Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HR11 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	H.R. No. 11
	1	+	89R1767 BPG-D
	2	+	By: Morales of Harris H.R. No. 11
2	3
3	4
4	5
5	6
6	7		R E S O L U T I O N
7	8		WHEREAS, March 19, 2025, marks the 143rd anniversary of the
8	9		birth of trailblazing activist Minnie Fisher Cunningham, who played
9	10		a vital role in securing women's suffrage; and
10	11		WHEREAS, The daughter of Horatio and Sallie Fisher, the
11	12		former Minnie Fisher was born on the family farm near New Waverly in
12	13		1882; she was one of the first women in the state to receive a
13	14		pharmacy degree but soon discovered that her untrained male
14	15		colleagues made twice her salary; following her marriage to Beverly
15	16		"Bill" Cunningham, she became active in social reform efforts in
16	17		Galveston; she chaired two Women's Health Protective Association
17	18		committees and was a founding member and then president of the
18	19		Galveston Equal Suffrage Association; and
19	20		WHEREAS, Mrs. Cunningham was elected president of the Texas
20	21		Equal Suffrage Association in 1915; membership grew to 10,000 under
21	22		her leadership, and her formidable coalition-building and
22	23		negotiating skills resulted in a bill granting Texas women the
23	24		right to vote in state primary elections; the National American
24	25		Woman Suffrage Association recruited her to lobby Congress and
25	26		President Woodrow Wilson, and she eventually became the group's
26	27		congressional secretary; after passage of the 19th Amendment in
27	28		1919, she traveled across the Southwest to rally support for
28	29		ratification; her shrewdness and determination were instrumental
29	30		in making Texas the first southern state to ratify the amendment,
30	31		thwarting an attempt to create a regional bulwark against it; and
31	32		WHEREAS, A founder and officer of the National League of
32	33		Women Voters, Mrs. Cunningham successfully championed the nation's
33	34		first social welfare measure, the Sheppard-Towner Maternity and
34	35		Infancy Act; back in Texas, she became one of the first American
35	36		women to pursue a career in party politics, running for the
36	37		U.S. Senate in 1928 and the governorship in 1944; she was an early
37	38		inspiration to Eleanor Roosevelt and in turn energetically
38	39		supported the Roosevelt administration's New Deal initiatives in
39	40		numerous professional and volunteer capacities, including editor
40	41		for the Texas A&M University Agricultural Extension Service, senior
41	42		specialist in the Information Division of the federal Agricultural
42	43		Adjustment Administration, and acting head of the Women's Division
43	44		of the Democratic National Committee; and
44	45		WHEREAS, Mrs. Cunningham returned to New Waverly to run the
45	46		family farm but remained highly engaged in the progressive
46	47		movement; in 1954, she helped establish the Texas Observer, and six
47	48		years later, she managed the local headquarters of the
48	49		John F. Kennedy presidential campaign, which carried Walker
49	50		County; she died on December 9, 1964, at the age of 82; and
50	51		WHEREAS, Through her vision, resolve, and extraordinary
51	52		ability, Minnie Fisher Cunningham contributed enormously to the
52	53		empowerment of American women, and 60 years after her passing, her
53	54		accomplishments continue to resonate; now, therefore, be it
54	55		RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas
55	56		Legislature hereby commemorate the 143rd anniversary of the birth
56	57		of Minnie Fisher Cunningham.
57		-	Morales of Harris
58		-	______________________________
59		-	Speaker of the House
60		-	I certify that H.R. No. 11 was adopted by the House on April
61		-	17, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 131, Nays 10, 1 present, not
62		-	voting.
63		-	______________________________
64		-	Chief Clerk of the House