Bill Text: VA HJR896 | 2019 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Commending Colonial Williamsburg.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2019-02-23 - Bill text as passed House and Senate (HJ896ER) [HJR896 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2019-HJR896-Enrolled.html
WHEREAS, 2019 marks the 40th year of Colonial Williamsburg's work to portray the lives and legacies of the African American men and women who helped forge the nation; and
WHEREAS, in 1979, Colonial Williamsburg recruited students from nearby Hampton University to work as first-person interpreters and interact with guests in-character as African American men and women who lived, worked, and ministered in Williamsburg in the late 1700s; and
WHEREAS, Colonial Williamsburg built upon the work of these early luminaries, and today, the African American Experience at Colonial Williamsburg offers a wide array of programming on the daily life and culture of the period's free and enslaved African Americans; and
WHEREAS, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of its African American interpretation programs, Colonial Williamsburg began by hosting a free film series at Bruton Heights School in January 2019, featuring the documentaries Traces of the Trade and 13th, as well as a community discussion; and
WHEREAS, in February 2019, Colonial Williamsburg will celebrate Black History Month by showcasing the best of its year-round interpretive programming, including "My Story: My Voice," "Joy in the Morning," "Freedom's Paradox," and "Music was My Refuge"; and
WHEREAS, Colonial Williamsburg will host an exhibition at the Raleigh Tavern that memorializes, by name, every African American who was known to have lived in the city between 1763 and 1785; and
WHEREAS, through its African American historical interpretation programs, Colonial Williamsburg promotes civil discourse on racial issues in a welcoming, engaging, and educational setting; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Colonial Williamsburg on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of its outstanding historical interpretation programs focusing on African Americans; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Colonial Williamsburg as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration for its contributions to preserving the history and heritage of the Commonwealth and the early United States.
