Virginia's Fourth District Black History Month Essay Contest--1St Place Middle School Winner, Frances Widmer

Floor Speech

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Ms. McCLELLAN. Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the following essay by 1st Place Middle Schooler, Frances Widmer:

Shirley Anita St. Hill Chisholm did many amazing things to pave the way for Black women in politics during her life and legacy. Her childhood, experience in national politics, and tenure as a congresswomen all speak to the remarkable legacy she left behind. She paved the way for Black women to lead in politics by pushing against the odds, by running against white men, and by challenging the political system.

Shirley Chisholm was born in Brooklyn, New York, but when she was three she moved to her system parents' homeland of Barbados to live with her grandmother. She was an intelligent girl and excelled in school and was ``bossy'' to all her older cousins. When she was eight years old, she moved back to Brooklyn with her parents. There she would listen into the political conversations her dad would hold and she became more and more interested in politics. She continued in her education and went to Brooklyn College to study Spanish and sociology, but she was not allowed to study political science because she was a Black woman.

As Shirley became more interested in politics, she attended political meetings and joined the 17th Assembly District Democratic Club. In her club, she realized that they did more chores, like writing thank you cards and holding fundraisers, than helping their community. Shirley Chisholm also began to realize that the congressmen were making promises they could not keep. Wanting to change all of these things, she got Into action.

In 1968 Shirley Chisholm was the first Black woman to be elected to congress. For her to get to this point, she had to face lots of opposition both because of her race and gender. Despite that, she knew that she had what it took to govern our country. She won by over 21,000 votes, but not everyone applauded Shirley's win. No one in the congress looked like her. In Congress, her first assignment was a position in the Agricultural Committee in America, but she was disappointed. She then used her position to help feed the hungry including people in Brooklyn, her hometown, Shirley Chisholm said, ``You don't make progress by standing on the sidelines, whimpering and complaining. You make progress by implementing ideas.'' She kept trying and succeeded in her goal.

In 1972 Shirley Chisholm ran to become the Democratic candidate for the Presidential election. She thought that the U.S. government should reflect America. Though her bid was unsuccessful, she broke the barrier for Black women in politics. Chisholm was the first African American to make a bid for a major party's candidate. She famously said, ``If you don't have a seat at the table, bring in a folding chair.'' She made an opportunity for herself and for others to serve in government.

Shirley Chisholm had many firsts: She was the first Black woman to be in Congress and the first Black woman to make a bid for president in a major party. By doing this. she paved the way for Black women to serve in government. Rep. Lee said, ``Ms. Chisholm's mission to include women, children, African-Americans, and other minorities in public policy opened the door to a whole new debate lacking in Congress during that time. She is a remarkable woman who paved the way for many of us . . .

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