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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The year 2008 will mark the 20th year since the |
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passing of William C. Velasquez, founder of the Southwest Voter |
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Registration Education Project, and the approach of this solemn |
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anniversary offers a fitting opportunity to pay tribute to the |
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achievements of this voting rights pioneer and revered son of the |
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Lone Star State; and |
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WHEREAS, Born in 1944, Willie Velasquez graduated from |
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Central Catholic High School in San Antonio and then attended St. |
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Mary's University; his dedication to furthering the civil rights of |
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Hispanic Americans was already evident in his college years; he |
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helped found the Mexican American Youth Organization while at St. |
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Mary's and also worked as an organizer for the United Farm Workers |
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Union in 1966 and 1967; and |
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WHEREAS, Prominent in a number of groundbreaking Latino |
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political organizations of the late 1960s and early 1970s, Mr. |
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Velasquez helped lay the groundwork for the Raza Unida Party, a |
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political party championing the rights of Mexican Americans, and |
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for the National Council of La Raza, which has become an important |
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civil rights and advocacy group; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Velasquez focused on Latino participation in |
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elections as part of his work for the council, and this led to the |
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founding of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project in |
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1974; uniting behind the slogan Su Voto es Su Voz, "Your Vote is |
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Your Voice," SVREP set out to educate Hispanics about the |
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democratic process and urge them to take part in elections, and this |
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vital work has continued for more than three decades; by conducting |
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thousands of nonpartisan voter registration and get-out-the-vote |
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campaigns, SVREP has helped bring about a dramatic increase in |
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Latino voters, with the number of registered Hispanics rising from |
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2.4 million in the year the organization was founded to 9.8 million |
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in 2006; the number of Latino elected officials has also greatly |
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increased, with more than 6,000 Hispanics now holding office |
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throughout the country; and |
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WHEREAS, Willie Velasquez also realized the need for an |
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organization that could gauge Hispanic public opinion and share |
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those views with elected leaders; toward that end, he founded the |
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Southwest Voter Research Institute in 1984; now renamed the William |
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C. Velasquez Institute, it collects and distributes information on |
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public policy issues that impact Latino citizens, thereby |
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amplifying their voice in the dialog of American politics; and |
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WHEREAS, The untimely death of Mr. Velasquez at the age of 44 |
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was a loss deeply felt throughout the country, but his legacy lives |
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on; in 1995, President Bill Clinton awarded him the Presidential |
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Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, and he was |
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one of the civil rights figures whose names were attached to the |
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U.S. Senate version of the Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and |
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Amendments Act of 2006; and |
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WHEREAS, Willie Velasquez is a figure of great importance for |
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all Americans committed to the concept of representative democracy; |
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his efforts to expand the electorate and educate the citizens of the |
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United States about a range of civic issues were a great and |
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influential contribution that continues to benefit the State of |
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Texas and the other states of the Union; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 80th Texas |
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Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of William C. |
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Velasquez and commemorate his success in furthering the nation's |
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democratic tradition; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for his family as an expression of high regard by the Texas |
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House of Representatives. |