* FINAL VERSION - Concurred
Resolution:B020
Title:Add Thurgood Marshall to Liturgical Calendar
Topic:Church Calendar
Committee:13 - Prayer Book, Liturgy and Church Music
House of Initial Action:Bishops
Proposer:The Rt. Rev. John Bryson Chane

Resolved, the House of Deputies concurring, That the 76th General Convention call upon the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music to add Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall to the liturgical Calendar of this Church now.


EXPLANATION

Thurgood Marshall has been called by many the most important African American of the twentieth century. His leadership of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund was instrumental in the court victories which finally broke the back of segregation and led to the gradual, and not yet complete, improvement of race relations in the United States. Perhaps his signal court victory was the Brown vs. Board of Education, Topeka, Kansas decision by the Supreme Court in 1953, which marked the end of legal segregation of school systems. His service as Solicitor General and then as Supreme Court Justice concluded his distinguished career. Justice Marshall's life and ministry set the stage for and actually represented the way the court system was used to break down segregation. The nation was turned toward more peaceful desegregation largely because of Thurgood Marshall and people like him.

At this time, when reparations for slavery are being discussed, when the United States has elected its first President of color, and when racial reconciliation remains a high priority for this Church, it is appropriate to honor the life, ministry and memory of this exemplary man by including him in the Calendar of this Church.


* Note: The final language, as well as the final status of each resolution, is being reviewed by the General Convention office. The Journal of the 76th General Convention and the Constitution and Canons will be published once the review process has been completed.