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Proclamation honoring in memoriam Martin Robison Delany, an African-American abolitionist, journalist, physician, and writer.
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WHEREAS, it is the duty of Allegheny County Council to recognize and honor outstanding individuals in both the County and across the nation for their extraordinary achievements. In the month of February, Black History Month, we especially recognize members of the African-American community for their historic accomplishments; and
WHEREAS, Martin Robison Delaney was an African American abolitionist, journalist, physician and one of the first American black nationalists. He was born in 1812 and grew up in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. In 1831, Martin traveled to Pittsburgh, where he became a physician and treated the national epidemic of cholera. He became involved in political matters and in 1843, published an African American controlled newspaper called The Mystery; and
WHEREAS, in 1857, Martin, with noted abolitionists Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison, made plans to publish a newspaper called the North Star. Martin was also one of the first black men accepted to Harvard Medical School, but was unjustly dismissed from school after only a few weeks due to his race; and
WHEREAS, after returning to Pittsburgh, Martin published a book in 1852, expressing his frustrations with the unfair treatment of black people in America. In 1854, Martin risked his own life by staying in Pittsburgh to treat victims of a cholera outbreak. That year, he also led the National Emigration Convention, which approved a resolution which stated "As men and equals, we demand every political right, privilege and position to which the whites are eligible in the United States, and we will either attain to these, or accept nothing." This statement is considered by many to be the foundation of the black nationalist movement; and
WHEREAS, in 1863, Martin was commissioned as a major in the American Civil War. He was the first black line field officer and earned the highest rank of any African American soldier during the Civil War. After resigning from the army, Martin became a Trial Justice and an advocate for emigration to Liberia. Martin practiced medicine until his death from tuberculosis in 1885. He is remembered by two historical markers in Pittsburgh and Chambersburg;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that Allegheny County Council, does hereby recognize the fearless achievements of Martin Delaney, and encourages all residents to remember the African American men and women who overcame countless obstacles to achieve greatness.