Bipartisan legislation to honor the late Shirley Chisholm, the nation’s first Black congresswoman, became law last week, as the 118th Congress winds down with a final flurry of bills.
President Joe Biden signed the Shirley Chisholm Congressional Gold Medal Act on Thursday, posthumously honoring Chisholm, who died in 2005, with Congress’s highest award for her distinguished service and achievements.
Days prior, Vice President Kamala Harris signed the measure in her role as president of the U.S. Senate, flanked by the bill’s two lead sponsors, Sen. Laphonza Butler, D-Calif., and Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif.
“It was an honor to stand next to Vice President Kamala Harris as she signed this historic bill,” Lee said in a statement. Chisholm became a mentor to Lee as a college student and as Lee built her own career in public service.
“I see no one more deserving than Shirley Chisholm,” Lee added. “It is critical for the next generation of leaders to see the first Black woman elected to Congress get the recognition that she deserves.”
Butler, who stepped down from her post last week to make way for incoming Sen. Adam Schiff, said Chisholm “left a mark on our nation’s history that demands its own recognition.”
Touting Chisholm’s “patriotism, leadership and commitment to our nation,” Butler added, “with her service to New York and our nation, she truly has earned it.”
According to the legislation, the gold medal falls under the direction of the U.S. Treasury Department and will be designed and minted with Chisholm’s image, name and “suitable” emblems and inscriptions. It will be given to the Smithsonian Institution and made available for display at events and locations associated with Chisholm. Duplicates can be minted and sold to the public.
Chisholm, the daughter of Caribbean immigrants with roots in Barbados and Guyana, was born in Brooklyn, New York, on Nov. 30, 1924.
After earning an undergraduate degree from Brooklyn College and a master’s from Columbia University, she worked in the fields of education and social services. Chisholm would later seek a seat in the New York State Assembly, and upon her election in 1964 became its second Black legislator. Two years later, she helped found the National Organization for Women.
When the activist decided to run for Congress, she weathered derision and threats, but tireless campaigning helped “Fighting Shirley” — whose slogan was “Unbought and Unbossed” — win a seat in 1968. After being sworn in, she quickly established a reputation for being an outspoken advocate of civil rights, gender equality and uplifting the vulnerable and marginalized.
The Democrat introduced some 50 pieces of legislation over seven terms, which ran the gamut from pushing for immigration reform and child support, to federal lands for Native American tribes. She was vocal about issues that included ending the Vietnam War and providing safety nets for families, such as food stamps. While serving on the Agriculture Committee, she collaborated with colleagues like Republican Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas to help develop the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, known as WIC.
Chisholm broke new ground with her high-profile 1972 campaign for president of the United States; once again, she blazed trails, this time as the first Black candidate and Black woman to seek the nomination from a major political party.
In 1983, the lawmaker retired and relocated to Florida. A decade later, she was tapped by President Bill Clinton to serve as his administration’s ambassador to Jamaica, but health challenges reportedly prevented the appointment. She died at age 80 on New Year’s Day in 2005, and is buried in Buffalo, New York, near her husband, former state Assemblyman Arthur Hardwick.
The same year of her passing, then-Rep. Charles Rangel, D,N.Y. — who along Chisholm co-founded the Congressional Black Caucus — introduced the first of several bills designed to celebrate her life and legacy. Lee subsequently introduced a series of congressional measures to honor Chisholm.
During a CBC “Special Order Hour” earlier this month on the House floor, Lee recounted those efforts years ago. As members considered an earlier resolution to honor Chisholm, before she had died, Lee called her mentor from the House cloakroom and urged her to watch the proceedings on C-Span. Lee recalled that Chisholm was distressed initially as votes were being tallied, asking her, “Barbara, where are the Republicans? I worked very closely with the Republicans constantly…”
Quickly reassured that there were GOP members on board, Lee said Chisholm “was relieved. I mean, that is just how serious she took her bipartisan work.”
Now, in this year that commemorates Chisholm’s 100th birthday, support for the gold medal came from both sides of the aisle.
Besides Lee, the bill was led in the House by Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., as well as members who included Maxine Waters, D-Calif., Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., and Byron Donalds, R-Fla.
The Senate’s companion legislation was introduced by Butler and Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., and passed with bipartisan support. In both chambers, Democrats, Republicans and independents voted for it.
During the CBC event, member after member stood to share fond memories of Chisholm. Several younger representatives, among them Jonathan Jackson, D-Ill., and Shontel Brown, D-Ohio, paid their respect and gratitude.
“I can’t help but think that Shirley Chisholm is looking down at all of us and saying how proud she is that we have gotten here,” Rep. Sheila Cherfilus McCormick, D-Fla., told colleagues that evening. “We have a lot of work to do. What she started has to be finished, I hope by our generation. By working together, and all of us recognizing her hard work on both sides.”
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