MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2011 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Representatives Coleman (65th), Bailey, Johnson, Broomfield, Buck (5th), Burnett, Calhoun, Clark, Cockerham, Coleman (29th), Ellis, Espy, Flaggs, Fredericks, Gardner, Harrison, Hines, Holloway, Jones (82nd), Middleton, Perkins, Robinson, Thomas, Watson, Wooten
A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING AND CELEBRATING THE LEGACY AND HISTORIC CONTRIBUTIONS OF MISSISSIPPI CIVIL RIGHTS PIONEER MYRLIE EVERS-WILLIAMS.
WHEREAS, Myrlie Evers-Williams is an endeared person of
Mississippi's history; and
WHEREAS, as this state celebrates Black History Month, it behooves us to recognize and celebrate the legacy of Mississippi Civil Rights Pioneer and influential leader, Myrlie Evers-Williams; and
WHEREAS, although she currently resides in Los Angeles, California, she is a native of Vicksburg, Mississippi; and
WHEREAS, Myrlie was an honor student at Alcorn A&M College, in Lorman, Mississippi, when she met another outstanding student, Medgar Evers, who she married; and
WHEREAS, the happy couple moved to historic Mound Bayou, Mississippi, where they embarked on business careers with Magnolia Mutual Life Insurance Company, and because their business responsibilities demanded extensive travel in the Delta, they witnessed the burden of poverty and injustice imposed on their people in the deep South; and
WHEREAS, their passion for the underserved gave them a desire to make positive changes in society, so both Medgar and Myrlie opened and managed the first NAACP Mississippi State Office; and
WHEREAS, in spite of the fact that they lived under constant threats, they continued to work hard for voting rights, economic stability, fair housing, equal education, equal justice and dignity causes; and
WHEREAS, on June 12, 1963, one of the many threats became reality, when Medgar Evers was assassinated at the front door of his home as his wife and their small children, Darrell Kenyatta (9 years old), Reena Denise (8 years old) and James Van Dyke (3 years old), watched; and
WHEREAS, after witnessing two hung jury trials in the murder of her husband, and realizing what Mississippi truly was for her family, Ms. Evers-Williams moved her family to Claremont, California, in July 1964; and
WHEREAS, although she left Mississippi, she never gave up the fight to bring justice to the legacy of Medgar Evers by convicting his murderer and, in 1994, 31 years later, after persistently expending an enormous amount of faith and energy in her pursuit of justice, she was successful in obtaining enough evidence to reopen the case to a third trial; and
WHEREAS, the third case was a victorious case, where Ms. Evers-Williams was present to witness the trial and guilty verdict of the accused murderer, who died in prison in 2001; and
WHEREAS, after arriving in California, she became a student at Pomona College, where she received her bachelors of arts degree in sociology in 1968, and after graduation, assumed the position as the Director of Planning and Development for the six Claremont Colleges, where she was actively involved in the administration of grants for disadvantaged students; and
WHEREAS, she also has a certificate from Simmons College, School of Management, Boston, Massachusetts, and honorary doctoral degrees from Pomona College in Claremont, California; Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn, New York; Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia; Columbia College in Chicago, Illinois; Bennett College in Greensboro, North Carolina; and Tougaloo College in Tougaloo, Mississippi; and
WHEREAS, during her tenure at Pomona, she wrote a book, FOR US THE LIVING, that depicts the life of her late husband, Medgar Evers, and the Civil Rights struggle in Mississippi; and
WHEREAS, her other literary achievements include serving as Contributing Editor of Ladies Home Journal, where she was one of the magazine's editors who covered the Vietnam Peace Talks in Paris, France, and many of her articles received wide acclaim; and
WHEREAS, always an activist for voter registration campaigns, Ms. Evers-Williams decided to become a candidate for the 24th Congressional District of California in 1970, and her campaign built a strong coalition of people of all ages and races, even though this was a time when very few women ran for elective office, Ms. Evers-Williams gained 38% of the vote as the Democratic candidate in a predominately Republican District, then she went on to become the first African-American woman to head the Southern California Democratic Women's Division and was convener of the National Women's Political Caucus; and
WHEREAS, setting her sights on corporate America, Ms. Evers-Williams joined a New York firm, Seligman and Latz, Inc., (1973-1975) where she held the position of Vice President for Advertising and Publicity, and, while job responsibilities took her to all parts of the United States, she was instrumental in establishing a social responsibility policy for the company; and
WHEREAS, her professional career also took her to the Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO), one of the top 15 companies of Fortune 500, and while there, she served as the National Director for Community Affairs, where she was responsible for the development and management of all corporate programs, and later promoted to the position of Director, Consumer Affairs, ARCO; and
WHEREAS, Ms. Evers-Williams felt the voice of politics calling once again when she accepted an appointment to the Los Angeles Board of Public Works by Mayor Tom Bradley, becoming the first African-American woman to serve as a Commissioner on the Board of Public Works on June 12, 1997, which was 24 years to the day after her late husband's death; and
WHEREAS, this full-time position was responsible for the management of 6,000 employees consisting of the Bureaus of Sanitation, Street Maintenance, Street Lighting, Contract Administration, Engineering, Accounting, Management Employee Services and Motion Picture Coordination, managing an operating budget of approximately $400 million, and overseeing approximately $500 million worth of city construction contracts; and
WHEREAS, Commissioner Evers-Williams and the Public Works Department are on the cutting edge of finding solutions to problems that all major cities and some smaller ones are facing today - wastewater, solid waste, reduction of trash, recycling, closing of landfills, air quality, and, indeed, improving the quality of life for all; and
WHEREAS, determined to continue as an active participant in her struggle for justice and equality, Ms. Evers-Williams lectures extensively before Civil Rights groups, women's organizations, social groups, universities and corporations, and she serves as a role model to young people and has encouraged many to pursue careers in law, education and social services; and
WHEREAS, for her continuous involvement with community and civic concerns, she has been honored with commendations from governors and mayors across the country, including among the many honors and awards: Congressional Black Caucus; 1996 Delta Sigma Theta-Mary Church Terrell Award (Highest Honor); 1995 Woman of the Year, Glamour-dedication to Civil Rights; 1995 LIFE Magazine-seeing the Future in the Past, portrait by Harry Benson; 1995 Woman of the Year, Mississippi Magazine, Special Issue-Commitment To Revitalizing The Nation's Oldest Civil Rights Organization; "Women of the Year"-The Most Unforgettable Women of 1995, Ladies Home Journal, March 1996; Portrait, The New Yorker Magazine, "Black in America," April/May 1996; and
WHEREAS, in the best seller, "I Dream A World: Black Women Who Changed America," Ms. Evers-Williams states that she, "greets today and the future with open arms." This credo has carried her through years of struggle and success; and
WHEREAS, Myrlie Evers-Williams was married for 18 years to Walter Edward Williams, himself a Civil Rights activist until his death, which was 2 days after she was elected Chairman of the Board of the NAACP; and
WHEREAS, her children and grandchildren remain her strongest supporters in her continued fight to secure equal rights for all people, and to preserve those rights for future generations; and
WHEREAS, it is the policy of the House of Representatives to acknowledge the contributions and commitment of such a nationally known leader as Myrlie Evers-Williams, who saw the Civil Rights Movement as a Christian movement teaching love, liberation and equality for all under the law:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby recognize the historic legacy and civic leadership of Mississippi Civil Rights Pioneer Myrlie Evers-Williams and celebrate her contributions to the history of the State of Mississippi.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to Myrlie Evers-Williams and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.