Chaka Fattah is a former Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives. He represented the 2nd Congressional District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1994 to 2016. Fattah resigned from office on June 23, 2016, following a racketeering conviction. On December 12, 2016, Fattah was sentenced … Read MoreChaka Fattah (1956- )
Keith Ellison is an American politician and lawyer, who is currently the Attorney General-elect of Minnesota. Ellison was born on August 4, 1963 in Detroit, Michigan. He is the third of five sons born to Leonard and Clida (Martinez). Since childhood Ellison was involved with the civil rightsmovement and briefly worked … Read MoreKeith M. Ellison (1963- )
Kendrick Meek, former highway patrolman, Florida state representative, and state senator, served in the United States House of Representatives as a Democratic representative from Florida’s 17th District from 2003 to 2011. Meek was born on September 6, 1966 in Miami, Florida. He is the youngest of three children of Harold and former … Read MoreKendrick Meek (1966- )
Ronald Vernie Dellums was born on November 24, 1935, in Oakland, Californiato Willa Terry Dellums and Vernie Dellums. His father, Vernie Dellums, was a longshoreman, and his mother was a labor organizer. As a child, he attended St. Patrick Catholic School in Oakland. After high school, Dellums served … Read MoreRonald Vernie Dellums (1935-2018)
Democratic Florida Congresswoman Frederica Wilson was born on November 5, 1942 in Miami, Florida to Beulah Finley and Thirlee Smith. Wilson learned the importance of community activism at a young age. Her father was a small business owner and civil rights activist who worked to promote voter registration … Read MoreFrederica Wilson (1942- )
An early career in health care led to political aspirations for Eddie Bernice Johnson, culminating in her position representing Texas in the U.S. House of Representatives. She was an advocate for women, children, and human rights. Born in Waco, Texas, in 1935 to parents Lee Edward Johnson and Lillie Mae … Read MoreEddie Bernice Johnson (1935-2023)
John Mercer Langston, the youngest of four children, was born a free black in Louisa County, Virginia on December 14, 1829. Langston gained distinction as an abolitionist, politician, and attorney. Despite the prominence of his slaveowner father, Ralph Quarles, Langston took his surname from his mother, … Read MoreJohn Mercer Langston (1829-1897)
Ilhan Omar is a Somali American politician from Minnesota. She is the director of policy and initiative of the Women Organizing Women Network which encourages women from East Africa to take on civic and political leadership roles. In 2016 she was elected a Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) … Read MoreIlhan Omar (1982- )
Hansen Clarke is a Democratic politician, lawyer, and artist who represented the 13th District of Michigan in the U.S. Congress between 2011 and 2013. Born on March 2, 1957 in Detroit, his father, Mozaffar Ali Hashem, was an undocumented Bangladeshi immigrant, and his mother Thelma … Read MoreHansen Hashem Clarke (1957- )
Cedric Richmond is the U.S. Representative for Louisiana’s 2nd Congressional District, which includes much of New Orleans. Richmond, a Democrat, won the post after more than a decade of service in the Louisiana House of Representatives. Born September 13, 1973, his mother was a public … Read MoreCedric Levon Richmond (1973- )
