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U.S. House History Blog

19.02.2025

Edition for Educators—Shirley Chisholm of New York | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives

Since the First Congress opened in 1789, more than 11,000 people have served in the U.S. House of Representatives. Most served capably for a few terms and returned to their communities. But some lawmakers have left towering legacies and are remembered for their legislative prowess, path-breaking careers, and bold personalities. These Members of Congress, including powerful Speakers of the House, strong-willed legislators, trailblazing Representatives, and policy specialists, qualify as “Giants of the House.”Fiercely independent, Shirley Chisholm broke barriers for both women and Black Americans as the Congresswoman from Brooklyn, New York. She entered the House in the 91st Congress (1969–1971) and quickly challenged convention on Capitol Hill. Initially assigned to the Committee on Agriculture, she rejected the seat and appealed to Speaker John W. McCormack of Massachusetts and the Democratic Caucus before receiving a new seat on the Veterans’ Affairs Committee. She also made it a point to employ young women, Black and White, in key leadership positions in her congressional office at a time when many were relegated to secretarial positions with little hope of significant advancement.Throughout her career, Chisholm challenged leadership and spoke out about challenging issues—discrimination, abortion, and war. Chisholm embraced her national profile, “I think my role is to break new ground in Congress.”Chisholm’s boldness unsettled many of her colleagues, some of whom occasionally cautioned the Congresswoman that she risked losing re-election. In her memoir, Chisholm countered, “Sometime [sic] somebody has to start trying to change things, start to say something, do something, be politically expendable.” Despite her own early prediction that she might be in Congress “only six or eight years at most,” Chisholm served seven terms, secured a coveted seat on the Rules Committee, earned a role in party leadership, and made a historic run for the Democratic nomination for President.This month’s Edition for Educators highlights the historic career of Representative Shirley Chisholm of New York, the first Black woman elected to Congress.From the Classroom to the House ChamberPEOPLE PROFILE—Representative Shirley Chisholm of New York The first African-American Congresswoman, Shirley Chisholm represented a U.S. House of Representatives district centered in Brooklyn, New York. First elected in 1968, Chisholm was catapulted into the national limelight by virtue of her race, gender, and an outspoken personality that she balanced with deft skill as a political insider. Four years later, in 1972, she campaigned for the Democratic presidential nomination. From her seat on the powerful Rules Committee, “Fighting Shirley,” as she was known, moved into Democratic leadership and advocated for increased federal spending and expanded programs to help low-income and working-class Americans. “I am the people’s politician,” she once told the New York Times. “If the day should ever come when the people can’t save me, I’ll know I’m finished. That’s when I’ll go back to being a professional educator.”BLOG—Unbought and Unbossed Shirley Chisholm was on the fence about running for Congress when a woman came to her Brooklyn apartment. The visitor, a poor mother, said that she and her friends wanted Chisholm to run. “She gave me a dirty envelope containing $9.62 in nickels, dimes and quarters that they had raised and promised that if I ran they would sponsor fund-raising affairs every Friday night to help finance my campaign,” Chisholm told Ebony. After the woman left, Chisholm sat down, took off her glasses, and cried.It was her first campaign contribution.HISTORICAL HIGHLIGHT—The First African-American Woman Elected to Congress On this date, at the opening of the 91st Congress (1969–1971), Shirley Anita Chisholm of New York became the first African-American Congresswoman. Trained as a school teacher, Chisholm served two terms in the New York state legislature before winning election in November 1968 to a newly created congressional district in Brooklyn. The only woman among the first-term class of lawmakers in the 91st Congress, Chisholm took the House by storm. “I have no intention of just sitting quietly and observing,” she said. “I intend to focus attention on the nation’s problems.”RECORD—Shirley Chisholm Oath of Office Representative Shirley Chisholm of New York signed this oath of office card on January 21, 1969. Representatives take the verbal oath of office en masse on the first day of each new Congress. Beginning in the 80th Congress (1947–1949), Members have also reaffirmed their commitment by signing oath of office cards. The cards are filed with the Clerk of the House and become House records that are open to the public after 30 years.Representative Chisholm of New YorkESSAY—“To Fight Doubly Hard” This essay from Black Americans in Congress explores the trials and triumphs of the first Black women elected to Congress. The five women profiled in this section (Permanent Interests: 1965–1990) were trailblazers, working to pass significant legislation and rising through the ranks of party and House leadership. Several gained influential committee positions: Shirley Chisholm on Rules, Yvonne Burke on Appropriations, and Barbara Jordan on Judiciary. Burke also chaired the Select Committee on the House Beauty Shop, while Cardiss Collins became the first Black woman to chair a subcommittee when she headed the Manpower and Housing Subcommittee of the Committee on Government Operations in 1977. Collins later rose to ranking minority member of the same committee, then renamed the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight. Both Burke and Collins also were elected to terms as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC).Early in her congressional career, Chisholm spoke about the effort it took to make it to Congress. “My rise has been constantly fighting,” she explained. “And I have had to fight doubly hard because I am a woman. I am a very