Texas 2023 - 88th 3rd C.S.

Texas House Bill HR97 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	H.R. No. 97
2	2
3	3
4	4	R E S O L U T I O N
5	5	WHEREAS, The city of Dallas lost an esteemed professor,
6	6	author, storyteller, and entrepreneur with the passing of Dr. Njoki
7	7	McElroy on October 16, 2023; and
8	8	WHEREAS, Born in Sherman in 1925, Njoki McElroy grew up in the
9	9	Oak Cliff neighborhood of Dallas; she attended segregated,
10	10	under-resourced public schools, but credited her supportive Black
11	11	teachers with enabling her to enroll in Xavier University in New
12	12	Orleans at the age of 16; after beginning her career as a public
13	13	school teacher, she earned her master's and doctoral degrees in
14	14	performance studies from Northwestern University; she went on to
15	15	teach there for over three decades, creating groundbreaking courses
16	16	in the performance of Black literature; in 1987, she joined the
17	17	Master of Liberal Studies program at Southern Methodist University;
18	18	adoring students nicknamed her "Queen Professor," and many of them
19	19	went on to become leaders in the entertainment world and other
20	20	fields; and
21	21	WHEREAS, Dr. McElroy was a prolific writer, and The Dallas
22	22	Morning News hailed in particular her autobiographical 1012
23	23	Natchez: A Memoir of Grace, Hardship and Love; her short story was
24	24	anthologized in the critically acclaimed From Daughters to Mothers:
25	25	I've Always Meant to Tell You, and her plays were produced on
26	26	university and professional stages alike; a master storyteller, she
27	27	performed and conducted workshops throughout the U.S., Europe, and
28	28	the Caribbean, training educators in ways to engage students by
29	29	incorporating storytelling in their instruction; she directed
30	30	several productions centered on overcoming the legacy of racism in
31	31	Dallas, most notably 2019's From Freedman's Town to Botham Jean:
32	32	Stories of Racial Healing; as founder of the annual Back Home with
33	33	the Folks Festival, she provided a platform for artists in
34	34	marginalized neighborhoods, and she was a generous mentor to
35	35	countless people and raised money to support their creative
36	36	endeavors; and
37	37	WHEREAS, Abundantly talented, Dr. McElroy was also a
38	38	photographer and a television producer, and she and her husband
39	39	launched Black Fox Enterprises, a beauty company with major-market
40	40	distribution; following his death in 1978, she took over as
41	41	president/CEO; among myriad accolades, she received the
42	42	President's Council on Youth Opportunity Award, the NAACP Living
43	43	Legend Award, and a Ford Foundation Fellowship; moreover, she was
44	44	the treasured matriarch of a fine family that included six children
45	45	and many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and
46	46	great-great-grandchildren; and
47	47	WHEREAS, Njoki McElroy led a rich and purposeful life, and
48	48	her legacy as a champion of Black culture will continue to resonate
49	49	for years to come; now, therefore, be it
50	50	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas
51	51	Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby pay tribute to the memory
52	52	of Dr. Njoki McElroy and extend sincere sympathy to all who mourn
53	53	her passing; and, be it further
54	54	RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
55	55	prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of
56	56	Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Dr. Njoki
57	57	McElroy.
58	58	Davis
59	59	______________________________
60	60	Speaker of the House
61	61	I certify that H.R. No. 97 was unanimously adopted by a rising
62	62	vote of the House on November 1, 2023.
63	63	______________________________
64	64	Chief Clerk of the House