BOSTON — Massachusetts lawmakers are seeking to designate Sept. 25 as “9 to 5 Day” in honor of American icon Dolly Parton under a bill filed Thursday by Provincetown Sen. Julian Cyr and Boston Rep. Sam Montaño.
Parton, a country music legend and philanthropist, died Aug. 25 at the age of 80 in Nashville, Tenn. The lawmakers said the bill follows the lead of counterparts in Tennessee who recently introduced a bill to designate Sept. 25 as “9 to 5 Day” following Parton’s death, in celebration of Parton “and all people on the job working 9 to 5.”
“In Dolly Parton, we lost an icon: a legendary singer-songwriter, a philanthropist, and a role model who showed generations of Americans what it means to lead and live with kindness and authenticity,” Cyr and Montaño said in a statement. “Dolly’s passing felt incredibly personal to millions of us, like we had all lost our ‘Aunt Dolly.'”
The proposal calls for the governor to annually issue a proclamation calling for a “proper observance” of the day “in lasting recognition of the life and legacy of Dolly Parton, whose voice and songwriting inspired generations of working people and whose service to others, dedication to childhood literacy and promotion of human dignity and acceptance uplifted communities in Massachusetts and throughout the world.”
“For so many of us, Dolly is a patron saint of audacious beauty, wit, and acceptance,” their offices wrote in a release. “She was a steadfast ally to LGBTQ+ people, decades before it was popular to be, and constantly reminded us not to be afraid of showing up as our whole selves – even if others poked fun, or simply didn’t understand us.”