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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, The triumphant story of Jack Johnson, the boxer from |
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Texas who became the first African American heavyweight champion of |
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the world, has long been marred by his unjust and racially motivated |
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felony conviction in 1913; and |
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WHEREAS, The son of two former slaves, Jack Johnson was born |
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in Galveston in 1878; at the age of 16, he moved to New York City, |
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where he eventually found work as a janitor in a boxing gym and |
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learned the sport by serving as a sparring partner; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Johnson returned to Galveston and won his first |
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professional fight on November 1, 1898, knocking out his opponent |
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in the second round, and by 1903, he had won at least 50 fights |
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against both black and white men; on February 3, 1903, he won the |
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World Colored Heavyweight Championship, and he held the title for |
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five years; and |
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WHEREAS, Because James J. Jeffries, the world heavyweight |
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champion, refused to enter the ring with a black fighter, |
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Mr. Johnson eventually had to leave the United States for a chance |
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at the title; for two years, he shadowed Canadian boxer Tommy Burns, |
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by then the reigning champion, around the world, taunting him in the |
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press; finally, on December 26, 1908, Mr. Johnson defeated Burns in |
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a bout in Sydney, Australia, becoming the first African American |
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heavyweight world champion; and |
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WHEREAS, Outraged by Mr. Johnson's triumph, many racist |
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commentators called for his defeat by a "Great White Hope," and |
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James Jeffries was coaxed out of retirement for what was billed as |
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the "Fight of the Century"; on July 4, 1910, in a ring that was built |
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especially for the match in Reno, Nevada, Jack Johnson decisively |
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and indisputably defeated Jeffries in front of 20,000 people, and |
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he held the title for more than six years, until April 1915; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Johnson's victory led to jubilation in the |
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African American community and resulted in riots by angry white |
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mobs; compounding the racial anger at Mr. Johnson's success were |
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his marriages to and romantic relationships with several white |
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women, at a time when black men were regularly lynched for being |
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"too familiar" with white women; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1910, the U.S. Congress passed the Mann Act, also |
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known as the "White Slave Traffic Act," which outlawed the |
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transportation of women in interstate or foreign commerce "for the |
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purpose of prostitution or debauchery," and on October 18, 1912, |
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Mr. Johnson was arrested for violating the law by virtue of his |
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relationship with a white woman, Lucille Clifton; and |
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WHEREAS, Even though Mr. Johnson and Ms. Clifton were |
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married on December 4, 1912, and despite the fact that the so-called |
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"offenses" with which he was charged took place before the passage |
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of the Mann Act, Mr. Johnson was convicted by an all-white jury in |
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June 1913; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Johnson and his wife fled the country and lived |
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in exile for seven years; when he finally returned on July 20, 1920, |
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he was arrested at the Mexican border by federal agents and sent to |
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Leavenworth Penitentiary in Kansas, where he was imprisoned until |
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July 9, 1921; and |
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WHEREAS, Later in life, Mr. Johnson fought in exhibition |
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matches, refereed fights, and managed and trained other boxers; |
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during World War II, he was active in the effort to encourage his |
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fellow citizens to buy war bonds; he died in an automobile accident |
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in 1946, and in 1954, he was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, Jack Johnson's legacy continues to inspire |
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Americans; he was the subject of a feature film, The Great White |
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Hope, in which he was played by James Earl Jones, and the noted |
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filmmaker Ken Burns made a two-part documentary about him, |
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Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson; he has |
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inspired music by such greats as Leadbelly, Miles Davis, and Wynton |
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Marsalis, and he has been honored with a life-size bronze statue in |
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a park named for him in his hometown of Galveston; and |
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WHEREAS, An enormously gifted boxer, Jack Johnson helped pave |
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the way for other great African American athletes with his peerless |
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technique and indomitable spirit; unbowed and unintimidated by the |
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virulent racism of his time, he fought not only to defeat his |
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opponents in the ring, but for the right to love whomever he chose |
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and to live his life as a free man; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas |
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Legislature hereby respectfully request that the president of the |
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United States grant a full pardon to Jack Johnson; and, be it |
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further |
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RESOLVED, That the chief clerk of the House of |
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Representatives forward an official copy of this resolution to the |
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president of the United States of America. |