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New York State Senate adopts resolution mourning civil‑rights leader Hazel N. Dukes
Summary
The New York State Senate unanimously adopted a resolution honoring Hazel N. Dukes, a longtime NAACP leader and civil‑rights advocate, with members from across the chamber delivering tributes before adopting the measure by voice vote.
The New York State Senate on March 3 adopted a resolution mourning the death of Hazel N. Dukes, a longtime civil‑rights leader and president of the NAACP New York State Conference.
The resolution, offered by the Senate majority leader and read into the record, recognized Dukes’s decades of activism, including work with Head Start, leadership roles in the NAACP, and service as a trustee of institutions of higher education.
Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart‑Cousins rose to present the resolution and led tributes, calling Dukes “a life well lived” and praising her decades of work on desegregation, criminal justice reform, education and public health. Senator Cordell Cleare, whose district includes Harlem where Dukes resided, said Dukes “belonged to us” in Harlem while noting her national influence. Multiple other senators, including Senator Webb, Senator Sanders, Senator Jackson and Senator Brisport, recalled personal encounters and Dukes’s influence on local organizing, policy campaigns and youth mentorship.
The resolution lists Dukes’s public service milestones, including her role in implementing Head Start programs, her tenure as national NAACP president, and honors such as honorary degrees and awards cited in the measure. The resolution directs that engrossed copies be transmitted to Dukes’s family and to NAACP offices.
The measure was adopted by voice vote; the presiding officer announced the resolution as adopted after members responded “aye.”
