Alabama 2025 Regular Session

Alabama House Bill HR71 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	HR71INTRODUCED
2	2	Page 0
3	3	HR71
4	4	SCDG755-1
5	5	By Representatives Chestnut, Lawrence
6	6	RFD:
7	7	First Read: 18-Feb-25
8	8	1
9	9	2
10	10	3
11	11	4
12	12	5 SCDG755-1 02/10/2025 NG (L)NG 2025-658
13	13	Page 1
14	14	First Read: 18-Feb-25
15	15	HR____ COMMEMORATING THE RENAMING OF THE MARION POST OFFICE
16	16	AFTER CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER, ALBERT TURNER, SR.
17	17	WHEREAS, it is with great pleasure and pride that the
18	18	Legislature of Alabama commemorates the renaming of the
19	19	Marion Post Office after Civil Rights leader, Albert Turner,
20	20	Sr.; and
21	21	WHEREAS, born on February 29, 1936, in Marion,
22	22	Alabama, Albert Turner was one of 12 children of landowning
23	23	farmers, Emerson and Lottie Turner; several generations of
24	24	Turners had owned land in Perry County and had acquired a
25	25	higher level of education than many of their peers; Emerson
26	26	Turner had been a vocal community advocate for racial
27	27	equality and began the first public school busing system in
28	28	Perry County, helping rural Black students access the
29	29	all-Black Lincoln School in Marion; and
30	30	WHEREAS, in 1952, Albert graduated from the Lincoln
31	31	School, serving as class president; he enrolled at Alabama
32	32	A&M University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science Degree
33	33	with a double concentration in History and Mechanical Arts;
34	34	foreshadowing his legacy, he participated in several
35	35	Huntsville-area, student-led Civil Rights demonstrations
36	36	while in college; and
37	37	WHEREAS, on December 9, 1957, he married Evelyn Hatch
38	38	and they would have three sons and a daughter; together, the
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 HR71 INTRODUCED
67	67	Page 2
68	68	and they would have three sons and a daughter; together, the
69	69	couple became active leaders in Perry County's growing Civil
70	70	Rights protests; and
71	71	WHEREAS, having returned to Perry County, Albert
72	72	tried to register to vote in 1962, but was turned away due
73	73	to his "lack of education," even though many less-educated
74	74	white people were allowed to vote; infuriated, Albert and
75	75	Evelyn transformed the isolated Sportsman Club, a
76	76	Black-owned juke joint, into a covert meeting place to
77	77	coordinate Civil Rights protests; and
78	78	WHEREAS, in 1963, the Turners and fellow activist,
79	79	Spencer Hogue, founded the Perry County Civic League (PCCL);
80	80	the PCCL organized Black protests and boycotts in Marion
81	81	calling for the racial integration of public facilities and
82	82	schools and for voting rights; the PCCL established programs
83	83	for poor, elderly, and disabled Blacks while also assisting
84	84	Black farmers and businessmen in applying for federal loans
85	85	and program assistance; and
86	86	WHEREAS, after filing a series of federal lawsuits,
87	87	Albert's activism led to the successful registration of 150
88	88	Black voters in Perry County; his grassroots activism and
89	89	organizational skills attracted the attention of national
90	90	civil rights organizations; in the fall of 1964, his
91	91	successful mobilization efforts influenced the Southern
92	92	Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to join the existing
93	93	Black Belt movement; and
94	94	WHEREAS, the SCLC then appointed Mr. Turner as field
95	95	secretary for Alabama in recognition for his leadership and
96	96	dedication to the Civil Rights movement; he would later help
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 HR71 INTRODUCED
125	125	Page 3
126	126	dedication to the Civil Rights movement; he would later help
127	127	found the National Voting Rights Museum and Institute in
128	128	Selma at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge; and
129	129	WHEREAS, Albert remained committed to promoting
130	130	social, economic, and political opportunities for all; he
131	131	led the Southwest Alabama Farmer's Cooperative Association
132	132	(SAFCA) that improved Black farmer access to government
133	133	loans and programs; during the late 1970s, as America
134	134	confronted an energy crisis, he and the SAFCA advocated for
135	135	the expanded use of gasohol, a blend of petroleum and
136	136	ethanol, as a means for breaking the nation's dependence on
137	137	foreign oil imports; and
138	138	WHEREAS, in 1985, Mr. Turner became embroiled in a
139	139	voting rights scandal when he, Evelyn, and Spencer Hogue
140	140	were indicted by U.S. Attorney, Jeff Sessions; he accused
141	141	the three, later known as the Marion Three, of 29 counts of
142	142	mail fraud and illegally tampering with paper absentee
143	143	ballots in the September 1984 Perry County Democratic
144	144	Primary; following an emotional three-week trial in Selma, a
145	145	jury of seven Black and five white members deliberated for
146	146	fewer than three hours before acquitting the Marion Three of
147	147	all charges; their acquittal significantly impaired the
148	148	remaining efforts to undermine the application of the 1965
149	149	Voting Rights Act in Alabama; and
150	150	WHEREAS, in 1988, after seven attempts, Mr. Turner
151	151	won a heated contest to become a member of the Perry County
152	152	Commission; during his four terms as commissioner, he
153	153	championed education and public health initiatives and
154	154	promoted economic development for poor and working-class
155	155	57
156	156	58
157	157	59
158	158	60
159	159	61
160	160	62
161	161	63
162	162	64
163	163	65
164	164	66
165	165	67
166	166	68
167	167	69
168	168	70
169	169	71
170	170	72
171	171	73
172	172	74
173	173	75
174	174	76
175	175	77
176	176	78
177	177	79
178	178	80
179	179	81
180	180	82
181	181	83
182	182	84 HR71 INTRODUCED
183	183	Page 4
184	184	promoted economic development for poor and working-class
185	185	residents; now therefore,
186	186	BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
187	187	LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA, That Mr. Albert Turner, Sr. is
188	188	highly commended for his efforts in desegregating Alabama
189	189	and making it a safer and fairer place for all to live; with
190	190	the full support of every member of Alabama's congressional
191	191	delegation, the Marion Post Office will be renamed the
192	192	"Albert Turner, Sr. Post Office Building" in a testament to
193	193	his works that have shaped the future of our state.
194	194	85
195	195	86
196	196	87
197	197	88
198	198	89
199	199	90
200	200	91
201	201	92
202	202	93