SR13,1,32 Whereas, Lloyd A. Barbee was born on August 17, 1925, in Memphis,
3Tennessee, and died on December 29, 2002, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; and

SR13,1,64 Whereas, Lloyd A. Barbee was a tireless freedom fighter, civil rights leader and
5attorney, Wisconsin state representative, professor, and true leader in the cause for
6social justice as he lived by the philosophy that the only race is the human race; and

SR13,1,97 Whereas, according to the Wisconsin Lawyer Publication of the State Bar,
8"Lloyd Barbee is probably the most important figure of the 20th century in Wisconsin
9civil rights"; and

SR13,1,1310 Whereas, he graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in Memphis,
11served his country as a member of the U.S. Navy during World War II , and returned
12to earn a degree in economics in 1949 from LeMoyne College in Memphis and a law
13degree in 1956 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison; and

SR13,1,1514 Whereas, he additionally taught at the University of Wisconsin Law School and
15the Bronx Community College of the City University of New York; and

SR13,2,5

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1Whereas, Mr. Barbee founded the Milwaukee United School Integration
2Committee (MUSIC) and, in 1965, filed a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of both
3African-American children and white children from Milwaukee Public Schools who
4were attending segregated schools which were subject to overcrowding and inferior
5resources; and

SR13,2,96 Whereas, that lawsuit led to a 2-decade-long court battle and ultimately
7resulted in the ruling that the Milwaukee Public Schools were unconstitutionally
8segregated, prompting the Wisconsin legislature to enact a program of school
9integration; and

SR13,2,1310 Whereas, during the same period, Mr. Barbee was one of the first African
11Americans to win state office when he was elected to the Wisconsin state assembly,
12where he ultimately served for 6 consecutive terms from 1964 through 1976 before
13retiring to focus his time completely on the schools case; and

SR13,2,1814 Whereas, during his tenure in the legislature, Mr. Barbee quickly gained a
15reputation for being an innovative and unconventional lawmaker willing to push for
16social change even if there was little chance for political success, as he continually
17attacked laws that he felt inhibited individuals, especially the poor and minority
18group members, from achieving their full human potential; and

SR13,2,2319 Whereas, while serving in the assembly and as the chair of the Judiciary
20Committee he fought to expand personal freedoms by repealing restrictive laws on
21what he called "victimless crimes" and was an advocate for open housing, ending job
22discrimination, and providing better medical access for minorities and low-income
23families, all issues that we are contending with yet in the present day; and

SR13,3,3

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1Whereas, from 1969 to 1973, he served as president of Freedom Through
2Equality, a Milwaukee-based group established to reform laws detrimental to the
3poor; and

SR13,3,74 Whereas, Mr. Barbee received numerous awards and honors, including the
5American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin Eunice Z. Edgar Award for Lifetime
6Civil Liberties Achievement and the Wisconsin Association of Minority Attorneys
7Award for Inspirational Leadership and Outstanding Dedication; and

SR13,3,98 Whereas, in 1999, a Milwaukee street was renamed "Barbee Street" by former
9Mayor John Norquist in Mr. Barbee's honor; and

SR13,3,1110 Whereas, Mr. Barbee received an honorary doctoral degree in sociology from the
11University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2001; and

SR13,3,1512 Whereas, the adoption of this senate resolution is supported not only by the
13senate, but also by members of the assembly, including specifically Representatives
14Sheridan, Schneider, Young, Grigsby, Sinicki, Mason, Fields, Benedict, Turner,
15Kessler, and Hintz; now, therefore, be it