Alabama 2025 Regular Session

Alabama House Bill HR32 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	HR32INTRODUCED
2	2	Page 0
3	3	HR32
4	4	6HYP311-1
5	5	By Representative Clarke
6	6	RFD:
7	7	First Read: 06-Feb-25
8	8	1
9	9	2
10	10	3
11	11	4
12	12	5 6HYP311-1 02/05/2025 NG (L)NG 2025-586
13	13	Page 1
14	14	First Read: 06-Feb-25
15	15	HR___ CELEBRATING BIG ZION AME ZION CHURCH HERITAGE DAY ON
16	16	FEBRUARY 9, 2025, AND RECOGNIZING THE COURAGEOUS EFFORTS OF
17	17	REVEREND SHANDY JONES AND HIS FIGHT AGAINST INJUSTICE.
18	18	WHEREAS, the Reverend Shandy Jones was born in
19	19	Huntsville, Alabama, in 1816 to an enslaved mother and a
20	20	member of the slave master's family; and
21	21	WHEREAS, before his 21st birthday, Shandy Jones was
22	22	emancipated and moved from Huntsville to Tuscaloosa,
23	23	Alabama; in 1837, he married Elvina Love, who was also the
24	24	offspring of an enslaved woman and her slave owner and was
25	25	later freed; and
26	26	WHEREAS, Shandy Jones apprenticed as a barber and
27	27	later opened his own barbershop, achieving financial
28	28	security and successfully raising a family of 14 children;
29	29	and
30	30	WHEREAS, for the next decade, he built a thriving
31	31	barbering business serving Tuscaloosa's white community,
32	32	allowing him to learn business practices and strategies
33	33	through his interactions; as a result, by 1860, Shandy Jones
34	34	had accumulated real estate holdings worth $7,000, a
35	35	significant achievement for a Black man in Alabama at that
36	36	time; he was one of the most successful Black men in
37	37	Tuscaloosa and among the wealthiest in Alabama; and
38	38	WHEREAS, beyond his business ventures, Shandy Jones
39	39	1
40	40	2
41	41	3
42	42	4
43	43	5
44	44	6
45	45	7
46	46	8
47	47	9
48	48	10
49	49	11
50	50	12
51	51	13
52	52	14
53	53	15
54	54	16
55	55	17
56	56	18
57	57	19
58	58	20
59	59	21
60	60	22
61	61	23
62	62	24
63	63	25
64	64	26
65	65	27
66	66	28 HR32 INTRODUCED
67	67	Page 2
68	68	WHEREAS, beyond his business ventures, Shandy Jones
69	69	was ordained as a minister in the African Methodist
70	70	Episcopal Zion Church and played a pivotal role in
71	71	establishing Tuscaloosa's first Black school and church,
72	72	Hunter's Chapel AME Zion Church; and
73	73	WHEREAS, before the Civil War, he became involved
74	74	with the American Colonization Society, which sought to
75	75	assist free Black Americans in emigrating to Liberia; Mr.
76	76	Jones wrote letters to the African Repository, the society's
77	77	official publication, advocating for the freedom of all
78	78	people of color in the United States and expressing his
79	79	support for Black colonization in Liberia; and
80	80	WHEREAS, after the Civil War, during the
81	81	Reconstruction era, Shandy Jones became active in the
82	82	Republican Party; following the ratification of the
83	83	Fourteenth Amendment, he ran for office and won a seat in
84	84	the Alabama House of Representatives, becoming one of the
85	85	first Black legislators in Alabama; he served until 1870,
86	86	when he lost his bid for re-election; and
87	87	WHEREAS, as white resistance to Reconstruction
88	88	intensified in Tuscaloosa, many groups targeted Shandy
89	89	Jones; his businesses, including his barbershop, faced
90	90	organized boycotts; due to these hostilities, Mr. Jones and
91	91	his family relocated to Mobile in 1871, leaving behind
92	92	everything he had worked to build; and
93	93	WHEREAS, upon arriving in Mobile, Shandy Jones was
94	94	appointed to a position at the U.S. Customs House by
95	95	President Ulysses S. Grant in recognition of his political
96	96	contributions to the Republican Party in 1872; and
97	97	29
98	98	30
99	99	31
100	100	32
101	101	33
102	102	34
103	103	35
104	104	36
105	105	37
106	106	38
107	107	39
108	108	40
109	109	41
110	110	42
111	111	43
112	112	44
113	113	45
114	114	46
115	115	47
116	116	48
117	117	49
118	118	50
119	119	51
120	120	52
121	121	53
122	122	54
123	123	55
124	124	56 HR32 INTRODUCED
125	125	Page 3
126	126	contributions to the Republican Party in 1872; and
127	127	WHEREAS, Shandy Jones became the pastor of Little
128	128	Zion AME Zion Church in Mobile, in 1880, later renamed Big
129	129	Zion AME, serving faithfully until his death in 1886; and
130	130	WHEREAS, Shandy Jones was laid to rest in Magnolia
131	131	Cemetery, where his grave remained unmarked until 2015, when
132	132	the Friends of Magnolia Cemetery successfully located his
133	133	burial site and placed a prominent grave marker in his
134	134	honor; and
135	135	WHEREAS, Big Zion AME Zion Church Heritage Day will
136	136	be held on February 9, 2025; on this special day, the church
137	137	will pay homage to the Honorable Reverend Shandy Jones; now
138	138	therefore,
139	139	BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
140	140	LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA, That the Alabama House of
141	141	Representatives joins Big Zion AME Zion Church in
142	142	recognizing Reverend Shandy Jones as a significant figure in
143	143	Alabama's history who overcame immense challenges of his
144	144	time to emerge as a successful businessman, religious
145	145	leader, and politician; his contributions to the Black
146	146	community and his advocacy for freedom and equality remain a
147	147	lasting legacy.
148	148	57
149	149	58
150	150	59
151	151	60
152	152	61
153	153	62
154	154	63
155	155	64
156	156	65
157	157	66
158	158	67
159	159	68
160	160	69
161	161	70
162	162	71
163	163	72
164	164	73
165	165	74
166	166	75
167	167	76
168	168	77