[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 118 (Thursday, August 5, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Page S6906]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 609--CONGRATULATING THE NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE ON ITS 
               100TH YEAR OF SERVICE TO THE UNITED STATES

  Mr. CARDIN submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on the Judiciary:

                              S. Res. 609

       Whereas the National Urban League (referred to in this 
     preamble as the ``League'') is a historic civil rights 
     organization dedicated to promoting economic empowerment to 
     improve the standard of living in historically underdeveloped 
     urban communities;
       Whereas, by promoting education, civic engagement, economic 
     development, and civil justice, the League has been a 
     consistent advocate for improving the quality of life for 
     struggling communities;
       Whereas, on July 28, 2010, the League will open its 
     Centennial Conference in Washington, D.C.;
       Whereas, on the centennial anniversary of the National 
     Urban League, the country can look back with great pride on 
     the extraordinary accomplishments of the League;
       Whereas, since its inception in 1910, the League has made 
     tremendous gains in equality and empowerment in the African-
     American community throughout the United States;
       Whereas the National Urban League has remarkable 
     predecessors, including the National League for the 
     Protection of Colored Women (established in 1906), the 
     Committee for Improving the Industrial Condition of Negroes 
     in New York (established in 1906), and the Committee on Urban 
     Conditions Among Negroes (established in 1910);
       Whereas the League began as a multiracial, diverse 
     grassroots campaign by Mrs. Ruth Standish Baldwin and Dr. 
     George Edmund Haynes;
       Whereas, between 1910 and 2010, the League expanded to 25 
     national programs, with more than 100 local affiliates in 36 
     states and the District of Columbia;
       Whereas, during the civil rights movement, the League 
     worked closely with A. Phillip Randolph, Dr. Martin Luther 
     King Jr., and many other exceptional leaders;
       Whereas, throughout the 1970s, the partnership between the 
     League and the Federal Government experienced tremendous 
     growth, with the 2 entities delivering aid to urban areas and 
     making improvements in housing, education, health, and 
     minority-owned small businesses;
       Whereas the partnership between the League and the Federal 
     Government revolutionized how the United States viewed race 
     relations, challenging the deep discrimination within the 
     social structure of the United States and cementing the 
     League as a premier social justice organization;
       Whereas the League employs a 5-point approach to increase 
     the quality of life of people in the United States, 
     particularly African-Americans;
       Whereas the League carries out the 5-point approach through 
     programs such as ``Education and Youth Empowerment'', 
     ``Economic Empowerment'', ``Health and Quality of Life 
     Empowerment'', ``Civic Engagement and Leadership 
     Empowerment'', and ``Civil Rights and Racial Justice 
     Empowerment'';
       Whereas, through the Housing and Community Development 
     division of the League, programs such as ``Foreclosure 
     Prevention'', ``Homeownership Preparation'', and ``Financial 
     Literacy'' aided more than 50,000 people in 2009;
       Whereas, with assistance provided by the ``Foreclosure 
     Prevention'' program of the League, 3,000 people were able to 
     avoid filing foreclosure in 2009;
       Whereas, through the Education and Youth Development 
     division of the League, programs such as ``Project Ready'' 
     prepare students to transition from high school to college or 
     to the workforce;
       Whereas the League publishes the ``State of Black 
     America'', an annual report analyzing social and economic 
     conditions affecting African-Americans;
       Whereas the ``State of Black America'' report includes the 
     Equality Index, a statistical measure of the disparities 
     between Black and White people across 5 categories: 
     economics, education, health, civic engagement, and social 
     justice;
       Whereas the programs of the League not only emphasize the 
     importance of leadership and community in local areas, but 
     also enhance the quality of life by studying and addressing 
     specific problems within the communities;
       Whereas, throughout 100 years of service, the League has 
     assisted millions of people in the United States, especially 
     African-Americans, in combating poverty, inequality, and 
     social injustice;
       Whereas the League has outlined 4 aspirational goals as 
     part of the ``I AM EMPOWERED'' campaign, which marks the 
     centennial anniversary of the League;
       Whereas the ``I AM EMPOWERED'' campaign will galvanize 
     millions of people to take a pledge to help achieve the 4 
     aspirational goals of education, jobs, housing, and health 
     care by 2025, namely, by ensuring that--
       (1) every child in the United States is ready for college, 
     work, and life;
       (2) every person in the United States has access to jobs 
     with a living wage and good benefits;
       (3) every person in the United States lives in safe, 
     decent, affordable, and energy-efficient housing on fair 
     terms; and
       (4) every person in the United States has access to quality 
     and affordable health care solutions;
       Whereas the work of the League has been pivotal in 
     improving the lives of millions of African-Americans through 
     community-oriented programs, civil rights, and leadership 
     opportunities, at times when these changes have been needed 
     most; and
       Whereas the National Urban League remains an essential 
     organization: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) welcomes the National Urban League to the capital of 
     the United States to commemorate the National Urban League's 
     100th year of service to the Nation;
       (2) expresses deep gratitude for the hardworking and 
     dedicated men and women of the National Urban League who, 
     during the last 100 years, have struggled to improve the 
     society of the United States and the lives of all people in 
     the United States; and
       (3) commends the ongoing and tireless efforts of the 
     National Urban League to address areas of inequality and 
     fight for the right of all people of the United States to 
     live with freedom, dignity, and prosperity.

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