Celebrating Black History month: Josiah Walls, first African-American Congressman from Florida

Josiah Thomas Walls, was born into slavery December 30, 1842 near Winchester, Virginia.  He was forced to join the Confederate army during the Civil War.  He was captured by the Union Army in 1862 and voluntarily joined the United States Colored Troops in 1863, rising to the rank of corporal.  He was discharged in Florida and settled in Alachua County, Florida, near Gainsville.

Walls was elected to the Florida House of Representatives from Alachua in December 1868 and took office in January.  He won the 1870 general election to serve in the 42nd Congress but was unseated after election "irregularities".

He was elected in the 1872 election and won. He established a national education fund and aid for Seminole War veterans.

He was re-elected in 1874 but a former Confederate colonel, contested the results of the elction and Walls lost his seat.

He became a teacher at the State Normal and Industrial College for Colored Students which would eventually become Florida A&M University.

Celebrating Black History Month: Shirley Chisholm, first African-American woman to be elected to U.S. Congress

Shirley Chisholm, born November 30, 1924 in New York City, is the first black woman to be elected to the United States Congress.  She was a Democratic member of the New York State Assembly from 1965-1968 and pushed for more black representation on key committees in the Assembly.

She ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1968 representing New York's 12th congressional district, which includes parts of Manhattan.  Her campaign slogan was "Unbought and unbossed".

In 1972, she announced that she would run for president, becoming the first black major party candidate to run for that office.  She did not win the nomination, but she did manage to obtain a lot of support, even though most of it were protest votes against McGovern.

She retired from Congress in 1983 and then moved to Florida in 1991.  She passed away in January 2005.

Celebrating Black History Month: Parren Mitchell, first African-American representative from Maryland

Parren Mitchell, born April 29, 1922 in Baltimore, Maryland, became the first African-American Representative from Maryland.  After high school, he joined the U.S. Army in 1942 as a commissioned officer and company commander in the all-black 92nd Infantry Division in WWII.  He earned a Purple Heart for his service in Italy.

In 1950, he sued the University of Maryland for admission and became the school's first African-American graduate student, with a MA in sociology in 1952.

He was elected to Congress in the election in 1970 and sworn into Congress in 1971.  He served until 1987.

In 1977, he proposed transferring $15M from the military budget for programs to increase employment in the U.S. He is quoted as saying,

“I have no great fear of the Soviet Union or China,” Mitchell remarked. “If this democracy should ever fail it will come from within because of the enormous disparity between the rich and the poor.”

His words are applicable now more than ever.

Celebrating Black Pride Month: J. C. Watts, first African-American US Representative from Oklahoma

Julius Caesar "J. C." Watts, born in Eufala, Oklahoma 1957, is the first African-American U.S. Representative from Oklahoma.  He represented the 4th Congressional District (south-central) from 1995 to 2003.  He played football at OU and was starting quarterback in 1979 and led them to two Orange Bowl victories.  He then played for the Canadian Football League until 1986.

Watts was elected to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission in 1990, being the first African-American to win a statewide office in Oklahoma.

Nerds in Congress! Eight scientists are among the new members of Congress!

The citizens of the U.S. are sending 8 new scientists to Congress!  Well, seven scientists and one who has received a science degree.  Among the blue wave there was a rainbow wave (over 100 LGBT persons won their races) and a pink wave (at least 123 women, including Muslims and Native Americans won their races) changing the face of our House and Senate. 

Jacky Rosen (D-NV) Senator: Rosen is a computer programmer who has represented Nevada’s 3^rd District.  She supports clean, renewable energy, whereas her opponent flip-flopped on the Affordable Care Act and cast the deciding vote on a law that allowed internet service providers sell consumer data without their knowledge.

Chrissy Houlahan (D) Pennsylvania 6^th district Representative: Houlahan is an industrial engineer and an Air Force veteran who campaigned on making healthcare more affordable.  She defeated her opponent who is a tax lawyer and has owned 20 Wendy’s franchises.

Joe Cunningham (D) South Carolina 1^st district Representative: Cunningham, an ocean scientist, used his expertise to campaign against the future of offshore drilling, which won over Republican mayors of coastal cities.  His opponent focused on national issues rather than local ones.

Sean Casten (D) Illinois 6^th district Representative:  Casten, a biochemical engineer, founded a waste-energy recovery program and supported LGBTQ rights.  His opponent was a climate-change denier who later flipped on the issue.

Elaine Luria (D) Virginia 2^nd district Representative: Luria is a nuclear engineer, who spend 20 years in the Navy, operating nuclear reactors as an engineer and a commander. She also focused on increasing the minimum wage.  Her opponent, an ex-Navy Seal, got caught up in a bit of a scandal.

Kim Schrier (D) Washington 8^th district Representative: This race still hasn’t been called as of yesterday, but Schrier has a commanding lead.  Schrier wants to be the first female doctor in Congress.

Lauren Underwood (D) Illinois 14^th district Representative: Underwood, a registered nurse, was a senior adviser at the DHHS under President Obama, where she focused on preventing and responding to bioterrorism threats.  She focused on expanding access to healthcare, since she has an irregular heart rhythm, i.e. pre-existing condition.

Kevin Hern (R) Oklahoma 1^st district Representative: You pretty much have to be a Republican to win an election in Oklahoma, and in such an anti-science state, it’s not surprising he did not campaign on any science-related issues although he has a mechanical engineering degree from Arkansas Tech University.  He said when the space shuttle Challenger blew up in 1986, he decided to give up his dream to be an astronaut and work at McDonald’s flipping burgers?  I suppose if you are a Republican, this would make sense.  He is a Trumpster and owns 10 McDonald’s restaurants in the Tulsa area. 

Celebrating Pride Month - Mark Takano, first openly gay Asian in Congress

Mark Takano, born December 10, 1960 in Riverside, California, became the first U.S. Representative in Congress to be openly gay and of Asian descent.  His family was among the many Japanese who were interned into a War Relocation Camp during WWII. 

In college, he was a Republican but became a member of the Democratic Party after leaving college.

In 2011, he announced he would run for the U.S. House of Representatives in the newly redrawn California 41st congressional district.  In the November 2012 general election he defeated his Republican challenger 58-42%, becoming the first openly gay, non-white member of the House. He assumed office January 3, 2013.

Celebrating Pride Month - Tammy Baldwin, first openly gay U.S. Senator

Tammy Baldwin, born February 11, 1962 in Madison, Wisconsin, is the first openly LGBT person to be elected to the U.S. Senate.  In 1992, she ran for Wisconsin's 78th Assembly District and won, becoming one of six openly gay candidates to win public office in 1992.  She got re-elected 3 times.

When Representative Scott Klug announced he would retire in 1998, Baldwin ran for his seat and defeated the Republican candidate in the general election, becoming the first openly gay woman elected to the House of Representatives.

In 2011, she announced her candidacy for the U.S. Senate and won the election on November 19, 2012, becoming the first openly gay U.S. Senator in history.

She is running for re-election in 2018.