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[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 720 Introduced in House (IH)]

109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 720

      Honoring the life of Gordon Roger Alexander Buchanan Parks.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 9, 2006

  Mr. Ryun of Kansas (for himself, Mr. Moore of Kansas, Mr. Scott of 
 Georgia, Mr. Tiahrt, Mr. Moran of Kansas, Mr. Meeks of New York, Mrs. 
Christensen, Mr. Owens, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Mrs. Jones of Ohio, Mr. 
 Bishop of Georgia, Mr. Ford, and Ms. Watson) submitted the following 
  resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Government Reform

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
      Honoring the life of Gordon Roger Alexander Buchanan Parks.

Whereas Gordon Parks, a respected Kansan and American, passed away March 7, 
        2006;
Whereas Gordon Parks was born the youngest of 15 children in Fort Scott, Kansas, 
        on November 30, 1912;
Whereas Gordon Parks was an accomplished artist, the first African American 
        producer and director of a major film, a groundbreaking photo-
        journalist, and an award-winning photographer, author, and poet;
Whereas in 1942 Gordon Parks began developing his photographic style by working 
        with the Farm Security Administration's photography project, best known 
        for its Depression era photographs chronicling the despair and 
        devastation of America's farmers;
Whereas Gordon Parks worked as a photography correspondent in 1943 through the 
        Office of War Information (O.W.I.) and photographed the 332d Fighter 
        group that later became known as the Tuskegee Airmen;
Whereas Gordon Parks worked as a staff photographer for Life magazine from 1948 
        to 1972, creating a body of beautiful yet powerful images that provoked 
        public awareness and social change;
Whereas Gordon Parks wrote a childhood memoir titled ``The Learning Tree'' in 
        1963 and directed the movie version in 1969, thereby being credited as 
        the first African-American to direct a major Hollywood film;
Whereas Gordon Parks won an Emmy for the documentary ``Diary of a Harlem 
        Family'' in 1968;
Whereas Gordon Parks helped found Essence Magazine, the first publication of its 
        kind, targeted to the full array of issues related to African American 
        women, in 1970, and steered its editorial direction from 1970 to 1973;
Whereas Gordon Parks published his second memoir, ``To Smile in Autumn'', in 
        1979 and a second novel, ``Shannon'', in 1981;
Whereas Gordon Parks was honored for his contributions to civil rights and 
        inducted into the NAACP Hall of Fame in 1984;
Whereas Gordon Parks was named Kansan of the Year in 1986;
Whereas the New York Public Library recognized the seminal work of Gordon Parks 
        with the first retrospective of his work in 1987, and a second important 
        retrospective of his work was completed by the Corcoran Museum of Art in 
        Washington, D.C., in 1997;
Whereas Gordon Parks received the National Medal of Arts from President Reagan 
        in 1988;
Whereas in 1995, Gordon Parks donated the personal archive of his life's 
        artistic works to the Library of Congress to preserve its entirety into 
        perpetuity;
Whereas Gordon Parks was inducted into the International Photography Hall of 
        Fame in 2002;
Whereas Gordon Parks received the University of Kansas' William Allen White 
        Foundation National Citation for journalistic merit in 2006;
Whereas Gordon Parks made significant contributions to 20th Century art, and 
        without formal musical, photographic, or literary training, he changed 
        the history of art and filmmaking and inspired generations of artists; 
        and
Whereas throughout his life Gordon Parks received 40 honorary doctorates from 
        colleges and universities in the United States and England: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) recognizes and honors Gordon Roger Alexander Buchanan 
        Parks as a preeminent artist who made history, recognized the 
        beauty and potential within all of us, and devoted his life to 
        producing images that provoked America to reexamine its ideals; 
        and
            (2) urges the President to take appropriate measure to 
        encourage the celebration and remembrance of Gordon Parks many 
        significant achievements.
                                 <all>
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