SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 19
	WHEREAS, Ms. Opal Lee of Fort Worth joined the president at
	the White House on June 17, 2021, to witness the signing of
	legislation designating Juneteenth as a federal holiday, the
	culmination of her many years of advocacy; and
	WHEREAS, Known as "the grandmother of Juneteenth," Ms. Lee
	began celebrating the June 19 holiday as a girl in Marshall; her
	family later moved to Fort Worth, where on June 19, 1939, a mob of
	500 white supremacists burned down her family's new home; rising
	above oppression, she embarked on a career in education and became
	a tireless champion for civil rights, cultural heritage,
	affordable housing, and food security; in retirement, she took on
	leadership of a food bank, which now serves some 500 families a day
	and grows healthy produce at an urban farm named in her honor; and
	WHEREAS, Ms. Lee has organized the Juneteenth event in
	Fort Worth for decades, and she dreamed of making the observance
	that started in Texas a national celebration of freedom and
	unity; in 2016, at the age of 89, she launched a campaign to
	heighten awareness across the country, walking for 2.5-mile
	stretches in different cities to symbolize the 2.5-year delay in
	enforcing the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas; along the way,
	she spoke to the media and numerous groups about the meaning of
	Juneteenth and gathered 1.5 million signatures on a petition that
	she delivered to the U.S. Congress; finally, with passage of the
	Juneteenth legislation commemorating the end of slavery in the
	United States, the nation gained its first new holiday since
	Martin Luther King Jr. Day was signed into law in 1983; and
	WHEREAS, Long admired for her outstanding contributions to
	the local community, Ms. Opal Lee has now made an enduring impact
	at the national level, and her steadfast dedication to a vision
	of liberty and justice is a source of tremendous inspiration to
	all; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 87th
	Legislature, 1st Called Session, hereby congratulate Ms. Opal
	Lee on the designation of Juneteenth as a national holiday and
	extend to her sincere best wishes for continued success in all
	her endeavors; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That an official copy of this Resolution be
	prepared for Ms. Lee as an expression of high regard from the
	Texas Senate.
	Powell, Lucio
	Alvarado Hancock Nichols
	Bettencourt Hinojosa Paxton
	Birdwell Huffman Perry
	Blanco Hughes Schwertner
	Buckingham Johnson Seliger
	Campbell Kolkhorst Springer
	Creighton Menéndez Taylor
	Eckhardt Miles West
	Gutierrez Nelson Whitmire
	Hall Zaffirini
	Patrick, President of the Senate
		________________________________
		President of the Senate
		I hereby certify that the
		above Resolution was adopted by
		the Senate on July 22, 2021.
		________________________________
		Secretary of the Senate
		________________________________
		Member, Texas Senate
		________________________________
		Member, Texas Senate