Supporting the goals and ideals of Jubilee Day.

IV 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 297 Supporting the goals and ideals of Jubilee Day. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 9, 2019 Mr. HASTINGS (for himself, Mr. COOPER, Mr. COHEN, Mr. THOMPSON of Mis- sissippi, Mrs. MCBATH, and Mrs. BEATTY) submitted the following reso- lution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor RESOLUTION Supporting the goals and ideals of Jubilee Day. Whereas six months after the end of the Civil War, the Fisk School was established in Nashville, Tennessee; Whereas the Fisk School was designed by its founders to be an educational institution open to all, regardless of race or age; Whereas the Fisk School was incorporated as Fisk University in 1867; Whereas funding for the opening of the school was secured through the sale of slave paraphernalia; Whereas in 1871, a group of students at Fisk University formed a choral group, the Fisk Jubilee Singers, with the goal of raising money to finance the institution; VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:34 Apr 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR297.IH HR297 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HRES 297 IH Whereas in that same year, the Fisk Jubilee Singers took all the funds in the University treasury with them for travel expenses and set off on a tour of the United States and Europe; Whereas during their first tour, the Jubilee Singers raised enough money to preserve their university and pay for the construction of Jubilee Hall, the South’s first perma- nent structure built for the education of African-Amer- ican students; Whereas the Jubilee Singers introduced the world to the spir- itual as a musical genre, emerging as the first inter- nationally recognized group of African-American musi- cians; Whereas the Fisk Jubilee Singers continue to tour and per- form and have received countless awards and honors; Whereas, on every October 6, Fisk University celebrates the original group of nine students and their music professor, George L. White, who toured internationally in hopes of raising money to save Fisk University from closing; and Whereas, on October 6, 2019, the Fisk University community will celebrate its 148th Jubilee Day: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) recognizes the contributions of the Jubilee 2 Singers to the United States musical landscape; 3 (2) celebrates the hard work, perseverance, and 4 accomplishments of the original Jubilee Singers and 5 the continued success of the generations of Jubilee 6 Singers who followed; and 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:34 Apr 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR297.IH HR297 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HRES 297 IH (3) supports the goals and ideals of Jubilee 1 Day. 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:34 Apr 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR297.IH HR297 pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS