Wave Staff Report
WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, attended the Dec. 8 signing of her bipartisan legislation to honor the life and work of the late U.S. Rep. Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to Congress.
Vice President Kamala Harris signed the Shirley Chisholm Congressional Gold Medal Act, posthumously awarding Chisholm with the Congressional Gold Medal — the highest award Congress can bestow — in commemoration of her accomplishments, activism, and legacy.
“It was an honor to stand next to Vice President Kamala Harris as she signed this historic bill,” Lee said. “The Congressional Gold Medal serves as the nation’s highest expression of gratitude for distinguished service and achievements, and I see no one more deserving than Shirley Chisholm.
“It is critical for the next generation of leaders to see the first Black woman elected to Congress get the recognition that she deserves. Congresswoman Chisholm made history as the first Black woman elected to the United States Congress and the first Black woman to run for president of the United States. To Mrs. C, thank you for being unbought and unbossed, for paving the way, and for being a catalyst for change.”
In 1968, Chisholm became the first Black woman elected to Congress. During her seven terms in the House of Representatives, she introduced 50 pieces of legislation and was a champion for racial and gender equity, low-income communities and the end of the Vietnam War.
In 1972, Chisholm became the first woman and Black candidate to seek the nomination for president of the United States from one of the two major political parties. After a lifetime of service, Chisholm died at the age of 80 in Ormond Beach, Florida, on New Year’s Day 2005.
Lee celebrated what would have been Chisholm’s 100th birthday on Nov. 30 in Barbados. Chisholm’s motto, “Unbought and Unbossed,” embodies her unwavering advocacy for women and minorities and continues to inspire a generation of leaders.
Alongside Lee, the Shirley Chisholm Congressional Gold Medal Act was led in the House by Democratic leader Hassam Jeffries, D-New York; U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Los Angeles; Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-New York; and Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Florida. The Senate companion to the bill was introduced by U.S. Sens. Laphonza Butler, D-California; and Raphael Warnock, D-Georgia.
“Shirley Chisholm lived an honorable life of service and was a trailblazer who opened doors for generations of Black women and opened the imagination of what leadership looked like for our entire nation,” Butler said. “Her extraordinary contributions to American history and progress deserve recognition, and today I am proud to stand with my colleagues in both chambers and on both sides of the aisle to have taken this step to celebrate her legacy, ensuring that future generation of leaders never forget her courage, sacrifice and patriotism.”
