[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 972 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 972
Recognizing the significance of Atlanta, Georgia, as the cradle of the
civil rights movement.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 19, 2025
Mr. David Scott of Georgia (for himself, Mrs. McBath, Ms. Williams of
Georgia, Mr. Bishop, and Mr. Johnson of Georgia) submitted the
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the significance of Atlanta, Georgia, as the cradle of the
civil rights movement.
Whereas, in July 1881, a washerwoman strike of mostly Black women was one of the
first major examples of the impact of Black labor in Atlanta and the
power of coordinated, nonviolent organizing;
Whereas, in 1909, Atlanta University Professor W.E.B. Du Bois was one of the
founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored
People;
Whereas, on January 15, 1929, civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,
was born in Atlanta;
Whereas, in 1946, African-American community leaders in Atlanta established the
All Citizen's Registration Committee (ACRC) to register voters and
increase involvement in the political process;
Whereas, in 1948, 8 African-American officers were hired to the Atlanta Police
Department, desegregating the city's police force;
Whereas, in 1949, the Atlanta Negro Voters League (ANVL) was founded to
coordinate political advocacy and bolster the power of African-American
voters;
Whereas, in 1956, Atlanta was the site of the ``Sugar Bowl Riots'', when
Pittsburgh Panthers football player Bobby Grier became the first
African-American to play in a bowl game in the Deep South;
Whereas, in 1957, Dr. King and Ralph David Abernathy formed the Southern
Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to develop and implement
nonviolent protest strategies and advance the fight for equal voting
rights;
Whereas, on October 12, 1958, the Hebrew Benevolent Congregation Temple was
bombed by White supremacists due to Rabbi Jacob Rothschild, the Temple's
Rabbi, and its congregation's active and vocal support for civil rights
and integration;
Whereas, in 1959, local activism led to the desegregation of Atlanta public
transit services;
Whereas, in 1960, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) was
headquartered in Atlanta and chaired by the honorable John Lewis, to
focus the energy and efforts of students participating in the civil
rights movement;
Whereas, in 1960, the Atlanta University Center (AUC) established the Atlanta
Student Movement to lead sit-ins to protest segregation in public
facilities;
Whereas, in 1960, Dr. King, along with 52 other activists, was arrested at an
Atlanta department store lunch counter sit-in while protesting
segregation;
Whereas, in 1961, Morehouse College student Charles Black led demonstrations
against the lack of African-American health care workers in Atlanta
health facilities, eventually leading to the desegregation of Grady
Memorial Hospital;
Whereas the Atlanta-based SCLC was critical in securing the passage of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, highly
consequential pieces of legislation that guarantee full rights and equal
protection of the law for all Americans;
Whereas, in 1964, the landmark Supreme Court case Heart of Atlanta Motel, Inc.
v. United States found that the Federal Government had the power to
enforce the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and prohibit discrimination on the
basis of race;
Whereas political advocacy efforts in Atlanta were instrumental in promoting the
passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of
1965, the crown jewels of the civil rights movement;
Whereas, in 1965, partially as a result of the successes of the Civil Rights Act
of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, 11 Black people were elected
to the Georgia House of Representatives, including Atlanta-based civil
rights organizer Julian Bond;
Whereas, in 1968, 150,000 people joined in Dr. King's funeral procession through
the streets of Atlanta, to honor his memory and demonstrate that further
action was needed to advance the cause of equality;
Whereas political advocacy efforts in Atlanta were instrumental in promoting the
passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, parts of which are commonly
called the Fair Housing Act, which prohibits housing discrimination on
the basis of race, religion, nationality, disability, or sex;
Whereas, in 1972, Andrew Young was elected to Congress from Atlanta, becoming
the first Black representative from the Deep South since Reconstruction;
Whereas, in 1973, Maynard Jackson was elected as Atlanta's first African-
American mayor, also becoming the first African-American mayor in the
Deep South, providing inspiration to civil servants and voters across
the United States;
Whereas, in 1976, the Sweet Auburn Historical District in Atlanta was designated
as a National Historic Landmark District for its significance as a
prosperous African-American neighborhood and center of commerce;
Whereas, in 1977, Atlantan Andrew Young was appointed as the first Black United
States Ambassador to the United Nations;
Whereas, in 1981, the honorable John Lewis began his career as an elected
official as a member of the Atlanta City Council;
Whereas, in 1986, the honorable John Lewis was elected to represent Atlanta in
the House of Representatives, where he would go on to serve for 33
years;
Whereas Atlanta has ascended as a global city and a world-class leader in
business, entrepreneurship, athletics, transportation, politics, social
equity, faith, culture, education, health, and science;
Whereas Atlanta's reputation for cohesive economic achievement has earned it the
nickname ``The City Too Busy to Hate'';
Whereas Atlanta is home to numerous stellar institutes of higher learning,
including Morehouse College, Morehouse School of Medicine, Clark Atlanta
University, Spelman College, Morris Brown College, and the Georgia
Institute of Technology; and
Whereas Atlanta continues to be recognized as a center of diversity,
inclusivity, excellence, and social, economic, and educational
opportunity for all: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes Atlanta's significance as the cradle of the
civil rights movement for the city's immense contributions to
the cause of equal rights; and
(2) honors Atlanta's role as a dynamic, vibrant city that
continues to lead by example to show the success that is
possible when Americans are given equal opportunities to pursue
excellence.
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