MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2015 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) Dawkins, Simmons (13th), Simmons (12th), Norwood, Frazier, Horhn, Turner, Blount, Butler (38th), Stone
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING THE "MISSISSIPPI YEAR OF WOMEN" CELEBRATION OF THE LEGACIES OF RESPECTED ARTISTS AND AUTHORS EUDORA WELTY, MARGARET WALKER AND MARIE HULL.
WHEREAS, Mississippi Author and Photographer Eudora Welty, Poet, Novelist and Scholar Margaret Walker, and Artist Marie Hull are in the spotlight this year, with major events and exhibitions to propel fresh perspectives and new eyes on their works and legacies. Three major artists in literary and visual arts forged their own creative paths, leaving indelible stamps and significant legacies in Mississippi's capital city and far beyond; and
WHEREAS, Welty (1909-2001) and Walker (1915-1998) were close in age, while Hull (1890-1980) was just barely a generation older. Jackson native Eudora Welty spent her life here, while Alabama-born Margaret Walker moved here in 1949 to join Jackson State University's faculty (by then using her married name, Alexander). Marie Atkinson, born in Summit, came to Jackson to attend Belhaven College and made her home here, marrying Jackson Architect Emmett Hull; and
WHEREAS, their art and example fed a next generation of writers and artists, and works read and seen continue to inform and inspire across multiple fields; and
WHEREAS, this year, 2015 will see the yearlong Margaret Walker Centennial anchored at Jackson State University, the 12-week Eudora Welty Biennial starting in April at the Mississippi Museum of Art and nearby venues, and "Bright Fields: The Mastery of Marie Hull" September 26-January 3 at the Art Museum, traveling later to museums in New Orleans and Oxford; and
WHEREAS, March 2015 is also National Women's History Month with its theme "Weaving the Stories of Women's Lives," which presents the opportunity to weave women's stories, individually and collectively, into the essential fabric of our nation's history. Accounts of the lives of individual women are critically important because they reveal exceptionally strong role models who share a more expansive vision of what a woman can do. The stories of women's lives, and the choices they made, encourage girls and young women to think larger and bolder, and give boys and men a fuller understanding of the female experience. Knowing women's achievements challenges stereotypes and upends social assumptions about who women are and what women can accomplish today. There is a real power in hearing women's stories, both personally and in a larger context. Remembering and recounting tales of our ancestors' talents, sacrifices and commitments inspires today's generations and opens the way to the future; and
WHEREAS, in a segregated South, Hull and Welty had more opportunities than Walker. All three left the South for their education or to further their studies. All three dared to follow their vision and follow through in their art, leaving works that are profound, provocative and vibrant; and
WHEREAS, American women of every race, class and ethnic background have made historic contributions to the growth and strength of our nation in countless recorded and unrecorded ways. Women's history becomes a story of inspiration and hope, a story of courage and tenacity, and a story of possibility and purpose. Women's history is our nation's story. It is the story of how women built communities and inspired and nurtured dreams and how they will continue to do so; and it is with great pride that we recognize three iconic Mississippi women who served as role models in pioneering Mississippi's future:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby recognize the "Mississippi Year of Women" Celebration of the legacies of respected Artists and Authors Eudora Welty, Margaret Walker and Marie Hull.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be forwarded to the Mississippi Arts Commission, Mississippi Department of Archives and History and the Mississippi Commission on the Status of Women to observe appropriate programs, ceremonies and activities, and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.