[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 16 (Wednesday, February 1, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S264]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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  SENATE RESOLUTION 365--HONORING THE LIFE OF KEVIN HAGAN WHITE, THE 
            MAYOR OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS FROM 1968 TO 1984

  Mr. KERRY (for himself and Mr. Brown of Massachusetts) submitted the 
following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 365

       Whereas Kevin White was born in Boston on September 25, 
     1929;
       Whereas his father, Joseph C. White, a legislator of the 
     Commonwealth of Massachusetts; his maternal grandfather, 
     Henry E. Hagan; and his father-in-law, William Galvin; each 
     served as presidents of the Boston City Council;
       Whereas Kevin White earned a bachelor's degree from 
     Williams College in 1952, a law degree from Boston College in 
     1955, and also studied at the Harvard Graduate School of 
     Public Administration, now the John F. Kennedy School of 
     Government;
       Whereas in 1956, Kevin White married Kathryn Galvin;
       Whereas in 1960, at the age of 31, Kevin White was elected 
     Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and was 
     reelected 3 times, serving until 1967;
       Whereas in January 1968, Kevin White became the 51st Mayor 
     of the City of Boston, Massachusetts;
       Whereas within months after taking office as Mayor of 
     Boston, Kevin White was instrumental in helping guide the 
     City of Boston after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther 
     King, Jr.;
       Whereas on April 5, 1968, Mayor White asked that the James 
     Brown concert at the Boston Garden be televised rather than 
     be cancelled, as many suggested;
       Whereas during the concert, Mayor White addressed the 
     citizens to plead for calm and said, ``Twenty four hours ago 
     Dr. King died for all of us, black and white, that we may 
     live together in harmony without violence, and in peace. I'm 
     here to ask for your help and to ask you to stay with me as 
     your mayor, and to make Dr. King's dream a reality in Boston. 
     No matter what any other community might do, we in Boston 
     will honor Dr. King in peace.'';
       Whereas during his time as Mayor of Boston, Kevin White 
     undertook a program of urban revitalization of the downtown 
     areas of Boston that forever transformed Faneuil Hall and 
     Quincy Market;
       Whereas during his time as Mayor, Kevin White brought the 
     residents of each neighborhood of Boston, from Mattapan to 
     Charlestown, from South Boston to Brighton, from East Boston 
     to West Roxbury, together through programs like Summerthing, 
     Little City Halls, and jobs for at-risk youth;
       Whereas in 1974, Judge W. Arthur Garrity Jr. of the United 
     States District Court for the District of Massachusetts 
     ordered Boston to begin busing children to integrate its 
     schools;
       Whereas during a difficult period of racial tension for the 
     City of Boston, Mayor White urged the people of Boston to 
     remember their common identity;
       Whereas from 1984 to 2002, Kevin White was the director of 
     the Institute for Political Communication at Boston 
     University;
       Whereas Mayor White valiantly fought against Alzheimer's 
     disease after his diagnosis in 2003 and despite this 
     debilitating challenge, he never stopped being an example of 
     strength for the City of Boston and his family;
       Whereas Kevin White is survived by his wife, Kathryn; a 
     brother, Terrence, who managed his early campaigns; his sons, 
     Mark and Chris; his daughters, Caitlin, Beth, and Patricia; 
     his 7 grandchildren; and his sister, Maureen Mercier;
       Whereas the most famous campaign slogan coined Kevin White, 
     ``A loner in love with the city''; and
       Whereas the irony of the slogan is that Kevin White was 
     never lonely and that the people of Boston who he loved so 
     much, loved him back: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That--
       (1) the Senate--
       (A) recognizes that Kevin White forever enriched the Boston 
     political landscape and forged a new path for the City of 
     Boston;
       (B) pays tribute to the work by Kevin White to improve the 
     lives of the residents of the City of Boston; and
       (C) requests the Secretary of the Senate to prepare an 
     official copy of this resolution for presentation to the 
     family of Kevin White; and
       (2) when the Senate adjourns today, it stand adjourned as a 
     mark of respect to the memory of former Boston Mayor Kevin 
     Hagan White.

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