City of Milwaukee - File #: 191712

• File #: 191712
• Version: 2
• Type: Resolution
• Status: Passed
• File created: 2/11/2020
• In control: COMMON COUNCIL
• Final action: 3/3/2020
• Title: Substitute resolution designating the observation of Black History Month to be an official City event held annually.
• Sponsors: ALD. COGGS, ALD. HAMILTON, ALD. JOHNSON, ALD. RAINEY, ALD. LEWIS, ALD. STAMPER, ALD. DODD
• Indexes: CELEBRATIONS

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result	Tally
3/13/2020	2	MAYOR	SIGNED
3/3/2020	2	COMMON COUNCIL	ADOPTED	Pass	14:0
2/20/2020	2	COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE	AMENDED; Minutes note: Ald. Stamper asked to be added as a co-sponsor. There were no objections. Miranda Bratts - community member Ald. Hamiton moved to add a "Whereas" clause relating to historic black colleges and universities	Pass	4:0
2/20/2020	2	COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE	RECOMMENDED FOR ADOPTION	Pass	4:0
2/11/2020	0	COMMON COUNCIL	ASSIGNED TO

Number
191712
Version
SUBSTITUTE 2
Reference
161528
Sponsor
ALD. COGGS, HAMILTON, JOHNSON, RAINEY, LEWIS, STAMPER, AND DODD
Title
Substitute resolution designating the observation of Black History Month to be an official City event held annually.
Analysis
This substitute resolution designates the observation of Black History month as an official City event held annually and authorizes acceptance and expenditure of contributions for all activities related to the event.
Body
Whereas, Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of blacks in U.S. history; and

Whereas, Historically, Black History Month grew out of the 1925 Negro History Week originated by Harvard historian Carter G. Woodson’s Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, which was first celebrated during a week in February, 1926, that encompassed the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass; and

Whereas, The success of Negro History Week led to several black history clubs, teachers demanding materials for instructing their students, and scholars stepping forward to endorse the event; and

Whereas, By the1950s, mayors of cities nationwide issued proclamations recognizing Negro History Week; and

Whereas, In 1976, the celebration was expanded to the full month of February, and President Gerald R. Ford urged Americans to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history”; and

Whereas, Black History Month has expanded beyond the United States and is now officially recognized in Canada and is unofficially observed in Ireland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom; and

Whereas, Organizations that join in paying tribute to the generations of African Americans who struggled with adversity and nevertheless made significant contributions to society include the Library of Congress, National Archives ...