RESOLUTION No. ____________, Series 2022
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A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING THE LEGACY OF ALBERTA JONES, A BLACK AMERICAN ATTORNEY AND CIVIL RIGHTS ICON, AND APPROVING THE NAMING OF A NEW PARK ON MAPLE STREET BETWEEN DR. W.J. HODGE AND 25TH STREET IN HER HONOR.
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SPONSORED BY: COUNCIL MEMBER JECOREY ARTHUR
WHEREAS, Alberta Jones was born on November 12, 1930 in Louisville, Kentucky;
WHEREAS, Ms. Jones graduated from Central High School, attended Louisville Municipal College for Negroes (formerly Simmons University and currently Simmons College), graduated third in her class, and eventually graduated fourth in her class from Howard University School of Law;
WHEREAS, Ms. Jones was one of the first Black women to pass the Kentucky Bar Exam and opened a practice in the West End of Louisville;
WHEREAS, Ms. Jones was hired by and negotiated the first contract for a young boxer named Cassius Clay who eventually changed his name to Muhammad Ali and became a three-time heavyweight boxing champion and global humanitarian;
WHEREAS, Ms. Jones was the first woman appointed as a city attorney in Jefferson County in February 1965, working as a prosecutor in the Louisville Domestic Relations Court to convict perpetrators of domestic violence;
WHEREAS, Ms. Jones was a civil rights activist in Louisville; she participated in the March on Washington, was a member of the NAACP, and worked with the Louisville Urban League;
WHEREAS, Ms. Jones formed the Independent Voters Association of Louisville, renting voting machines and teaching Black Louisvillians how to vote, resulting in 6,000 new voters that helped replace the mayor and other city officials;
WHEREAS, in August 1965, Jones was murdered, and her case remains unsolved, though the U.S. Department of Justice began investigating her murder in 2017 following the passage of the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act;
WHEREAS, the Parks Alliance of Louisville surveyed the California Neighborhood in the fall of 2022 and along with Metro Parks have selected a site for a new park; and
WHEREAS, California Neighborhood residents responded to a Parks Alliance of Louisville survey and overwhelmingly chose to name their park after Alberta Jones.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL OF THE LOUISVILLE/ JEFFERSON COUNTY METRO (“METRO COUNCIL”) AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION I: Pursuant to Louisville Metro Code of Ordinances § 39.033, and in recognition of Alberta Jones’ contributions to Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government, Metro Council approves the naming of the new park on Maple Street as “Alberta Jones Park.”
SECTION II: This Resolution shall take effect upon its passage and approval or otherwise becoming law.
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_______________________________ Sonya Harward Metro Council Clerk |
_____________________________ David James President of the Council |
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_______________________________ Greg Fischer Mayor |
_____________________________ Approval Date |
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY:
Michael J. O’Connell
Jefferson County Attorney
BY: ____________________________
R-171-22 Naming of Park in honor of Alberta Jones Park jdf 101722