H.R. No. 513

	R E S O L U T I O N
	WHEREAS, In February of each year, Black History Month is
	commemorated throughout the nation, and this special observance
	helps focus public attention on the contributions that African
	Americans have made to the past development and ongoing progress of
	the United States of America; and
	WHEREAS, The celebration in 2013 takes on further resonance
	as it marks the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation
	and the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington; and
	WHEREAS, Those events stand as two of the best-known episodes
	in the long history of African Americans' unrelenting quest for
	full equality and inclusion; the Emancipation Proclamation, issued
	by President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, provided a hopeful
	sign that the era of slavery might soon be over; before that point
	in U.S. history, most blacks were not allowed to live as free men
	and women, and yet they played an essential part in building the
	nation into a land of prosperity and immense potential even as they
	were denied the freedom and equality that were its highest ideals;
	and
	WHEREAS, Freed of their shackles at the end of the Civil War,
	black citizens applied themselves to new realms of endeavor; in
	Texas, African Americans excelled in tasks that ranged from riding
	herd on cattle to manning frontier outposts to serving as state
	legislators; moreover, a people who just a few short years before
	had been held in bondage enrolled in schools and colleges as they
	sought a path to a better future and a means of coping with the
	difficult challenges that surrounded them; and
	WHEREAS, The obstacles of segregation, disenfranchisement,
	and institutionalized discrimination would persist for nearly a
	century after emancipation came to pass, but ultimately the
	nation's black residents would come to know the truth of their
	rallying cry, "we shall overcome"; one of the pivotal moments of
	that struggle came a half-century ago in the March on Washington,
	when 250,000 U.S. citizens converged on our nation's capital to
	demand change; buoyed by the inspiring words of Dr. Martin Luther
	King, Jr., the marchers helped carry forward a civil rights
	movement that had been many decades in the making and that had
	included important victories by black Texans; within two years of
	the March on Washington, the passage of two landmark pieces of
	legislation, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act
	of 1965, helped the country to take a huge stride toward the goal of
	truly offering liberty and justice for all; and
	WHEREAS, The story of African Americans in America is
	integral to the history of this country, and the substance of that
	story, now nearly 400 years in the making, is indeed deserving of
	remembrance and recognition; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas
	Legislature hereby commemorate Black History Month in February 2013
	and pay tribute to the rich legacy of African Americans in the
	United States.
	Giddings
	Collier
	Johnson
	Turner of Collin
	Allen
	Naishtat
	Straus M. Gonzalez of El Paso Oliveira
	Allen N. Gonzalez of El Paso Orr
	Alonzo Gooden Otto
	Alvarado Guerra Paddie
	Anchia Guillen Parker
	Anderson Gutierrez Patrick
	Ashby Harless Perez
	Aycock Harper-Brown Perry
	Bell Hernandez Luna Phillips
	Bohac Herrero Pickett
	Bonnen of Brazoria Hilderbran Pitts
	Bonnen of Galveston Howard Price
	Branch Huberty Raney
	Burkett Hughes Ratliff
	Burnam Hunter Raymond
	Button Isaac Reynolds
	Callegari Johnson Riddle
	Canales Kacal Ritter
	Capriglione Keffer Rodriguez of Bexar
	Carter King of Hemphill Rodriguez of Travis
	Clardy King of Parker Rose
	Coleman King of Taylor Sanford
	Collier King of Zavala Schaefer
	Cook Kleinschmidt Sheets
	Cortez Klick Sheffield of Bell
	Craddick Kolkhorst Sheffield of Coryell
	Creighton Krause Simmons
	Crownover Kuempel Simpson
	Dale Larson Smith
	Darby Laubenberg Smithee
	Davis of Dallas Lavender Springer
	J. Davis of Harris Leach Stephenson
	S. Davis of Harris Lewis Stickland
	Deshotel Longoria Strama
	Dukes Lozano Taylor
	Dutton Lucio III Thompson of Brazoria
	Eiland Marquez Thompson of Harris
	Elkins Martinez Toth
	Fallon Martinez Fischer Turner of Collin
	Farias McClendon Turner of Harris
	Farney Menendez Turner of Tarrant
	Farrar Miles Villalba
	Fletcher Miller of Comal Villarreal
	Flynn Miller of Fort Bend Vo
	Frank Moody Walle
	Frullo Morrison White
	Geren Munoz, Jr. Workman
	Giddings Murphy Wu
	Goldman Naishtat Zedler
	Gonzales Nevarez Zerwas
	______________________________
	Speaker of the House
	I certify that H.R. No. 513 was adopted by the House on February
	20, 2013, by a non-record vote.
	______________________________
	Chief Clerk of the House