The Katie Hall Educational Foundation, Inc. will recognize former Gary, Indiana mayor, Richard Gordon Hatcher, during the 5th Annual Katie Hall Public Service Awards Luncheon on Saturday, April 8, 2017.
The occasion will mark the 50th Anniversary (1967-2017) of Hatcher’s election as the first African-American mayor of the City of Gary, the first African-American mayor in the State of Indiana, and the first African-American mayor of a major U.S. city
During his tenure as mayor of Gary, 1968 to 1987, Hatcher became internationally known as a fervent and distinguished civil rights leader. He was known for developing innovative approaches to urban problems. As Gary’s first African-American municipal leader, Hatcher often delivered speeches alongside Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Robert F. Kennedy, and Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.
In September 1982, Hatcher appointed then Indiana State Senator Katie Hall (3rd District) to represent Indiana’s First Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives in Washington, D.C.
In 1983, Representative Hall authored and sponsored House of Representatives Bill, H.R. 3706: the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. National Holiday Law Bill. It was signed into federal law by Ronald Reagan on November 2.
Dr. King is the only African-American honored in the history of the United States Congress with a national holiday: the third Monday in January, each year since 1986.
Throughout his political career, Mayor Hatcher was responsible for propelling numerous African-Americans to local, county, state, and national offices across the United States.
The Katie Hall Foundation luncheon on April 8th, will acknowledge Richard Hatcher’s bold political stance by running for Gary’s highest elected municipal office 50 years ago. The Foundation’s Chief Legal Counsel, John Henry Hall said “Mayor Hatcher’s victory in 1967 represents American democracy at its best.”
For more information contact: [email protected] or the Law Office of Attorney John Henry Hall,Ed.D.,LL.M. at (219) 883-7711.
