In 2020, we saw history being made when Kamala Harris became the first woman, the first Black person, and the first South Asian person on a major-party general election presidential ballot, as well as the first woman, the first Black person, and the first South Asian person to win the vice presidency. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Letitia “Tish” James is the 67th Attorney General for the State of New York. With decades of work, she is an experienced attorney and public servant with a long record of accomplishments. She is the first woman of color to hold statewide office in New York and the first woman to be elected Attorney General. As Attorney General of New York, James has fought corruption and sought justice across many areas. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

On January 29, 2021, Shirley Nash Weber, Ph.D. became California’s first Black Secretary of State, and only the fifth African American to serve as a state constitutional officer in California’s 170-year history. Weber was appointed to serve by California’s Governor Gavin Newsom to succeed Alexis Padilia after his appointment to serve as California’s junior senator. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Sabina Matos was appointed as the 70th Lieutenant Governor of the State of Rhode Island on April 14, 2021. She is the second woman and first woman of color to hold this post. Additionally, she is the first Afro-Latina, Dominican American to hold the position of Lieutenant Governor in the United States. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Terri Sewell has served since 2011 as the U.S. Representative for Alabama’s 7th congressional district. In August 2021, Sewell introduced the landmark Voting Rights Act, known as H.R. 4, which is named after the late Georgia congressman and civil rights leader John Lewis, who died last year. The Act seeks to restore a key provision of the federal law that compelled states with a history of discrimination to undergo a federal review of changes to voting and elections.  #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Joyce Beatty represents Ohio’s 3rd Congressional district and is the chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus. In July, Beatty and eight other activists were arrested while protesting for voting rights in the atrium of a Senate office building. Beatty and a group of around 20 protesters demonstrated in the hopes of putting pressure on senators to pass voting rights legislation. “You can arrest me. You can’t stop me. You can’t silence me,” Beatty wrote on Twitter after her arrest. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Cori Bush represents Missouri’s 1st Congressional District. Last summer, as the pandemic eviction moratorium was set to expire, Bush took a stand and slept overnight on the steps of the U.S. Capitol to protest her House colleagues decision to adjourn for August recess without passing an extension. In a letter to her colleagues, she stated that she “cannot in good conscience leave Washington tonight while a Democratic-controlled government allows millions of people to go unhoused as the Delta variant is ravaging our communities.” #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Texas Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee was pivotal in creating the bill to recognize Juneteenth as a federal holiday. Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, the day that slavery officially came to an end in America when the last enslaved people in Galveston received an order informing them they were finally free — more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed. On June 17, 2021, President Joe Biden signed the bill into law on June 19, 2021. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Stacey Plaskett is in her fourth term representing the U.S. Virgin Islands’ at-large congressional district. Plaskett was in the spotlight earlier this year when she made history as the first delegate ever to be on a team of impeachment managers in American history during former President Donald Trump’s impeachment hearing. Plaskett was one of nine impeachment managers tasked with presenting the House’s case to senators, who were acting as jurors during the trial. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

The Biden Administration is what happens when you practice what you preach. During Joe Biden’s presidential campaign, he promised a diverse administration, and he delivered on his promise, along with a  list of historic firsts. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, a career diplomat, was named the ambassador to the United Nations. Biden named Marcia Fudge as the first black woman to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Then there was the appointment of Cecelia Rouse, who became the first Black person to serve as  chairperson of the Council of Economic Advisers. And let’s not forget about Kristen Clarke, who now serves as Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division under the Department of Justice.  #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

In 2021, Black women mayors led seven of the 100 cities with the largest populations in the United States, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kim Janey in Boston; Keisha Lance Bottoms in Atlanta; Muriel Bowser in Washington; London Breed in San Francisco; LaToya Cantrell in New Orleans; Lori Lightfoot in Chicago; Vi Lyles in Charlotte, N.C., and Tishaura Jones in St. Louis, were thrust in the spotlight when their cities were dealt devasting blows by COVID-19 and the issues associated with the ongoing deadly pandemic. The mayors handled their roles with grace and dignity, and continue to serve their constituents in times of need.

