[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 517 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 517

       Honoring the life and legacy of Judge Nathaniel R. Jones.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 27, 2020

    Mr. Brown (for himself and Mr. Portman) submitted the following 
             resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
       Honoring the life and legacy of Judge Nathaniel R. Jones.

Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones was born on May 13, 1926, in Youngstown, Ohio, and 
        died on January 26, 2020, at his home in Cincinnati, Ohio, surrounded by 
        family and loved ones;
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones served honorably in the United States Army Air 
        Corps during World War II;
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones attended Youngstown State University, where he 
        earned an undergraduate degree in 1951 and a law degree in 1955;
Whereas, in 1957, Judge Nathaniel Jones was admitted to the Ohio Bar;
Whereas, from 1956 to 1959, Judge Nathaniel Jones served as the Executive 
        Director for the Fair Employment Practices Commission, where he led 
        efforts to ensure equal access to employment opportunities for African 
        Americans;
Whereas, in 1962, Judge Nathaniel Jones became the first African American to be 
        appointed as Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District 
        of Ohio;
Whereas, in 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed Judge Nathaniel Jones to 
        serve as the Assistant General Counsel for the National Advisory 
        Commission on Civil Disorders, also known as the Kerner Commission, 
        which found racism as the root cause for the civil unrest that occurred 
        in the cities of the United States during the 1960s and determined that 
        the United States was ``moving toward two societies, one black, one 
        white--separate and unequal'';
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones served as the General Counsel for the National 
        Association for the Advancement of Colored People from 1969 to 1979, 
        directing efforts to desegregate public schools in Northern cities, 
        defended affirmative action, and fought against discrimination against 
        African-American soldiers in the United States Armed Forces;
Whereas, in 1979, President Jimmy Carter nominated and the Senate confirmed 
        Judge Nathaniel Jones as a judge for the United States Court of Appeals 
        for the Sixth Circuit, making him the 11th African American to serve as 
        a Federal circuit court judge;
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones served on the United States Court of Appeals for 
        the Sixth Circuit until his retirement in 2002;
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones was known as the ``great dissenter'' because he 
        was often in the minority, siding with plaintiffs seeking redress in the 
        courts for violations of housing and employment law and civil rights 
        protections;
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones assisted the Republic of South Africa in drafting 
        a new constitution following decades of apartheid rule and served as an 
        official election monitor for the country's first free and fair 
        election, which ushered in the presidency of Nelson Mandela;
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones received 19 honorary degrees and numerous awards 
        of distinction, such as the Spingarn Medal, the highest honor awarded by 
        the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the 
        International Freedom Conductor Award from the National Underground 
        Railroad Freedom Center, the Charles Hamilton Houston Medallion of Merit 
        from the Washington Bar Association, and the Pillar of Justice Award 
        from the Federal Bar Association;
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones was inducted into the National Bar Association 
        Hall of Fame and the Ohio Civil Rights Hall of Fame, and, in 2014, the 
        Nathaniel R. Jones American Inn of Court was chartered in Youngstown, 
        Ohio;
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones was an initiate of the Beta Pi Chapter of Kappa 
        Alpha Psi Fraternity and was the 65th Laurel Wreath Laureate of Kappa 
        Alpha Psi Fraternity;
Whereas, in 2003, Congress passed legislation to name the newly constructed 
        Federal building in Youngstown, Ohio, the ``Nathaniel R. Jones Federal 
        Building and United States Courthouse'';
Whereas, in 2019, the University of Cincinnati College of Law renamed its Center 
        for Race, Gender, and Social Justice after Judge Nathaniel R. Jones to 
        signify its ``commitment to and alignment with the principles of Judge 
        Jones' impressive career as a champion for justice'';
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones devoted his life to answering ``the Call'' for 
        racial justice, first sounded by the National Association for the 
        Advancement of Colored People in 1909, stating in his memoir, 
        ``[A]nswering calls for racial justice has not been confined to a 
        specific time in the past or the history of a particular organization, 
        but has been defined by the imperatives that guided my life. As I enter 
        the twilight of my life, I offer this chronicle of the steps I have 
        taken in an effort to advance the baton of justice handed to me by 
        forebears who were much more surefooted and fearless than me in 
        answering the Call.'';
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones inspired generations of lawyers who served as his 
        law clerks, as well as the countless leaders who sought his wise counsel 
        as they worked to address inequality in their communities; and
Whereas Judge Nathaniel Jones will be remembered for his dedication to upholding 
        the Constitution of the United States and as a tireless advocate for 
        justice: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate honors the life and legacy of Judge 
Nathaniel R. Jones and his unwavering commitment to upholding justice 
and civil rights.
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