|
|
|
R E S O L U T I O N
|
|
WHEREAS, A respected comedian who has not only commented on |
|
the world around him but actively worked to change it for the |
|
better, Dick Gregory has spent more than a half-century as an |
|
entertainer and activist; and |
|
WHEREAS, Born October 12, 1932, in St. Louis, Missouri, Mr. |
|
Gregory began performing comedy in the 1950s in predominantly |
|
African American nightclubs; he first received national attention |
|
when he replaced an Anglo comedian at the Playboy Club in Chicago in |
|
1961, and by the following year he was headlining shows, appearing |
|
on national television, and recording comedy albums; and |
|
WHEREAS, Part of the new generation of African American |
|
comedians that included Bill Cosby, Nipsey Russell, and Godfrey |
|
Cambridge, Mr. Gregory rejected stereotypes and addressed racial |
|
issues with a dry and satiric wit during his performances, and his |
|
brilliant and insightful comedy has been an ongoing source of |
|
inspiration to generations of comedians; and |
|
WHEREAS, Mr. Gregory began his activism at an early age, |
|
leading a march that protested school segregation when he was still |
|
in high school in St. Louis; in the 1960s, he was a major supporter |
|
of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Student Nonviolent |
|
Coordinating Committee, and he was an early and outspoken critic of |
|
the Vietnam War; and |
|
WHEREAS, Since that time, Dick Gregory has remained a leading |
|
advocate for peace and justice, and he has also taken up a range of |
|
other social and political initiatives; an authority on nutrition |
|
and health since the 1970s, he has more recently focused his |
|
attention on alternative medicine as part of his own successful |
|
battle against cancer; moreover, he has carried forth the American |
|
tradition of free speech and protest in upholding his convictions; |
|
and |
|
WHEREAS, With the love and support of Lillian, his wife of 48 |
|
years, and their 10 children, Dick Gregory has continued to devote |
|
himself to the well-being of his fellow citizens, using his insight |
|
and his trademark wit to inspire and enlighten; now, therefore, be |
|
it |
|
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 80th Texas |
|
Legislature hereby honor Dick Gregory for his remarkable career and |
|
extend to him sincere best wishes for continued success; and, be it |
|
further |
|
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
|
prepared for Mr. Gregory as an expression of high regard by the |
|
Texas House of Representatives. |
|
|
Giddings |
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
Speaker of the House |
|
|
I certify that H.R. No. 2983 was adopted by the House on May |
|
28, 2007, by a non-record vote. |
|
|
|
______________________________ |
|
Chief Clerk of the House |
|