HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023 Black History Month Proclamation
Proclamation
Proclaiming February 2023 As Black History Month
In the City of Hastings, Minnesota
WHEREAS, Black History Month is celebrated to raise awareness of African American accomplishments and
contributions to our society, AND
WHEREAS, African Americans are part of Minnesota’s story, from before it was a territory to the present, AND
WHEREAS, the first Minnesota territorial census in 1857 recorded four African American men living in Hastings,
including Robert Burns, a barber, who with Andrew Jackson Overall and J. H. Brooks worked as a committee to draft
a petition to further their rights to vote, which was presented to the legislature of Minnesota in 1865, AND
WHEREAS, both houses of the legislature passed a bill that proposed an amendment to strike “white” from the
suffrage provision. The amendment was adopted in 1868 by a majority of more than 9,000 votes, becoming law in
Minnesota two years before the 15th Amendment passed nationwide.
WHEREAS, George Daniels was an enslaved African American man who freed himself during the Civil War by
crossing battle lines to join Union troops. In the process, he and Brevet Brigadier General LeDuc became acquainted
and built a strong, trusting relationship. Daniels moved to Hastings where he lived and worked alongside LeDuc,
married Chloe Hudson, and started a family, AND
WHEREAS, the story of George and Chloe Daniels is not unique and represents other African American families that
found their way to the Hastings area following the Civil War, AND
WHEREAS, In the early 1890’s, the Curry and Wallace families organized other African American community
members to establish Brown’s Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church, which served as the center of religious
and social activities for African Americans, until it was destroyed by arson in 1907, resulting in the eventual exodus
of African Americans from Hastings, AND
WHEREAS, recent Census data show that the number of African American residents in Hastings has increased in the
past decade, Hastings continues to strive for racial equity to provide a healthy community for all, and the City Council
has made diversity, equity, and inclusion an important initiative among its Strategic Priorities, AND
WHEREAS, the importance of observing Black History Month in the City of Hastings is to acknowledge, recognize
and welcome people of African descent and their contributions to the City of Hastings, while simultaneously
recognizing the injustices they have endured.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that I, Mary Fasbender, Mayor of the City of Hastings, Minnesota and
the Hastings City Council hereby proclaim February 2023 as Black History Month in Hastings, Minnesota.
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Mary D. Fasbender, Mayor