H.R. No. 22 



R E S O L U T I O N
	WHEREAS, One of America's leading political commentators and 
favorite talk show hosts, Tavis Smiley has achieved excellence in 
broadcasting once again with his highly acclaimed The Tavis Smiley 
Show on National Public Radio (NPR); and
	WHEREAS, The former host of the popular BET Tonight with 
Tavis Smiley on Black Entertainment Television, Mr. Smiley 
contributes political commentary to the Tom Joyner Morning Show and 
is a correspondent for CNN and for ABC-TV's Good Morning America and 
Primetime Thursday; the author of five books, including his most 
recent release, How to Make Black America Better, Mr. Smiley also 
publishes The Smiley Report newsletter and serves as a contributing 
editor for USA Weekend magazine; and
	WHEREAS, Translating his personal accomplishments into 
public service, this Indiana University graduate has founded the 
Tavis Smiley Foundation, a nonprofit organization aimed at 
encouraging, empowering, and enlightening African American youth; 
among its many projects, the foundation features the Youth to 
Leaders program, an annual one-day leadership-building conference 
that takes place in cities across America; in addition, Tavis 
Smiley Presents, a subsidiary of The Smiley Group, Inc., has 
produced the historic Black Think Tank series broadcast 
internationally on C-SPAN; and
	WHEREAS, This accomplished gentleman has been widely 
recognized for his myriad contributions to the African American 
community; named one of Time magazine's 50 most promising young 
leaders, Mr. Smiley has won the NAACP Image Award for Best "News, 
Talk, or Information Series" for three consecutive years, and he is 
the recipient of the prestigious Mickey Leland Humanitarian Award 
from the National Association of Minorities in Communications; and
	WHEREAS, On January 7, 2002, Mr. Smiley embarked on yet  
another groundbreaking endeavor when The Tavis Smiley Show debuted 
on NPR on 16 key public radio stations nationwide; the first African 
American to host his own signature show for the station, Mr. Smiley 
has created one of the fastest-growing programs in the network's 
history, interviewing exciting guests ranging from world leaders to 
pop stars on a broad range of topics; and
	WHEREAS, With his new show, Mr. Smiley has secured a 
prominent place in the annals of broadcast journalism, digging to 
the core of today's issues to discover what really matters to people 
and further establishing himself as one of this nation's most 
exciting media personalities and leading political analysts; now, 
therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 78th Texas 
Legislature, 2nd Called Session, hereby congratulate Tavis Smiley 
for his many significant accomplishments and extend to him best 
wishes for continued success and happiness; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be 
prepared for Mr. Smiley as an expression of high regard by the Texas 
House of Representatives.

                                                                          Dutton

                                                  ______________________________
                                                       Speaker of the House     

	I certify that H.R. No. 22 was adopted by the House on August 
5, 2003, by a non-record vote.

                                                  ______________________________
                                                     Chief Clerk of the House