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| 1 | SENATE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, February 12, 2009 is the two-hundredth | ||||||
| 3 | anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln's birth; and
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| 4 | WHEREAS, President Abraham Lincoln's family made Illinois | ||||||
| 5 | their home; his history of public service is rich and diverse | ||||||
| 6 | and includes being a representative in the lower house in | ||||||
| 7 | Illinois government, a successful lawyer, and a member of the | ||||||
| 8 | U.S. House of Representatives wherein he advocated that "any | ||||||
| 9 | people anywhere, being inclined and having the power, have the | ||||||
| 10 | right to rise up, and shake off the existing government, and | ||||||
| 11 | form a new one that suits them better"; and
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| 12 | WHEREAS, During President Abraham Lincoln's legendary run | ||||||
| 13 | for the United States Senate against Stephen A. Douglas, he | ||||||
| 14 | displayed the importance of being educated, articulate, and | ||||||
| 15 | tenacious in advocating for his point of view; and
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| 16 | WHEREAS, President Abraham Lincoln, in his famous address | ||||||
| 17 | at Gettysburg, asked citizens to devote themselves to the cause | ||||||
| 18 | of government of the people, by the people, and for the people, | ||||||
| 19 | and espoused that such a government will not prosper without an | ||||||
| 20 | informed and involved citizenry; and
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| 21 | WHEREAS, President Abraham Lincoln valued education; he | ||||||
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| 1 | governed during a tumultuous time in United States history | ||||||
| 2 | wherein fervent debate existed regarding the balance of | ||||||
| 3 | security versus liberty; and
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| 4 | WHEREAS, Responsible citizenship and effective community | ||||||
| 5 | participation, wherein citizens are informed and actively | ||||||
| 6 | engaged, are learned behaviors and necessary in order to have a | ||||||
| 7 | healthy democratic society; and
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| 8 | WHEREAS, The promotion of civic engagement is a diverse | ||||||
| 9 | endeavor that includes, but is not limited to, voting, | ||||||
| 10 | monitoring local government agencies, voicing points of view | ||||||
| 11 | through exercising first amendment rights, and petitioning | ||||||
| 12 | government bodies on issues of public significance; and
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| 13 | WHEREAS, Illinois supports the efforts of diverse | ||||||
| 14 | organizations to increase public involvement in government | ||||||
| 15 | affairs and other civic institutions for the purpose of | ||||||
| 16 | fostering citizen-initiated democratic communities where | ||||||
| 17 | members of the public are civically engaged and understand and | ||||||
| 18 | practice their rights and responsibilities; therefore, be it
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| 19 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL | ||||||
| 20 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare February of | ||||||
| 21 | 2009 as a month of civic engagement in the spirit of Abraham | ||||||
| 22 | Lincoln, our most famous citizen and sixteenth president.
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