CA ACR134

Recognizes February 2026 as the centennial anniversary of Black History Month, founded by Dr. Carter Godwin Woodson as Negro History Week in 1926 and expanded to a full month in 1976

Documents historical milestones including the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in Virginia in August 1619, the estimated loss of 50 million Africans during the slave trade, and the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965

Highlights California-specific achievements including Yvonne Brathwaite Burke as the first African American woman in the state legislature (1966), Willie L. Brown Jr. as the first African American Assembly Speaker (1980), and Shirley Nash Weber as the first Black Secretary of State (2021)

References California's 2020 establishment of the Task Force to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans (AB 3121), the 2024 Apology Act (AB 3089), and the 2025 creation of the Bureau for Descendants of American Slavery (SB 518)

Affirms the Legislature's commitment to equality, dignity, and equal application of law while acknowledging ongoing challenges including voter suppression, economic stagnation, and racial injustice