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Proclamations honoring the late K. Leroy Irvis and Anderson Little upon the occasion of the 2015 Spirit of King Award ceremony, presented by the Port Authority, along with the Kingsley Association, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the New Pittsburgh Courier.
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WHEREAS, as a 2015 recipient of a Spirit of King Award, presented by the Port Authority, along with the Kingsley Association, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the New Pittsburgh Courier, Allegheny County Council does hereby honor the life of the Honorable K. Leroy Irvis, former Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, a 15-term member of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, who in 1977 became the first African-American Speaker of any state legislature; and
WHEREAS, K. Leroy Irvis was born in Saugerties, New York, on December 27, 1919, to Francis and Harriet Irvis; and
WHEREAS, K. Leroy Irvis graduated summa cum laude from the New York State Teachers College (now the State University of New York at Albany), received a master’s degree from the State University of New York at Albany and earned a law degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law; and
WHEREAS, K. Leroy Irvis began his career teaching in the public schools of Baltimore; he then moved to Pittsburgh and took a job with the Urban League where he led groundbreaking demonstrations against discriminatory hiring policies; and
WHEREAS, K. Leroy Irvis was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1958, representing the Hill District of Pittsburgh; he was subsequently reelected 15 consecutive times; and
WHEREAS, K. Leroy Irvis served the House of Representatives and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania with distinction as Minority Caucus Chairman, Majority Caucus Chairman, Minority Whip, Minority Leader and Majority Leader; and
WHEREAS, K. Leroy Irvis was elected the 130th Speaker of the House of Representatives on May 23, 1977 and became the first African-American elected as Speaker in a House of Representatives in...
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