The Honorable Sydney Kai Kamlager-Dove, a Freshman Democrat Member of the U.S. House of Representatives and an advocate for racial equity, access, and social justice, was born in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, on July 20, 1972, to Cheryl Lynn Bruce, an award-winning actor. Kamlager graduated … Read MoreSydney Kai Kamlager-Dove (1972-)
Kwanza Hall, recognized for his leadership as a civil servant and business executive, was elected in 2020 to complete the term of the late U.S. Representative John R. Lewis, civil rights symbol and 17-term congressman. As a public servant, a large portion of his career … Read MoreKwanza Hall (1971-)
John Conyers Jr., who served in the U.S. Congress fifty years (1965 to 2017), was born on May 16, 1929 in Detroit, Michigan. He attended public schools and graduated from Northwestern High School in 1947. After high school, he followed in his father’s footsteps and joined … Read MoreJohn Conyers (1929-2019)
On November 3, 2020, Marilyn Strickland won the open seat in Washington’s 10th Congressional District, becoming the first Black Representative from the state of Washington, and first woman of Korean American descent elected to Congress. Previously on November 3, 2009, Marilyn Strickland was elected Tacoma, … Read MoreMarilyn Strickland (1962- )
Democratic Congresswoman Robin Kelly represents Illinois’s 2nd District, which includes Kankakee County and parts of Cook and Will Counties. It includes Chicago’s south suburbs and Southeast Side. Kelly was first elected on April 9, 2013, when the state of Illinois held a special election to … Read MoreRobin L. Kelly (1956- )
Barbara Charline Jordan was born in Houston Texas’s Fifth Ward on February 21, 1936. She received her education in public schools in Texas and graduated from Texas Southern University in 1956 with a B.A. in political science and history. Jordan then received her LL.B. from … Read MoreBarbara Jordan (1936-1996)
Republican Charles Edmund Nash served in the 44th Congress as Louisiana’s only black representative. Nash was born in Opelousas, St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, on May 23, 1844. Before his time in Congress, Nash attended common schools, was a bricklayer in New Orleans, and had enlisted … Read MoreCharles Edmund Nash (1844-1913)
U.S. Congresswoman Maxine Waters has dedicated over thirty years of her life to local and national politics. Born Maxine Moore Carr in St. Louis, Missouri on August 15, 1938, Waters moved to Los Angeles, California in 1961. While working in a garment factory and for … Read MoreMaxine Waters (1938- )
