Bill Text: TX HR97 | 2023 | 88th Legislature 3rd Special Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: In memory of Dr. Njoki McElroy of Dallas.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-11-02 - Reported enrolled [HR97 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-HR97-Enrolled.html
| H.R. No. 97 | ||
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| WHEREAS, The city of Dallas lost an esteemed professor, | ||
| author, storyteller, and entrepreneur with the passing of Dr. Njoki | ||
| McElroy on October 16, 2023; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Born in Sherman in 1925, Njoki McElroy grew up in the | ||
| Oak Cliff neighborhood of Dallas; she attended segregated, | ||
| under-resourced public schools, but credited her supportive Black | ||
| teachers with enabling her to enroll in Xavier University in New | ||
| Orleans at the age of 16; after beginning her career as a public | ||
| school teacher, she earned her master's and doctoral degrees in | ||
| performance studies from Northwestern University; she went on to | ||
| teach there for over three decades, creating groundbreaking courses | ||
| in the performance of Black literature; in 1987, she joined the | ||
| Master of Liberal Studies program at Southern Methodist University; | ||
| adoring students nicknamed her "Queen Professor," and many of them | ||
| went on to become leaders in the entertainment world and other | ||
| fields; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Dr. McElroy was a prolific writer, and The Dallas | ||
| Morning News hailed in particular her autobiographical 1012 | ||
| Natchez: A Memoir of Grace, Hardship and Love; her short story was | ||
| anthologized in the critically acclaimed From Daughters to Mothers: | ||
| I've Always Meant to Tell You, and her plays were produced on | ||
| university and professional stages alike; a master storyteller, she | ||
| performed and conducted workshops throughout the U.S., Europe, and | ||
| the Caribbean, training educators in ways to engage students by | ||
| incorporating storytelling in their instruction; she directed | ||
| several productions centered on overcoming the legacy of racism in | ||
| Dallas, most notably 2019's From Freedman's Town to Botham Jean: | ||
| Stories of Racial Healing; as founder of the annual Back Home with | ||
| the Folks Festival, she provided a platform for artists in | ||
| marginalized neighborhoods, and she was a generous mentor to | ||
| countless people and raised money to support their creative | ||
| endeavors; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Abundantly talented, Dr. McElroy was also a | ||
| photographer and a television producer, and she and her husband | ||
| launched Black Fox Enterprises, a beauty company with major-market | ||
| distribution; following his death in 1978, she took over as | ||
| president/CEO; among myriad accolades, she received the | ||
| President's Council on Youth Opportunity Award, the NAACP Living | ||
| Legend Award, and a Ford Foundation Fellowship; moreover, she was | ||
| the treasured matriarch of a fine family that included six children | ||
| and many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and | ||
| great-great-grandchildren; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Njoki McElroy led a rich and purposeful life, and | ||
| her legacy as a champion of Black culture will continue to resonate | ||
| for years to come; now, therefore, be it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas | ||
| Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby pay tribute to the memory | ||
| of Dr. Njoki McElroy and extend sincere sympathy to all who mourn | ||
| her passing; and, be it further | ||
| RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be | ||
| prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of | ||
| Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Dr. Njoki | ||
| McElroy. | ||
| Davis | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Speaker of the House | ||
| I certify that H.R. No. 97 was unanimously adopted by a rising | ||
| vote of the House on November 1, 2023. | ||
| ______________________________ | ||
| Chief Clerk of the House | ||
