Shirley Chisholm (1924 - 1995)
Sun Nov 30, 1924
Shirley Anita Chisholm, born on this day in 1924, was an American politician, educator, and author who became the first black woman elected to U.S. Congress in 1968. Her campaign slogan was "Unbought and Unbossed".
Chisholm was born to immigrant parents from the Caribbean. When she was five, she was sent to live with her maternal grandmother in Barbados because her parents' work schedules made it difficult to raise children.
Chisholm returned to the United States at the age of ten, and spoke with a slight West Indies accent for the rest of her life. On her grandmother's influence, Chisholm later stated "Granny gave me strength, dignity, and love. I learned from an early age that I was somebody. I didn't need the black revolution to tell me that."
In 1968, she became the first black woman elected to the United States Congress in an upset victory where she defeated civil rights activist James Farmer. Her campaign slogan, later the title of her autobiography, was "Unbought and Unbossed".
Chisholm represented New York's 12th congressional district for seven terms from 1969 to 1983. In the 1972 United States presidential election, she became the first black candidate for a major party's nomination for President of the United States.
"In the end anti-black, anti-female, and all forms of discrimination are equivalent to the same thing: anti-humanism."
- Shirley Chisholm
- Date: 1924-11-30
- Learn More: en.wikipedia.org, www.womenshistory.org, www.zinnedproject.org.
- Tags: #Birthdays.
- Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org
