| 1 | 1 | | H.R. No. 2014 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 5 | | WHEREAS, Two decades have passed since the tragic death of |
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| 6 | 6 | | Ortralla Mosley, and her mother, Carolyn White-Mosley, has since |
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| 7 | 7 | | done extraordinary work to prevent other families from suffering |
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| 8 | 8 | | the loss of a loved one to teen dating violence; and |
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| 9 | 9 | | WHEREAS, Ortralla Mosley was only 15 years old when she lost |
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| 10 | 10 | | her life on May 28, 2003, at the hands of her ex-boyfriend; her |
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| 11 | 11 | | death left a deep void in the lives of her family and friends, and in |
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| 12 | 12 | | the midst of tremendous grief, Ms. White-Mosley dedicated herself |
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| 13 | 13 | | to honoring her daughter's memory and becoming a catalyst for |
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| 14 | 14 | | change; she began working with a community safety task force to |
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| 15 | 15 | | recommend safety measures to the Austin Independent School |
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| 16 | 16 | | District, which led to the development of the first policies to |
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| 17 | 17 | | prevent teen dating violence in the state of Texas; and |
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| 18 | 18 | | WHEREAS, Ortralla Mosley's story inspired the creation of the |
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| 19 | 19 | | Texas Advocacy Project's Teen Justice Initiative, which provides |
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| 20 | 20 | | free legal services to students experiencing dating violence, and |
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| 21 | 21 | | the passage of House Bill 121 by the 80th Texas Legislature, which |
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| 22 | 22 | | requires all school districts in the state to adopt dating violence |
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| 23 | 23 | | policies like those developed by Austin ISD; this groundbreaking |
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| 24 | 24 | | piece of legislation has since served as a model for laws in other |
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| 25 | 25 | | states; and |
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| 26 | 26 | | WHEREAS, In 2010, Carolyn White-Mosley joined together with a |
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| 27 | 27 | | group of young activists, including her daughter's friend RaeAnne |
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| 28 | 28 | | Spence, to advocate for the establishment of February as National |
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| 29 | 29 | | Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month; |
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| 30 | 30 | | Ms. White-Mosley continued to push for legislative action on the |
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| 31 | 31 | | issue, and in 2013, she met with then-Vice President Joe Biden to |
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| 32 | 32 | | support the inclusion of language addressing teen violence in the |
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| 33 | 33 | | Violence Against Women Act; recently, she has remained active in |
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| 34 | 34 | | her community by overseeing afterschool programs for youth; and |
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| 35 | 35 | | WHEREAS, Carolyn White-Mosley has demonstrated an unwavering |
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| 36 | 36 | | commitment to building a future where all young people are safe, |
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| 37 | 37 | | secure, and free from fear and abuse, and she has touched the lives |
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| 38 | 38 | | of countless people through her tireless dedication to this |
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| 39 | 39 | | important cause; now, therefore, be it |
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| 40 | 40 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
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| 41 | 41 | | Legislature hereby honor Carolyn White-Mosley for her efforts to |
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| 42 | 42 | | end teen dating violence and pay tribute to the legacy of her |
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| 43 | 43 | | daughter, Ortralla Mosley, on the 20th anniversary of her death; |
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| 44 | 44 | | and, be it further |
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| 45 | 45 | | RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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| 46 | 46 | | prepared for Ms. White-Mosley as an expression of high regard by |
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| 47 | 47 | | the Texas House of Representatives. |
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| 48 | 48 | | Talarico |
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| 49 | 49 | | ______________________________ |
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| 50 | 50 | | Speaker of the House |
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| 51 | 51 | | I certify that H.R. No. 2014 was adopted by the House on May |
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| 52 | 52 | | 18, 2023, by a non-record vote. |
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| 53 | 53 | | ______________________________ |
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| 54 | 54 | | Chief Clerk of the House |
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