2026 -- H 8612

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LC006558

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026

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H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

HONORING REV. DR. BERNARD LAFAYETTE JR. FOR HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE

STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

     Introduced By: Representatives Biah, Blazejewski, Kazarian, Chippendale, McNamara,
Kennedy, Ajello, Potter, Shallcross Smith, and Boylan

     Date Introduced: June 03, 2026

     Referred To: House read and passed

     WHEREAS, Rev. Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr. was a distinguished civil rights leader,

educator, and global advocate for nonviolence, whose life and work advanced the principles of

justice, reconciliation, and peaceful social transformation; and

     WHEREAS, Rev. Dr. LaFayette was a key figure in the American Civil Rights

Movement, serving as a leader in the Nashville sit-ins, a Freedom Rider, a member of the Student

Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), an associate of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. within

the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), and the National Coordinator of the 1968

Poor People's Campaign; and

     WHEREAS, Rev. Dr. LaFayette played a critical organizing and strategic role in the

Selma Movement, including work in the years preceding the national focus on Selma, helping to

lay the groundwork for the campaign that contributed to the passage of the Voting Rights Act of

1965; and

     WHEREAS, Rev. Dr. LaFayette dedicated his life to the teaching and practice of Kingian

Nonviolence, extending his work nationally and internationally to train leaders, communities, and

institutions in the philosophy and application of nonviolence; and

     WHEREAS, Rev. Dr. LaFayette made a profound and lasting impact on the State of

Rhode Island, first through nonviolence trainings conducted in Providence, and subsequently

through his service as Distinguished Scholar-in-Residence at the University of Rhode Island; and

     WHEREAS, Rev. Dr. LaFayette served as the inaugural Director of the University of

Rhode Island's Center for Nonviolence and Peace Studies from 1999 to 2009, where he helped

build one of the nation's leading academic centers dedicated to the study and practice of

nonviolence; and

     WHEREAS, Through his leadership, teaching, and mentorship, Rev. Dr. LaFayette

helped shape generations of students, educators, and community leaders in Rhode Island and

beyond, including through the development of the International Nonviolence Summer Institute;

and

     WHEREAS, Rev. Dr. LaFayette further served the State of Rhode Island as Chair of the

Governor's Select Commission on Race and Police-Community Relations, helping to guide

critical statewide dialogue and reflection on issues of race, justice, and public safety; and

     WHEREAS, His work in Rhode Island helped catalyze the growth of nonviolence

education, leadership, and community-based peacebuilding efforts across the state, influencing

institutions and individuals dedicated to advancing peace and justice; and

     WHEREAS, Rev. Dr. LaFayette's legacy continues to live on through the many lives he

touched, the institutions he strengthened, and the enduring principles of nonviolence he faithfully

advanced; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island hereby

honors the life, legacy, and contributions of Rev. Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr., and expresses its

deepest gratitude for his profound impact on the State of Rhode Island, the nation, and the world;

and be it further

     RESOLVED, That this House extends its deepest condolences to the family, friends,

colleagues, and all those whose lives were enriched by Rev. Dr. LaFayette's extraordinary life and

work; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the family of Rev. Dr. Bernard LaFayette Jr.

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LC006558

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