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Regular Session, 2012 ENROLLED
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON NO. 112
BY SENATOR GUILLORY
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON
To designate Tuesday, May 15, 2012, as Alpha Phi Alpha Day in the Louisiana Legislature,
commends Alpha Phi Alpha for one hundred six years of exemplary leadership, and
provides for suitable observance of such day.
WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha was founded on December 4, 1906, and celebrates one
hundred six years of existence, recalling its rich history and the important role it plays in the
distinction in the state of Louisiana and the United States of America; and
WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated has supplied voice and vision
to the struggle of African Americans and people of color around the world; and
WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, the first intercollegiate
Greek-letter fraternity established for African Americans, was founded at Cornell University
in Ithaca, New York by seven men who recognized the need for a strong bond of
brotherhood among African descendants in this country; and
WHEREAS, the visionary founders, known as the "Jewels" of the fraternity, are
Henry Arthur Callis, Charles Henry Chapman, Eugene Knickle Jones, George Biddle Kelley,
Nathaniel Allison Murray, Robert Harold Ogle, and Vertner Woodson Tandy; and
WHEREAS, the "Jewel" founders and early leaders of the fraternity succeeded in
laying a firm foundation for Alpha Phi Alpha's principles of manly deeds, scholarship, and
love for all mankind; and
WHEREAS, while Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated continues to stress
academic excellence among its members, Alpha also recognizes the need to help correct the
educational, economic, political, and social injustices faced by African Americans; and
WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated has long stood in the forefront
of the African American community's fight for civil rights through leaders such as: W. E.
B. DuBois, Adam Clayton Powell Jr., Edward Brooke, Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood
Marshall, Andrew Young, William Gray, Paul Robeson, T. J. Jemison, Ernest "Dutch"
Morial, and many others; and SCR NO. 112 ENROLLED
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WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha spearheaded and oversaw the designing and building
of a monument in Dr. King's honor, which is the newest memorial on the National Mall in
Washington, D.C., the first to honor a non-president, and the first to honor a man of color;
and
WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated engages in programs and
activities to strengthen the community such as "A Voteless People is a Hopeless People"
voter registration campaign, Big Brother/Big Sisters, Boy Scouts of America,"Go to High
School, Go to College", and Project Alpha, a cooperative effort with the March of Dimes;
and
WHEREAS, this year, Alpha Phi Alpha members from across Louisiana will travel
to Baton Rouge in order to celebrate the contributions and sacrifices in the legislature of
fourteen past Alpha brothers and those currently serving, Senators Troy Brown and Elbert
L. Guillory and Representatives Wesley T. Bishop, Roy A. Burrell, Herbert B. Dixon,
Patrick O. Jefferson, and Vincent J. Pierre; and
WHEREAS, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated will forever hold high its lofty
ideals and aims to be "First of All, Servants of All, We Shall Transcend All".
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
designate Tuesday, May 15, 2012, as Alpha Phi Alpha Day in the Louisiana Legislature,
commend Alpha Phi Alpha for one hundred six years of exemplary leadership, and urge that
this day be observed with appropriate recognition to the Louisiana District of the Alpha Phi
Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated in recognition of its contributions to the goals of the national
organization.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be forwarded to Alpha
Phi Alpha's Louisiana District Director, Southwestern Regional Vice President, Executive
Director and General President and that a copy be filed at the General Headquarters of Alpha
Phi Alpha Fraternity in Baltimore, Maryland.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES