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A resolution recognizing February 2024 as Black History Month in Nashville and Davidson County.
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WHEREAS, Black History Month is celebrated each February and recognizes the legacy of Black Americans whose power to lead, to overcome, and to expand the meaning and practice of American democracy has helped our Nation become a more fair and just society; and
WHEREAS, the United States was established upon the profound but simple idea that all people are created equal and should be treated equally throughout their lives. However, this is not an idea that America has always lived up to; and
WHEREAS, in 1925, an African-American scholar, Dr. Carter G. Woodson, launched an effort to focus awareness on the contributions of African Americans to American society that, in 1976, became Black History Month, a month-long celebration in February of the estimable contributions of African Americans to this country; and
WHEREAS, this month, we celebrate and recognize Black leaders, inventors, artists, musicians, organizers, activists, and creators on a national level including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Barack Obama, George Washington Carver, Harriet Tubman, Shirley Chisholm, Jackie Robinson, Billie Holiday, and many more; and
WHEREAS, we also celebrate those locally who have contributed to the rich history of our community in Nashville and Davidson County; and
WHEREAS, in 1951, Z. Alexander Looby and Robert E. Lillard were the first Black members of the Nashville City Council since 1911, when Solomon P. Harris was elected to the Nashville City Council. After being sworn into office, Looby and Lillard focused on legislation and policies to do away with Jim Crow laws and introduced bills to desegregate public spaces; and
WHEREAS, in 1963, the first Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County was sworn in. Among the 40 members were five Black Council members: Z. Alexander Looby, Robert E. Lillard, Mansfield Douglas, John Driver, and Harol...
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