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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, During a span of nearly 250 years, beginning in 1619 |
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and continuing until 1865, approximately four million Africans and |
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their descendants were enslaved and forced into uncompensated labor |
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in the United States and the 13 American colonies that preceded the |
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founding of this nation; and |
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WHEREAS, The enslavement of Africans and their descendants |
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was constitutionally sanctioned by the final draft of the |
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Constitution of the United States of America in 1789; it was not |
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until the ratification of the 13th Amendment in 1865 that slavery |
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was legally abolished, yet the suffering of the former slaves |
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continued after the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 and |
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ratification of the 13th Amendment; and |
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WHEREAS, The abolition of slavery alone was not enough to set |
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the freed slaves on the path to self-sufficiency, given the fact |
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that for generations they had been systematically denied access to |
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education, property, legal rights, or any other foundation for |
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success, and even the few attempts to provide some of these |
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fundamental elements often were quickly overturned; and |
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WHEREAS, For example, the original pledge of 40 acres of land |
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to all freed slaves under the Freedman's Bureau Act of 1865 was |
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rendered obsolete in 1866 by President Andrew Johnson when he |
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returned all of the land to the pre-Civil War owners, leaving the |
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freed slaves with a broken promise and bankrupting the bureau's |
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funding; and |
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WHEREAS, The United States government has actively supported |
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initiatives to indemnify Americans who were wronged in the past; in |
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1946, the United States Congress established a tribunal to resolve |
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grievances of Native American tribes and eventually awarded them |
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reparations, and in 1988, the United States awarded Japanese |
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Americans reparations in an effort to compensate for their |
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internment in camps during World War II; and |
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WHEREAS, The movement to officially recognize the impact of |
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slavery on the American citizenry has been sustained through |
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several generations and continues to have nationwide support; |
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however, since the abolition of slavery, the United States has yet |
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to take responsibility for its role in the enslavement of Africans |
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and their descendants, and sufficient inquiry has not been made to |
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examine the institution of slavery and its lingering negative |
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effects on African American society in the United States; now, |
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therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 86th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby respectfully urge the United States Congress to pass H.R. 40 |
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to establish the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation |
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Proposals for African Americans; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official |
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copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to |
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the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president of the |
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Senate of the United States Congress, and to all members of the |
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Texas delegation to Congress with the request that this resolution |
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be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a memorial to |
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the Congress of the United States of America. |