entered high school at the age of 20, he proved to be such a fine student that he finished in two years; this gifted and determined young man went on to attend Berea College and earn bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Chicago, and in 1912, he became the second African American, after W. E. B. Du Bois, to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University; and WHEREAS, Dr. Woodson dedicated his career as a scholar to the study and dissemination of African American history, working to ensure that it was taught in schools and universities; in 1915, he helped to found the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), now known as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, and the following year he launched the highly regarded Journal of Negro History,today The Journal of African American History;he served as a dean at Howard University and at the West Virginia Collegiate Institute, and he published more than a dozen books, including his famous critique, The Mis-Education of the Negro;and WHEREAS, In 1926, Dr. Woodson and the ASNLH sponsored the first Negro History Week, choosing the second week in February because it encompassed the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln; Dr. Woodson's and the association's efforts inspired schools and communities to sponsor local events, establish history clubs, and host lectures and performances, and over the following decades, mayors across the nation began issuing Negro History Week proclamations each February; and WHEREAS, In the 1960s, the civil rights movement and a growing acknowledgment of African American contributions to the development of this country led many colleges to devote a full month to the study and celebration of black history, and in 1976, President Gerald R. Ford became the first president to recognize February as Black History Month; every president since then has followed suit, bringing to fruition Dr. Woodson's dream of making African American history one of the foundational stories of American history and culture; and WHEREAS, By the time of his death in 1950, Dr. Carter G. Woodson had created a body of scholarship that helped bring the long-neglected history of African Americans into the full light of day, and his role in the creation of Black History Month continues to inspire Americans of all races and every generation; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas Legislature hereby commemorate Black History Month 2015 and pay tribute to the life and achievements of Dr. Carter Godwin Woodson. Reynolds Straus Guerra Otto Allen Guillen Paddie Alonzo Gutierrez Parker Alvarado Harless Paul Anchia Hernandez Pe a Anderson of Dallas Herrero Phelan Anderson of McLennan Howard Phillips Ashby Huberty Pickett Aycock Hughes Price Bell Hunter Raney Blanco Isaac Raymond Bohac Israel Reynolds Bonnen of Brazoria Johnson Riddle Bonnen of Galveston Kacal Rinaldi Burkett Keffer Rodriguez of Bexar Burns Keough Rodriguez of Travis Burrows King of Hemphill Romero, Jr. Button King of Parker Rose Canales King of Taylor Sanford Capriglione King of Uvalde Schaefer Clardy Klick Schofield Coleman Koop Shaheen Collier Krause Sheets Cook Kuempel Sheffield Craddick Landgraf Simmons Crownover Larson Simpson Dale Laubenberg Smith Darby Leach Smithee Davis of Dallas Longoria Spitzer Davis of Harris Lozano Springer Deshotel Lucio III Stephenson Dukes M rquez Stickland Dutton Martinez Thompson of Brazoria Elkins Martinez Fischer Thompson of Harris Faircloth McClendon Tinderholt Fallon Men ndez Turner of Collin Farias Metcalf Turner of Harris Farney Meyer Turner of Tarrant Farrar Miles VanDeaver Fletcher Miller of Comal Villalba Flynn Miller of Fort Bend Vo Frank Moody Walle Frullo Morrison White of Bell Galindo Mu oz, Jr. White of Tyler Geren Murphy Workman Giddings Murr Wray Goldman Naishtat Wu Gonzales Nev rez Zedler Gonz lez Oliveira Zerwas Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 719 was adopted by the House on February 26, 2015, by a non-record vote. Chief Clerk of the House