Recognizing Toni Morrison Day in Ohio, February 18, 2026.

As Adopted by the House

136th General Assembly

Regular Session

H. R. No. 339

2025-2026

Representative
Miller, J.

A R E S O L U T I O N

Recognizing
Toni Morrison Day in Ohio, February 18, 2026.

WHEREAS,
The members of the House of Representatives of the 136th General
Assembly of Ohio are pleased to recognize February 18, 2026, as Toni
Morrison Day in Ohio; and

WHEREAS,
Among the very finest people to ever call our state home and the
first and so far only African-American woman to win the Nobel
Prize in literature, Toni Morrison established herself as one of the
most renowned authors our nation has ever produced. Her work and its
place in the American canon are imbued in her legacy, and through her
stories, she has set an example of kindness, generosity, courage, and
eloquence for all of humanity to strive toward; and

WHEREAS,
No list of accomplishments could begin to do Toni Morrison justice,
and her experiences as an Ohioan shaped the woman who would go on to
give so much to the world. Born in Lorain to a working class family
on February 18, 1931, she endured the cruelties of the era to attend
Howard University, and she served as a professor and an editor before
ultimately fulfilling her dream of becoming a writer when her first
book was published in 1970. Acclaim would soon follow and would
continue through the whole of her life, including her being presented
with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in addition to countless other
accolades; and

WHEREAS,
To see the impact of stories and storytellers, one only needs to look
at Toni Morrison’s innumerable contributions to our society. Her
writing and editing broke barriers and opened doors, not just for her
but for other African Americans who could look up and see a face like
theirs on the highest stages of literature. Her books allow people to
not only come to know her and therein come to know a part of
themselves but also to realize the potential contained within
everyone, to chronicle the sins of our nation’s past for future
generations to remember and understand, and to never cease to move
others, be it to tears, to action, or to just simply be better;
therefore be it

RESOLVED,
That we, the members of the House of Representatives of the 136th
General Assembly of Ohio, in adopting this Resolution, recognize
February 18, 2026, as Toni Morrison Day in Ohio and salute
Toni Morrison as a shining light for countless Ohioans; and be
it further

RESOLVED,
That the Clerk of the House of Representatives transmit duly
authenticated copies of this Resolution to the news media of Ohio.