HLS 20RS-1087 ORIGINAL
2020 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 11
BY REPRESENTATIVE JEFFERSON
COMMENDATIONS: Commends the Pinkie C. Wilkerson Life Development Center and
Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., for remembering former state representative Pinkie
C. Wilkerson on the twentieth anniversary of her death
1 A RESOLUTION
2To commend the Pinkie C. Wilkerson Life Development Center and Delta Sigma Theta
3 Sorority, Inc., for remembering former state representative Pinkie Carolyn Wilkerson
4 on the twentieth anniversary of her tragic death.
5 WHEREAS, Pinkie Wilkerson is remembered as a truly committed public servant
6to the citizens of Bienville, Claiborne, Lincoln, and Union parishes; and
7 WHEREAS, Pinkie graduated from Grambling State University Lab High School,
8and she earned a bachelor of arts degree from Grambling State University and a master of
9arts degree from Ohio University; she was a member of Moot Court and Law Review at
10Southern University Law Center; in May 1979, she received her juris doctorate degree,
11finishing at the top of her graduating class; she also studied at Tulane University School of
12Law and earned an L.L.M.; and
13 WHEREAS, Pinkie was admitted to the bar in both Louisiana and New York, and
14she was also admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court and the United
15States Tax Court; and
16 WHEREAS, prior to her election into the House of Representatives, she served as
17assistant district attorney in the Third Judicial District for Lincoln and Union parishes and
18as an assistant attorney general for the state of Louisiana; she also practiced computer law
19with Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith at the World Financial Center and was a tax
20attorney with the Internal Revenue Service in Los Angeles; and
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HR NO. 11
1 WHEREAS, Ms. Wilkerson was also a very accomplished academic; she served as
2an assistant professor of law at Southern University School of Law, an assistant professor
3of American history at both Grambling State University and the University of Maryland, a
4teacher of American history and American government in the Sacramento City Unified
5School District, and an adjunct professor of business law at Louisiana Tech University and
6Grambling State University; and
7 WHEREAS, she combined her passion for law with her commitment to women's
8causes by serving as the president of the Ruston-Grambling League of Women Voters and
9the Women Lawyers Division of the National Bar Association; and
10 WHEREAS, Pinkie began her tenure as a state representative in 1992, and her
11attentiveness to the will of her constituents merited her reelection to office two additional
12times; during her service to the legislature, Representative Wilkerson seized every
13opportunity to serve her district and the citizens of Louisiana in the most honorable and
14effective manner; and
15 WHEREAS, Representative Wilkerson served as vice chair of the House Committee
16on Health and Welfare and on the House Judiciary and Civil Law and Procedure committees;
17she also served on the House committees on Insurance, Ways and Means, Transportation,
18Highways, and Public Works, and on the Joint Legislative Capital Outlay Committee; and
19 WHEREAS, as a state representative, she fully embraced every opportunity to
20champion the rights of the citizens of Louisiana, and her efforts on behalf of the elderly,
21foster children, abused and neglected children, and victims of domestic violence
22demonstrated her fervent commitment to her ideals; and
23 WHEREAS, Representative Wilkerson served with honor and distinction as the vice
24chair of the Louisiana Legislative Women's Caucus from 1998 until 2000, and she was an
25active participant in projects that addressed the issues affecting the women of Louisiana; and
26 WHEREAS, on August 1, 2000, Representative Wilkerson was killed in a tragic car
27accident in Bossier City; in honor of her relentless commitment to her work, Pinkie's law
28office in Grambling, Louisiana, was made the headquarters of the Pinkie C. Wilkerson Life
29Development Center, which also houses her sorority, the Grambling Alumnae Chapter of
30Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.; and
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HR NO. 11
1 WHEREAS, former state representative Pinkie Carolyn Wilkerson will forever
2remain a respected member of the Legislature of Louisiana, and she will always be
3remembered for her relentless pursuit of adequate health care and civil rights for the women
4of Louisiana, for her compassion, for her generosity, and for the fierce determination with
5which she fought to realize her cause for the benefit of all Louisianians.
6 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
7Legislature of Louisiana does hereby commend the Pinkie C. Wilkerson Life Development
8Center and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., for remembering former state representative
9Pinkie Carolyn Wilkerson on the twentieth anniversary of her tragic death; does hereby
10posthumously recognize former Representative Wilkerson for her years of dedicated service
11to the state legislature; does hereby recognize Representative Wilkerson's excellence in
12carrying out her duties as a state representative; and does hereby remember her contributions
13to the people of Louisiana and her many achievements during her time with the legislature.
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HR 11 Original 2020 Regular Session Jefferson
Commends the Pinkie C. Wilkerson Life Development Center and Delta Sigma Theta
Sorority, Inc., for remembering former state representative Pinkie Carolyn Wilkerson on the
20th anniversary of her tragic death.
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