Senate Resolution No. 911

BY: Senator HARCKHAM

MOURNING the death of Connie Hogarth, relentless
social activist, distinguished citizen, and devoted
member of her community

WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to pay tribute to
citizens of the State of New York whose lifework and civic endeavor
served to enhance the quality of life in their communities and this
great Empire State; and

WHEREAS, Connie Hogarth of Brooklyn, New York, died on February 11,
2022, at the age of 95; and

WHEREAS, Born to Stanley and Rose Holubar, Connie Hogarth was 7 or 8
when she was introduced to activism by her parents; she joined her
father on the picket line during strikes led by the union and learned
from her mother's early feminist ideals; and

WHEREAS, Hoping to be a doctor, Connie Hogarth attended the
University of Chicago as a pre-med and dance student; after earning
bachelor's degrees in 1947 and 1948, she could not get into medical
school and instead became a medical researcher; and

WHEREAS, Upon moving to Manhattan, Connie Hogarth worked at Mount
Sinai Hospital, where she researched a drug to treat multiple myeloma;
and

WHEREAS, In 1951, Connie Hogarth was introduced to the political
scene when she marched around the White House to protest the trial of
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, who were accused of passing atomic secrets
to the Soviet Union; and

WHEREAS, Inspired to act during the Vietnam War, Connie Hogarth
became involved with groups like the Women's International League for
Peace and Freedom and Women's Strike for Peace; she was arrested for the
first of more than 20 times during a "die-in" demonstration in
Washington, D.C., where protestors laid down in front of the White House
to represent the Vietnamese who were dying each day; and

WHEREAS, As the war came to an end in 1973, Connie Hogarth formally
started the Westchester People's Action Coalition (WESPAC) with a group
of like-minded individuals; the progressive group serves as a vehicle
for social action through protests, lobbying, pushing money for minority
jobs on construction sites, and sending public speakers to raise alarms
about issues like climate change; and

WHEREAS, Connie Hogarth is passionate about many social issues,
however, Nuclear power was most notably her focus; she was one of more
than 1,000 protestors arrested in 1977 on the site of the later Seabrook
Nuclear Power Plant in New Hampshire, and in 1979 she was arrested for
trespassing with more than 200 others at the Indian Point Nuclear Power
Plant in Buchanan, New York; and

WHEREAS, Training volunteers in nonviolent civil disobedience,
Connie Hogarth and WESPAC has embraced many causes, including ending
apartheid in South Africa; working with two Westchester County
legislators, WESPAC helped persuade the country to stop investing in
banks that did business with South Africa; and

WHEREAS, Regarded highly by her colleagues, Connie Hogarth was
called The Conscience of White Plains by the Daily News in 1979, and in
1983, the Pre-eminent Dissenter in Westchester, by Suburbia Today; and

WHEREAS, Connie Hogarth retired as WESPAC's executive director in
1996, after 23 years; two years later, the Connie Hogarth Center for
Social Action opened at Manhattanville College, where she helped teach
students to become effective social activists; and

WHEREAS, Selflessly devoted to better the world and society, Connie
Hogarth was also involved with organizations Climate Crisis Coalition,
the New York Civil Liberties Union, and the environmental group Hudson
River Sloop Clearwater; and

WHEREAS, Connie Hogarth is survived by her sons Ross and Richard,
and her grandson, all of whom cherish her loving memory; and

WHEREAS, Armed with a humanistic spirit and imbued with a sense of
compassion, Connie Hogarth leaves behind a legacy which will long endure
the passage of time and will remain as a comforting memory to all she
served and befriended; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
mourn the death of Connie Hogarth, relentless social activist,
distinguished citizen, and devoted member of her community; and be it
further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to the family of Connie Hogarth.