HR 9057

1	House Resolution
2	A resolution of condolence to the victims of lynching in
3	this state and their descendants and commendation to the
4	United States Senate for passing Resolution 39, which
5	apologized for its failure to pass anti-lynching
6	legislation.
7
8	WHEREAS, the crime of lynching succeeded slavery as the
9	ultimate expression of racism in the United States following
10	Reconstruction, and
11	WHEREAS, lynching was a widely acknowledged practice in the
12	United States until the middle of the 20th century, occurring in
13	documented incidents in all but four states, and
14	WHEREAS, at least 4,742 people, predominately African
15	Americans, were reported as being lynched in the United States
16	between 1882 and 1968, and
17	WHEREAS, at least 280 people, predominately African
18	Americans, were reported as being lynched in Florida between
19	1882 and 1968, and
20	WHEREAS, the recent publication of "Without Sanctuary:
21	Lynching Photography in America" has helped to bring greater
22	awareness and proper recognition to the victims of lynching, and
23	WHEREAS, it is only by coming to terms with history that
24	the United States can effectively champion human rights abroad,
25	and
26	WHEREAS, in 2005, the United States Senate passed Senate
27	Resolution 39, which apologized to the victims of lynching for
28	the failure of the United States Senate to enact anti-lynching
29	legislation, expressed its sympathies and regrets to the
30	descendants of lynching victims, and remembered the history of
31	lynching to ensure that the tragedies surrounding those crimes
32	will neither be forgotten nor repeated, and
33	WHEREAS, the United States Senate stated that an apology
34	offered in the spirit of true repentance will move the nation
35	toward reconciliation and will become central to a new
36	understanding on which improved racial relations can be forged,
37	NOW, THEREFORE,
38
39	Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of
40	Florida:
41
42	That the Florida House of Representatives expresses its
43	deepest sympathies and most solemn condolences to the victims of
44	lynching in this state and their descendants while commending
45	the Senate of the United States for passing Resolution 39, in
46	which it apologized to all the victims of lynching in the United
47	States for its failure to enact anti-lynching legislation that
48	might have preserved the lives, liberties, and constitutional
49	rights of the victims and prevented such tragedies from
50	occurring in this and other states.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.