The Congressional Black Caucus marked its 50th anniversary in 2021, and is being led by phenomenal Black women. CBC Chair Rep. Joyce Beatty, CBC Foundation Executive Director Tonya Veasey, CBC PAC Executive Director Yolonda Addison, and CBC Institute Executive Director Vanessa Griddine-Jones are getting the CBC in gear for another exemplary year.  Currently, 27 Black women serve in Congress, a number that has helped boost the CBC’s membership. The women members of the CBC have been vocal about pertinent issues, from healthcare to voting rights, that affect Black women. They have been on the frontlines protesting and risking their lives, all while making sure Black women have a seat at the table.  #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Over the last year, we’ve seen Texas choose to be on the wrong side of history when it comes to voting rights, women’s rights and education. But Black women state legislators in Texas have paved the way when it comes to keeping the public’s interests at heart and protecting peoples’ rights.  These women have been exemplary leaders in their districts and state:

• Rep. Nicole Collier
• Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins
• Rep. Rhetta Bowers
• Rep. Alma Allen
• Rep. Jasmine Crockett
• Rep. Yvonne Davis
• Rep. Toni Rose
• Rep. Shawn Thierry
• Rep. Senfronia Thompson

#BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Park Cannon represents the 26th District of the Georgia House of Representatives. In March, Cannon protested Governor Brian Kemp’s signing of the Election Integrity Act of 2021, which would restrict people’s voting rights. Cannon attempted to speak with Kemp, but was arrested by Georgia State Patrol officers and charged with felony obstruction. The incident sparked backlash, and Cannon’s charges were eventually dropped.  #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

During his first year as president, Joe Biden was responsible for nominating three of the 11 Black women to ever be confirmed as federal appeals court judges. Those judges include Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, Judge Candace Jackson-Akiwumi on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, and first name?Cunningham In addition, Cunningham, a 45-year-old patent attorney from Illinois, will be the first-ever Black judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which handles patent cases. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

On April 20, 2021, Tishaura Jones became the first African American woman to be sworn in as the Mayor of St. Louis. Previously, Tishaura was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives to represent the 63rd district in 2008, serving until 2013. She was Treasurer of the city of St. Louis from 2013 to 2021. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

On December 7, 2021, Elaine O’Neal will be sworn in as Durham, North Carolina’s new mayor. Elaine made history as the first Black woman elected mayor of Durham when she won the general election on November 2, 2021. Previously, Elaine served as a judge of the North Carolina District Court from 1994 to 2011, and of the North Carolina Superior Court from 2011 to 2018. In June 2018, O’Neal was selected as interim dean of the North Carolina Central University School of Law. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Sydney Kamlager represents District 30, ranging from Century City to South Los Angeles and takes in Culver City, Cheviot Hills, Crenshaw District, University of Southern California, downtown L.A., and a portion of Inglewood. She is the only Black woman senator representing California and prior to being elected to the California Senate, Kamlager served in the California State Assembly and as a trustee for the Los Angeles Community College District. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

The tides have turned in the Colorado judicial system when it comes to Black women judges.  Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has appointed more Black women to the bench than any of the 42 governors before him, which brings the count of Black women on the bench in Colorado to 9. This number of course, is still small, but a step in the right direction. Here are the current Black women on the bench in

Colorado:

•  Judge Cheryl Rowles-Stokes
• Judge Olympia Fay
• Judge Tanya Wheeler
• Judge Samorreyan Burney
• Judge Frances Johnson
• Judge Jill D. Dorancy
• Judge Nikea T. Bland
• Judge Pax Moultrie
• Judge Renee Goble

#BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

Representative Karen Camper is the National President the National Organization of Black-Elected Legislative Women (NOBEL-Women) and has served in the Tennessee Legislature since 2008, representing the 87th District. Respected by both sides of the political aisle, Karen is the first African American person to be elected Leader of the Tennessee House Democratic Caucus in the Tennessee General Assembly. Her historic accomplishment should pave the way for future generations. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021

In Maryland’s Prince George’s County, Angela D. Alsobrooks, the first woman county executive has assembled a fleet of other Black women to help her lead. In total, 22 out of 39 cabinet positions are held by Black women. Angela has launched a new era in Prince George’s County, Md., known for its concentration of Black wealth and complicated record on racial justice. Angela previously served as the county’s first woman elected prosecutor. #BlackWomenLead #Chisholm2021