SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 293
	WHEREAS, March 19, 2025, marks the 143rd anniversary of the
	birth of trailblazing activist Minnie Fisher Cunningham, who
	played a vital role in securing women's suffrage; and
	WHEREAS, The daughter of Horatio and Sallie Fisher, the
	former Minnie Fisher was born on the family farm near New Waverly
	in 1882; she was one of the first women in the state to receive a
	pharmacy degree but soon discovered that her untrained male
	colleagues made twice her salary; following her marriage to
	Beverly "Bill" Cunningham, she became active in social reform
	efforts in Galveston; she chaired two Women's Health Protective
	Association committees and was a founding member and then
	president of the Galveston Equal Suffrage Association; and
	WHEREAS, Mrs. Cunningham was elected president of the
	Texas Equal Suffrage Association in 1915; membership grew to
	10,000 under her leadership, and her formidable
	coalition-building and negotiating skills resulted in a bill
	granting Texas women the right to vote in state primary
	elections; the National American Woman Suffrage Association
	recruited her to lobby Congress and President Woodrow Wilson, and
	she eventually became the group's congressional secretary; after
	passage of the 19th Amendment in 1919, she traveled across the
	Southwest to rally support for ratification; her shrewdness and
	determination were instrumental in making Texas the first
	southern state to ratify the amendment, thwarting an attempt to
	create a regional bulwark against it; and
	WHEREAS, A founder and officer of the National League of
	Women Voters, Mrs. Cunningham successfully championed the
	nation's first social welfare measure, the Sheppard-Towner
	Maternity and Infancy Act; back in Texas, she became one of the
	first American women to pursue a career in party politics,
	running for the U.S. Senate in 1928 and the governorship in 1944;
	she was an early inspiration to Eleanor Roosevelt and in turn
	energetically supported the Roosevelt administration's New Deal
	initiatives in numerous professional and volunteer capacities,
	including editor for the Texas A&M University Agricultural
	Extension Service, senior specialist in the Information Division
	of the federal Agricultural Adjustment Administration, and
	acting head of the Women's Division of the Democratic National
	Committee; and
	WHEREAS, Mrs. Cunningham returned to New Waverly to run
	the family farm but remained highly engaged in the progressive
	movement; in 1954, she helped establish the Texas Observer, and
	six years later, she managed the local headquarters of the
	John F. Kennedy presidential campaign, which carried Walker
	County; she died on December 9, 1964, at the age of 82; and
	WHEREAS, Through her vision, resolve, and extraordinary
	ability, Minnie Fisher Cunningham contributed enormously to the
	empowerment of American women, and 60 years after her passing,
	her accomplishments continue to resonate; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 89th
	Legislature, hereby commemorate the 143rd anniversary of the
	birth of Minnie Fisher Cunningham.
	Alvarado
	Bettencourt Hall Middleton
	Birdwell Hancock Miles
	Blanco Hinojosa of Hidalgo Nichols
	Campbell Hinojosa of Nueces Parker
	Cook Huffman Paxton
	Creighton Hughes Perry
	Eckhardt Johnson Schwertner
	Flores King Sparks
	Gutierrez Kolkhorst West
	Hagenbuch Menéndez Zaffirini
	______________________________	______________________________
	President of the Senate	Speaker of the House
		________________________________
		President of the Senate
		I hereby certify that the
		above Resolution was adopted by
		the Senate on March 19, 2025.
		________________________________
		Secretary of the Senate
		________________________________
		Member, Texas Senate