HR524: HR524 "Kumbaya"; the Gullah Geechee Anthem; commend

This House resolution does not change any law. It formally recognizes the song "Kumbaya," originally titled "Come by Here," as the official anthem of the Gullah-Geechee culture, a community with roots in the Sea Islands off Georgia's coast. The resolution recounts the song's history: its roots in Gullah-Geechee spiritual tradition, its first recording in Georgia documented by the Library of Congress, and the 1926 permission granted by Mr. H. Wylie, a Gullah-Geechee man, for the song to be recorded. It states the Gullah-Geechee people have made lasting contributions to Georgia's and the nation's cultural history. The resolution directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to make copies available to the public and press.

• Formally recognizes "Kumbaya" as the official anthem of the Gullah-Geechee culture within the Georgia House of Representatives.
• States that the song holds historical and cultural significance tied to Georgia's Sea Islands and the Gullah-Geechee community.
• Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to prepare and distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press.
• Does not create any new law, funding, or enforceable requirement; it is a symbolic statement by the House.

The resolution primarily concerns the Gullah-Geechee community, a cultural group with historic ties to Georgia's Sea Islands. It also involves the Clerk of the House of Representatives, who is tasked with distributing copies of the resolution.

While the resolution carries no legal force, it gives official recognition from the Georgia House of Representatives to the Gullah-Geechee community's cultural and musical heritage, which some may see as a meaningful public acknowledgment of that history.

• The resolution's whereas clauses describe the song's origin, its 1926 recording, and Mr. H. Wylie's role in permitting the recording.
• The resolving clause formally recognizes "Kumbaya" as the official anthem of the Gullah-Geechee culture.
• A further resolving clause directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to distribute copies to the public and press.

1. 2025-03-06House Read and Adopted (House)
2. 2025-03-06House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-03-06House Hopper (House)

• Al Williams (D, HD-168)Primary sponsor
• Buddy DeLoach (R, HD-167)
• Edna Jackson (D, HD-165)
• Carl Gilliard (D, HD-162)
• Segun Adeyina (D, HD-110)

• Gullah-Geechee culture
• Georgia history
• folk music
• cultural heritage