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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
HONORING THE LIFE AND MEMORY OF THE HONORABLE GEORGE N. LEIGHTON
WHEREAS, the Honorable George Neves Leighton, n?e Leit?o, was born on October 22, 191 in New Bedford, Massachusetts to Ana Silva Garcia and Ant?nio Neves Leit?o; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable George N. Leighton's surname was changed to Leighton after an elementary school teacher claimed she could not pronounce Leit?o; and
WHEREAS, he was raised in New Bedford and Cape Cod, Massachusetts, where as a child he worked picking cranberries and blueberries with his parents; and
WHEREAS, agricultural work limited his educational studies, only completing up to the 7th grade before leaving at the age of 17 to work on an oil tanker sailing to the Dutch West Indies; and
WHEREAS, despite never completing high school, the Honorable George N. Leighton used his free time reading and also attended night school; and
WHEREAS, with great perseverance and skills, he won a scholarship competition and was admitted to Howard University in 1936, graduating magna cum laude four years later; and
WHEREAS, in 1940, he was drafted into military service where he became Captain of Infantry before being relieved of active duty in 1945; and
WHEREAS, upon his return, he attended Harvard University Law School and earned a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1946; and
WHEREAS, soon after graduation, the Honorable George N. Leighton and his wife, Virginia Berry Quivers, moved to Chicago, Illinois; and
WHEREAS, after passing the Illinois Bar exam in 1947, he quickly rose within the legal and African-American community as an attorney who fought for equality in voting rights, the school system and housing; and
WHEREAS, one of his most notable civil rights cases was advising an African-American family it was their constitutional right to move to a predominantly white neighborhood in Cicero, Illinois; and
WHEREAS, the case sparked a race riot and shed light on housing inequalities the African-American community face...
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