2021 Senate Resolution 13
ENGROSSED RESOLUTION
Relating to: proclaiming February 2022 as Black History Month.
Whereas, Black History Month provides a deliberate opportunity to reflect on the common humanity underlying all people and to raise awareness and foster respect for the heritage and contributions of people of African descent; and
Whereas, the existence of Africans in North America can be traced back to 1525, and through 1866 the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade is estimated to have ensnared more than 12 million African people, with an estimated 10 million surviving the unconscionable Middle Passage, landing in North America, the Caribbean, and South America; and
Whereas, Wisconsin history first references African descendants in a speech given in 1725 by a chief of the Illinois Indians, in which he said “a negro belonging to Monsieur de Boisbriant" at Green Bay; and
Whereas, the United States has recognized Black history annually since February 12, 1926, first as “Negro History Week" and later as “Black History Month," by noted Harvard scholar and historian Dr. Carter G. Woodson, celebrating the ethnic and racial diversity that enriches and strengthens our nation; and
Whereas, both enslaved and free people of African descent have participated in every aspect of America's effort to secure, protect, and advance the cause of freedom and civil rights and have stories that are an inspiration to all citizens, that reflect the triumph of the human spirit and offer the hopes of everyday people to rise above both prejudice and circumstance and to build lives of dignity; and
Whereas, Black History Month gives Wisconsinites an occasion to recognize the significant influence people of African heritage have made, and continue to make, in the areas of medicine, art, politics, human rights, education, sports, and economic development; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the senate, That the Wisconsin Senate proclaims February 2022 as Black History Month and extends appreciation to the Wisconsinites of African descent for their contributions to the state of Wisconsin and the country and their fellow citizens.
