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A Resolution of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, changing the official name of the South Tenth Street Bridge, within the City of Pittsburgh, to the Philip Murray Bridge.
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WHEREAS, Philip Murray was born on May 25, 1886, in Lanarkshire, Scotland, to Irish immigrant parents, and immigrated to America with his parents in 1902, finally settling in the western Pennsylvania mining district of Westmoreland County; and
WHEREAS, Murray was a coal miner in southwestern Pennsylvania and became active in the early United Mine Workers of America, and in 1915 <http://www.answers.com/topic/1915>, became president of the Pittsburgh area, District 5, known as “Fighting Five” for the tough disputes waged in the district; and
WHEREAS, in 1920 <http://www.answers.com/topic/1920>, he was appointed as the vice-president of the union by its new president, John L. Lewi <http://www.answers.com/topic/john-l-lewis>s; and
WHEREAS, Murray helped organize America's mass-production workers into industrial unions through the establishment of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), and he assumed the presidency of the CIO from John L. Lewis in 1940 and remained its leader until his death in 1952; and
WHEREAS, when the United Steelworkers of America was officially formed in 1942 with headquarters in Pittsburgh, its first president was Philip Murray and he held the post until his death; and
WHEREAS, Phil Murray's life's work was the labor movement, and his union's efforts led to wide ranging improvements in the living standards for countless working class people across North America;
The Council of the County of Allegheny hereby resolves as follows:
Section 1.
The South Tenth Street Bridge, also known as the Tenth Street Bridge, shall hereby officially be re-named the Philip Murray Bridge in honor of the American labor leader and in recognition of his outstanding contributions to securing workers rights.
Section 2. Severability.
If any provision of this Resolution shall be determined to be unlawful, invalid, void or unenforceable, then that provision shall be considered severable from the remaining provisions of this Resolution which shall be in full force and effect.
Section 3. Repealer.
Any Resolution or Ordinance or part thereof conflicting with the provisions of this Resolution is hereby repealed so far as the same affects this Resolution.