different sort of person than usually emerges on the political scene.”ORAL HISTORY—Representative Chisholm and the Women’s Rights Movement Muriel Morisey discusses Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm’s involvement in women’s rights organizations.BLOG—Guts, Stamina, Audacity: Shirley Chisholm’s House Career Shirley Chisholm, the charismatic and outspoken Brooklyn educator and politician, made history when she became the first African-American woman to serve in Congress in 1969. Small in stature, but with a larger-than-life persona, “Fighting Shirley” was a tireless advocate for her constituents, quotable and stylish and unyielding. Chisholm encapsulated the resolve of the civil rights movement of the 1960s and brought national attention to the issues she championed.Beyond the headlines and iconic reputation she built across party lines, the New York Representative had to fight just as hard within the House for the causes she supported. Run by an old guard resistant to change, the House in the late 1960s was not the most welcoming of institutions to new Members. But Chisholm’s political career embodied a spirit of independence and her 1968 campaign slogan, “Unbought and Unbossed,” challenged the status quo. During her initial run for Congress, Chisholm proudly remarked, “I have always spoken out for what I believe: I cannot be controlled.”ORAL HISTORY—“She Empowered Her Staff Enormously” Muriel Morisey recalls the relationship between Representative Shirley Chisholm and her staff.Leadership and OrganizationESSAY—The Rise of the Congressional Black Caucus As the number of African-American lawmakers serving in Congress grew, a long-desired movement to form a more unified organization among Black legislators coalesced. Frustrated that Black Representatives lacked a forum to discuss common concerns and issues, Charles Diggs proposed the organization of the Democratic Select Committee (DSC) at the opening of the 91st Congress (1969–1971). He maintained that the DSC would fill a significant void by fostering the exchange of information among the nine African Americans serving in Congress at the time, as well as between Black Representatives and House leadership. Newcomers Bill Clay, Louis Stokes, and Shirley Chisholm embraced the idea, and the organization grew in the 92nd Congress (1971–1973), when it changed its name to the Congressional Black Caucus. This essay from Black Americans in Congress explores the early days of the CBC and its founding membership.HISTORICAL DATA—Black Americans in Party Leadership Positions In 1977, Shirley Chisholm became the first Black woman to serve as Secretary of the Democratic Caucus after an unsuccessful campaign for the position of caucus chair. This chart provides a list of individuals in caucus and conference positions based on research conducted by the Congressional Research Service.ORAL HISTORY—“Give Your Chair to a Lady” Muriel Morisey recalls Representative Shirley Chisholm’s campaign to become Democratic Caucus chair.Presidential CandidateBLOG—“Catalyst for Change”: The 1972 Presidential Campaign of Representative Shirley Chisholm Since its first publication in 1951, Jet magazine had been on the forefront covering news and issues important to its African-American readership. Widely popular for its commentary on politics, culture, and the lives of everyday people, Jet posed a question in June 1971 that would soon prove prophetic: “Should a Black Politician Run for President?”Six months later, in January 1972, Chisholm formally announced her candidacy for President and worked to forge what she called a “union of the disenfranchised.” With limited funding and a small staff, she used her platform to advocate for federal aid programs, opposed the Vietnam War, and called to empower everyday voters. She developed a strategy to win delegates in key presidential primaries, and, if need be, was ready to continue her quest for the nomination into the July 1972 Democratic National Convention in Miami, Florida. But almost immediately, Chisholm faced opposition from other Democratic presidential hopefuls, prominent Black politicians, members of the CBC, and political rivals back home in her Brooklyn congressional district. Throughout the campaign, she dismissed criticism that her candidacy was self-serving or merely symbolic. “I am for real, and I am very serious about what I am doing.”Remembering Shirley ChisholmBLOG—Collection Spotlight: The Portrait of Shirley Chisholm The Shirley Chisholm portrait in the House Collection of Art and Artifacts—the most viewed painting in the House’s online Collections Search—is difficult to miss when you pass it in the Capitol. The subject looms large on the canvas, the background a bright, saturated blue. The House commissioned the portrait by artist Kadir Nelson as part of an initiative started at the turn of the 21st century to commemorate noteworthy former Members with significant legislative achievements or symbolic importance in House history who did not fall into the limited group who traditionally had portraits painted. Representative Chisholm of New York was part of this group—the first Black woman in Congress, taking her seat in 1969. She became nationally famous for her strong principles and willingness to stand up for them, earning the nickname “Fighting Shirley.”HOUSE COLLECTION—Featured Objects and ImagesAdditional ResourcesShirley Chisholm authored two books: Unbought and Unbossed in 1970, and The Good Fight in 1973. Her research collections can be found through Rutgers University Library. Brooklyn Colleges hosts a smaller collection on Chisholm’s historic campaign for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination as part of the Shirley Chisholm Project documenting women’s grassroots activism in Brooklyn, New York.In addition, the Library of Congress has compiled a research guide on Shirley Chisholm.This is part of a series of blog posts for educators highlighting the resources available on History, Art & Archives of the U.S. House of Representatives. For lesson plans, fact sheets, glossaries, and other materials for the classroom, see the website's Education section.

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