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Senator delivers Black History Month floor remarks, urges fuller teaching of Black history
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Summary
A senator from the 43rd District used floor time Feb. 9 to mark Black History Month, citing historians and civil-rights figures and urging colleagues to teach fuller histories; the chamber ordered the remarks journalized.
On Feb. 9 on the Senate floor, the senator from the 43rd District delivered an extended Black History Month presentation urging members to remember and teach fuller histories of Black Americans and to use the session as an opportunity for reflection and education.
Quoting historian Lonnie Bunch and invoking Carter G. Woodson’s creation of Black History Week in 1926, the senator said the chamber should "expect to hear those things that might challenge us" and called the observance a chance to spotlight accomplishments and to confront omitted parts of history. The remarks highlighted Pauli Murray, Ella Baker and Fannie Lou Hamer and recounted aspects of their work and lives, including Hamer’s forced sterilization in 1961 and her later efforts on economic self-help through the Freedom Farm Cooperative.
The senator framed the floor remarks as part of a broader tradition in the General Assembly to educate colleagues during February, saying the practice is meant to "go beyond stories of racism and injustice" and also to celebrate endurance and achievement. The senator invoked Lonnie Bunch and President Gerald Ford’s move to expand a week to a month as context for the observance.
A request was made on the floor to journalize the remarks "with great gratitude." After an objection was raised, the presiding officer ordered the comments journalized and the record reflects the request and journalization.
The presentation was delivered during regular session time and did not contain any formal motions or votes; it was recorded for the legislative journal.
