NBCSL Proclamations

Chadwick Boseman was an American actor known for his portrayals of Jackie Robinson in '42' and James Brown in 'Get on Up.' He also played the superhero Black Panther in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Who Was Chadwick Boseman? Chadwick Boseman had early success as a stage actor, writer and director, before landing gigs on TV shows like Lincoln Heights. Boseman broke through with his big screen portrayals of two African American icons: baseball player Jackie Robinson in 42, and soul singer James Brown in Get on Up. Boseman later took on the role of Black Panther for a series of Marvel superhero films, including the immensely successful Black Panther in early 2018.  Early Life and Career Chadwick Aaron Boseman was born in 1976 in South Carolina and went on to attend Howard University in Washington, D.C., graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in directing. (In 2018, he gave the commencement speech at Howard and received an honorary degree, Doctor of Humane Letters.) He then attended the British American Drama Academy in Oxford, England. Boseman has performed in a number of stage productions, including Breathe, Romeo and Juliet, Bootleg Blues, Zooman, and Willie's Cut and Shine. He won an AUDELCO award for his role as the teen E.J. in 2002's Urban Transitions: Loose Blossoms, a play by…

He was not just an influential and notable novelist, poet, and songwriter, James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938) was a lawyer, a United States consul in a foreign nation, and served an important role in combating racism through his position in the NAACP. In 1900, James and his brother, John, wrote the song "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing," which would later become the official anthem of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.  James Weldon Johnson was born in Jacksonville, Florida. His father was a headwaiter at a hotel and his mother was a teacher at the segregated Stanton School. Johnson grew up in a middle-class home, and his mother encouraged him to pursue an interest in reading and music. Johnson attended Stanton until he entered high school. He attended high school and college at Atlanta University. He received his bachelor’s in 1894.Introduced by State Representative  Billy Mitchell (GA), this proclamation was adopted by the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL) at its 44th virtual Annual Legislative Conference held in December 2020.

Nathan "Nearest" Green (1820 – ?), incorrectly spelled "Nearis" in an 1880 census, was a black head stiller, commonly referred to now as a master distiller. Born into slavery and emancipated after the Civil War, he is known as the master distiller who taught distilling techniques to Jack Daniel, founder of the Jack Daniel Tennessee whiskey distillery. Green was hired as the first master distiller for Jack Daniel Distillery, but not until after his death was he recognized as the first. During his time he was not given the proper titles on the account he was a black man and he was the first African-American master distiller on record in the United States.  Introduced by State Rep. Karen Camper (TN), this proclamation was adopted by the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL) at its 43rd Annual Legislative Conference held in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, December 2019.