HR 487 — A Resolution recognizing July 20, 2026, as "Colombian Independence Day" in Pennsylvania.

PRINTER'S NO.    3243

                  THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA



           HOUSE RESOLUTION
              No. 487
                                              Session of
                                                2026

     INTRODUCED BY CEPEDA-FREYTIZ, BURGOS, MAYES, SCHLOSSBERG,
        RIVERA, FREEMAN, HILL-EVANS, HOHENSTEIN, PARKER, BELLMON,
        PASHINSKI, MALAGARI, STEELE, GIRAL, TIBURCIO, PROBST,
        BRENNAN, NEILSON AND KENYATTA, APRIL 20, 2026

     REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON INTERGOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS AND
        OPERATIONS, APRIL 21, 2026


                               A RESOLUTION
 1   Recognizing July 20, 2026, as "Colombian Independence Day" in
 2      Pennsylvania.
 3      WHEREAS, On July 20, 1810, patriot leaders in Santafé de
 4   Bogotá set off the famous Florero de Llorente incident, causing
 5   unrest in the capital, and resulting in the creation of a self-
 6   governing junta to replace royal Spanish authorities, an event
 7   commemorated as the beginning of Colombian independence and the
 8   reason Colombia celebrates its Independence Day on July 20; and
 9      WHEREAS, Originally only a movement for local self-
10   government, the new self-governing junta still pledged loyalty
11   to the King of Spain, but growing disillusionment with Spanish
12   rule resulted in a push for full independence by 1811 and led to
13   many years of complex and violent conflict; and
14      WHEREAS, At the time, the lands that would become modern-day
15   Colombia formed the core of the Viceroyalty of New Granada, a
16   Spanish jurisdiction governed from Santafé de Bogotá that
 1   included most of present-day Colombia, Panama and Ecuador; and
 2      WHEREAS, The struggle for independence reached a turning
 3   point in 1819, when patriot forces triumphed at the legendary
 4   Battle of Boyacá, liberating New Granada from Spanish control
 5   and laying the foundation for the República de Gran Colombia,
 6   which united the lands of present-day Colombia, Panama, Ecuador
 7   and Venezuela; and
 8      WHEREAS, Following the patriot victory at the Battle of
 9   Carabobo in 1821, which virtually freed Venezuela from Spanish
10   control, the combined armies and leaders of the República de
11   Gran Colombia helped secure the liberation of Peru in 1824 and
12   Upper Peru, the latter of which became Bolivia in 1825; and
13      WHEREAS, The union of the República de Gran Colombia proved
14   brief, and after regional rivalries and political conflict,
15   Venezuela and Ecuador seceded by 1830, leaving the present-day
16   territories of Colombia and Panama to continue as the sovereign
17   state of New Granada, which later adopted its current name,
18   República de Colombia, in 1886; and
19      WHEREAS, Colombia's long road to independence came at an
20   enormous human cost, claiming more than 250,000 lives,
21   underscoring the scale of sacrifice behind the struggle for
22   independence; and
23      WHEREAS, Philadelphia was an important hub for the Colombian
24   independence movement, as the city's ports, printers, merchants
25   and political circles helped circulate Spanish-American
26   revolutionary ideas that inspired Colombian revolutionary
27   leaders who encountered ideas of liberty, self-government and
28   independence promoted by leaders of the American Revolution; and
29      WHEREAS, A prominent Colombian revolutionary leader located
30   in Philadelphia helped give shape to the Colombian independence

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 1   movement through his defense of liberty and his call for
 2   separation from Spain in printed publications of the time; and
 3      WHEREAS, In 1822, a prominent Colombian revolutionary figure
 4   was received by President James Monroe as a diplomatic officer
 5   of the República de Gran Colombia, an event that marked the
 6   recognition of the República de Gran Colombia by the United
 7   States, and which is memorialized in Philadelphia with a plaque
 8   honoring the first Latin American diplomatic representative in
 9   the United States; and
10      WHEREAS, Today, more than 25,000 Colombians reside in this
11   Commonwealth, and the Colombian community continues to
12   strengthen the Commonwealth through its contributions to local
13   business, professional life, civic participation and the social
14   and cultural richness of communities across Pennsylvania; and
15      WHEREAS, In Philadelphia especially, Colombian migration from
16   the 1960s to 1980s helped establish enduring Colombian American
17   communities in neighborhoods such as Olney and Feltonville; and
18      WHEREAS, Recognizing Colombia's Independence Day in
19   Pennsylvania provides an opportunity to honor Colombia's long
20   struggle for self-determination, remember the sacrifices made in
21   the cause of independence, acknowledge the historic ties between
22   Pennsylvania and Colombia and celebrate the Colombians whose
23   work, traditions and community life enrich the Commonwealth
24   today; therefore be it
25      RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize July
26   20, 2026, as "Colombian Independence Day" in Pennsylvania.




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