A JOINT RESOLUTION honoring the founders of alpha phi alpha fraternity, INCORPORATED.

Whereas, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity is the first and oldest intercollegiate Greek‑letter fraternity established for African‑Americans; and
Whereas, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity was founded on December 4, 1906, on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, by seven students who recognized the need for a strong bond of brotherhood among African descendants in this country; and
Whereas, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity was founded by visionaries, known as the "Jewels" of the Fraternity and included Henry Arthur Callis, Charles Henry Chapman, Eugene Kinckle Jones, George Biddle Kelley, Nathaniel Allison Murray, Robert Harold Ogle, and Vertner Woodson Tandy; and
Whereas, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity initially served as a study and support group for minority students who faced racial prejudice, both educationally and socially; and
Whereas, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity was incorporated on January 29, 1908; and
Whereas, the Jewel founders and early leaders of the Fraternity succeeded in laying a firm foundation for Alpha Phi Alpha's principles of scholarship, fellowship, good character, and the uplifting of humanity; and
Whereas, chapters of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, developed at other colleges and universities; and
Whereas, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, continues to proliferate, spanning the globe with 800 chapters and 160,000 members located throughout the United States, Caribbean Islands, Africa, West Indies, Europe, and Asia; and
Whereas, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, continues to stress academic excellence among its members and recognizes the educational, economic, political, and social challenges faced by African‑Americans nationally and internationally; and
Whereas, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, participates in Project Alpha, Go To High School, Go To College, and A Voteless People Is A Hopeless People programs in response to those challenges; and
Whereas, the legacy of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity includes the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., W.E.B. DuBois, Paul Robeson, Dick Gregory, Thurgood Marshall, Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., United States Vice President Hubert Humphrey, Duke Ellington, and Jesse Owens; and
Whereas, the legacy of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and the Association of North Carolina Alphamen recognize and include among its membership, the current Southern Region Vice‑President, Everett B. Ward, the current District Director, Craig F. Reed, John Hope Franklin, Julius L. Chambers, Arthur J. Howard Clement III, Dan Blue, and Gus Witherspoon; and
Whereas, since its founding on December 4, 1906, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, has supplied voice and vision to the struggle of African‑Americans and people of color around the world; and
Whereas, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated, under the leadership of 32nd General President, Darryl R. Matthews, Sr., will convene for the Centennial Anniversary Convention in Washington, D.C., July 25 through July 30, 2006, where members will gather to commemorate and celebrate the fraternity's tremendous legacy of manly deeds, scholarship, and love for all mankind; Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives, the Senate concurring:

SECTION 1.  The General Assembly honors the memory of Henry Arthur Callis, Charles Henry Chapman, Eugene Kinckle Jones, George Biddle Kelley, Nathaniel Allison Murray, Robert Harold Ogle, and Vertner Woodson Tandy.
SECTION 2.  The General Assembly acknowledges the members of Alpha Phi Alpha, Incorporated, on providing 100 years of outstanding service and leadership to their communities.
SECTION 3.  The Secretary of State shall transmit a certified copy of this resolution to the President of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.
SECTION 4.  This resolution is effective upon ratification.
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 24th day of May, 2006.

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		 Beverly E. Perdue
	 President of the Senate

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		 James B. Black
	 Speaker of the House of Representatives