2007 Senate Resolution 13
ENGROSSED RESOLUTION
Relating to: the life and public service of Lloyd A. Barbee.
Whereas, Lloyd A. Barbee was born on August 17, 1925, in Memphis, Tennessee, and died on December 29, 2002, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; and
Whereas, Lloyd A. Barbee was a tireless freedom fighter, civil rights leader and attorney, Wisconsin state representative, professor, and true leader in the cause for social justice as he lived by the philosophy that the only race is the human race; and
Whereas, according to the Wisconsin Lawyer Publication of the State Bar, "Lloyd Barbee is probably the most important figure of the 20th century in Wisconsin civil rights"; and
Whereas, he graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in Memphis, served his country as a member of the U.S. Navy during World War II , and returned to earn a degree in economics in 1949 from LeMoyne College in Memphis and a law degree in 1956 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison; and
Whereas, he additionally taught at the University of Wisconsin Law School and the Bronx Community College of the City University of New York; and
Whereas, Mr. Barbee founded the Milwaukee United School Integration Committee (MUSIC) and, in 1965, filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of both African-American children and white children from Milwaukee Public Schools who were attending segregated schools which were subject to overcrowding and inferior resources; and
Whereas, that lawsuit led to a 2-decade-long court battle and ultimately resulted in the ruling that the Milwaukee Public Schools were unconstitutionally segregated, prompting the Wisconsin legislature to enact a program of school integration; and
Whereas, during the same period, Mr. Barbee was one of the first African Americans to win state office when he was elected to the Wisconsin state assembly, where he ultimately served for 6 consecutive terms from 1964 through 1976 before retiring to focus his time completely on the schools case; and
Whereas, during his tenure in the legislature, Mr. Barbee quickly gained a reputation for being an innovative and unconventional lawmaker willing to push for social change even if there was little chance for political success, as he continually attacked laws that he felt inhibited individuals, especially the poor and minority group members, from achieving their full human potential; and
Whereas, while serving in the assembly and as the chair of the Judiciary Committee he fought to expand personal freedoms by repealing restrictive laws on what he called "victimless crimes" and was an advocate for open housing, ending job discrimination, and providing better medical access for minorities and low-income families, all issues that we are contending with yet in the present day; and
Whereas, from 1969 to 1973, he served as president of Freedom Through Equality, a Milwaukee-based group established to reform laws detrimental to the poor; and
Whereas, Mr. Barbee received numerous awards and honors, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin Eunice Z. Edgar Award for Lifetime Civil Liberties Achievement and the Wisconsin Association of Minority Attorneys Award for Inspirational Leadership and Outstanding Dedication; and
Whereas, in 1999, a Milwaukee street was renamed "Barbee Street" by former Mayor John Norquist in Mr. Barbee's honor; and
Whereas, Mr. Barbee received an honorary doctoral degree in sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2001; and
Whereas, the adoption of this senate resolution is supported not only by the senate, but also by members of the assembly, including specifically Representatives Sheridan, Schneider, Young, Grigsby, Sinicki, Mason, Fields, Benedict, Turner, Kessler, and Hintz; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the senate, That the Wisconsin senate honors the remarkable life and achievements of Lloyd Barbee, both in the political sphere and in the various communities in which he dedicated himself to improving the quality of life for all.
