Alabama 2025 Regular Session

Alabama House Bill HR96 Compare Versions

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

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1	1	HR96INTRODUCED
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3	3	HR96
4	4	U99QPGG-1
5	5	By Representatives Ensler, Hassell, McClammy, Lawrence, Morris
6	6	RFD:
7	7	First Read: 27-Feb-25
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13	13	6 U99QPGG-1 02/26/2025 evp (L)evp 2025-692
14	14	Page 1
15	15	First Read: 27-Feb-25
16	16	HR____ COMMEMORATING MARCH 2, 2025, AS THE 70TH ANNIVERSARY
17	17	OF CLAUDETTE COLVIN'S REFUSAL TO GIVE UP HER BUS SEAT.
18	18	WHEREAS, with great pleasure and pride, we
19	19	commemorate the 70th Anniversary of Claudette Colvin's
20	20	refusal to give up her bus seat in Montgomery, Alabama, on
21	21	March 2, 1955, and we find it fitting and proper to recount
22	22	the accomplishments and sacrifices of Ms. Claudette Colvin;
23	23	and
24	24	WHEREAS, Claudette Colvin was born in Birmingham,
25	25	Alabama, on September 5, 1939, to C.P. Austin and Mary Jane
26	26	Austin (Gadson); she is the oldest of eight sisters; during
27	27	her early childhood, her adopted parents, Q.P. and Mary Ann
28	28	Colvin, lived in the rural community of Pine Level, Alabama;
29	29	Ms. Colvin attended the Springhill Baptist Elementary
30	30	School, then located on Ramer Route 1; later, Ms. Colvin
31	31	moved to the King Hill community of the state capital,
32	32	Montgomery; and
33	33	WHEREAS, Ms. Colvin was arrested for a felony at the
34	34	age of fifteen, after refusing to give up her seat to a
35	35	young, white passenger on March 2, 1955, in Montgomery, nine
36	36	months before the arrest of Rosa Parks; and
37	37	WHEREAS, her arrest sparked a successful lawsuit led
38	38	by famed Civil Rights Attorney, Fred D. Gray; Ms. Colvin,
39	39	along with Aurelia Browder, Susie McDonald, and Mary Louise
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68	68	Page 2
69	69	along with Aurelia Browder, Susie McDonald, and Mary Louise
70	70	Smith, were plaintiffs in what would become the Supreme
71	71	Court case, Browder v. Gayle; at the age of 16, she gave
72	72	pivotal testimony that led the United States District Court
73	73	for the Middle District of Alabama to issue a ruling
74	74	declaring the state's laws mandating bus segregation as
75	75	unconstitutional; the United States Supreme Court upheld
76	76	this ruling and on December 20, 1956, ordered the State of
77	77	Alabama and the City of Montgomery to end bus segregation
78	78	permanently; and
79	79	WHEREAS, Ms. Colvin did not finish her senior year of
80	80	high school, partially due to her dedication to the social
81	81	justice movement; she worked hard to earn her General
82	82	Education Diploma and attended the Alabama State Teachers
83	83	College in Montgomery; and
84	84	WHEREAS, Ms. Colvin's legacy simmered quietly until,
85	85	as early as 1979, her name began surfacing during Negro
86	86	History Month; Frank Sikora of the Birmingham News wrote a
87	87	feature story on her in 1980; in 1990, New York Governor,
88	88	Mario M. Cuomo, awarded her with the MLK, Jr. Medal of
89	89	Freedom, New York State's highest honor of recognition for
90	90	outstanding accomplishments in civil and human rights; the
91	91	Selma Times-Journal featured her in 1991; the National
92	92	Voting Rights Museum and Institute added a picture display
93	93	dedicated to Ms. Colvin in 1994; Lifetime Television
94	94	featured her story in 1995; she was featured in the cover
95	95	stories of USA Today, the Montgomery Advertiser, and the
96	96	Washington Post; she has been mentioned in several books,
97	97	including "Freedom's Children" by Ellen Levine, "Parting the
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127	127	including "Freedom's Children" by Ellen Levine, "Parting the
128	128	Waters" by Taylor Branch, and "Bus Ride to Justice" by
129	129	Attorney Fred D. Gray; Phillip Hoose's 2009 biography,
130	130	Claudette Colvin, Twice Toward Justice" received the
131	131	Newberry Honor Book Award; and most recently, she
132	132	co-authored the children's book, "Claudette Colvin: I Want
133	133	Freedom Now!" with Phillip Hoose and illustrated by Bea
134	134	Jackson; and
135	135	WHEREAS, despite many considering Ms. Colvin's 1955
136	136	act of civil disobedience to be the greatest achievement in
137	137	her life, Ms. Colvin always kept her eye on the future,
138	138	"paying it forward" to the next generation; by sharing her
139	139	story, she has empowered parents, community leaders, and
140	140	public officials to become agents of change; she created the
141	141	Claudette Colvin Foundation with the mission to inspire and
142	142	recognize youth and young adults for their service in
143	143	significantly improving life in communities across America;
144	144	her giving spirit is also shown by the success of her
145	145	descendants; she is the mother of two boys, the eldest of
146	146	whom sadly passed at her home in 1993; her youngest son
147	147	earned his Doctorate in Business Administration from
148	148	Kennesaw State University and is now an Assistant Professor
149	149	at Texas A&M University - Kingsville; she has several
150	150	grandchildren and great-grandchildren and often says she
151	151	"reaps the fruits of her labors" through her growing family
152	152	and those others whom she inspired; and
153	153	WHEREAS, because of her arrest, Ms. Colvin lost her
154	154	civil rights and liberties, including the right to vote; in
155	155	2021, she petitioned the juvenile court in Montgomery to
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185	185	2021, she petitioned the juvenile court in Montgomery to
186	186	expunge her record; 66 years after her arrest, her record
187	187	was expunged by Judge Calvin Williams who lauded her actions
188	188	as courageous; now therefore,
189	189	BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
190	190	LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA, That Claudette Colvin is commended
191	191	for her courage and bravery, which resulted in an organized
192	192	bus boycott and the Supreme Court ruling that segregation in
193	193	public transportation is unconstitutional, and March 2,
194	194	2025, is hereby commemorated as the 70th Anniversary of her
195	195	historic action to protest injustice.
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