PRINTER'S NO. 1509
No. 148 Session of 2001
INTRODUCED BY J. WILLIAMS, APRIL 4, 2001
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
APRIL 4, 2001
A RESOLUTION
1 Commemorating the April 4 anniversary of the death of Martin
2 Luther King, Jr., and designating April 4, 2001, as "Martin
3 Luther King, Jr., Remembrance Day."
4 WHEREAS, Martin Luther King, Jr., born on January 15, 1929,
5 in Atlanta, Georgia, followed in his father's and grandfather's
6 footsteps by becoming a Baptist minister after graduation from
7 Morehouse College in 1948 and Crozer Theological Seminary in
8 1951; and
9 WHEREAS, He received his doctorate from Boston University in
10 1955; and
11 WHEREAS, In 1954, as pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist
12 Church in Montgomery, Alabama, Doctor King organized a citywide
13 boycott of the city's segregated busing system which led to a
14 United States Supreme Court decision forcing desegregation of
15 the buses; and
16 WHEREAS, Throughout this and later civil rights protests,
17 Doctor King espoused the philosophy of nonviolent passive
18 resistance and civil disobedience; and
1 WHEREAS, In 1957, Doctor King moved back to Atlanta to join
2 his father as associate pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church
3 and organized the Southern Christian Leadership Conference to
4 fight segregation and discrimination throughout the south; and
5 WHEREAS, During the following years, he was frequently
6 arrested, beaten, jailed and threatened with violence as a
7 result of his protest activities; and
8 WHEREAS, Doctor King led a massive voter registration drive
9 in Selma, Alabama, resulting in the famous freedom march to
10 Montgomery, the state capital; and
11 WHEREAS, His famous march on Washington, D.C., in 1963
12 culminated in a great rally at the Lincoln Memorial at which he
13 gave his immortal "I have a dream" speech; and
14 WHEREAS, Doctor King's efforts resulted in enactment of the
15 Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Public Law 88-352, 78 Stat. 241); and
16 WHEREAS, His personal sacrifices and determined leadership of
17 the civil rights movement in the United States were formally
18 recognized in 1964 when he received the Nobel Peace Prize; and
19 WHEREAS, Doctor King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, while
20 in Memphis, Tennessee, to organize a "poor people's campaign";
21 and
22 WHEREAS, The third Monday of January has been designated as a
23 national holiday in order to give all Americans an opportunity
24 to reflect upon the profound impact Doctor King has had on life
25 in the United States; therefore be it
26 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives urge all
27 Pennsylvanians to be mindful of the spirit and work of Doctor
28 Martin Luther King, Jr., and to remember his commitment to peace
29 and his dedication to equality for all human beings; and be it
30 further
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1 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives observe the
2 somber occasion of the death of the Reverend Doctor Martin
3 Luther King, Jr., 33 years ago by recognizing April 4, 2001, as
4 "Martin Luther King, Jr., Remembrance Day" in this Commonwealth.
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