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WASHINGTON, January 3, 2005 -- "As we mourn the passing of my longtime colleague and friend, Shirley Chisholm, on the eve of the 109th Congress, we are reminded of her extraordinary contribution to the political empowerment of African-Americans and women in America.
Shirley Chisholm was one of the trailblazers, a pioneer who inspired and led the march of political achievement by African Americans and women in the three decades since she ran for the Presidency of the United States in 1972. Tomorrow, forty-two African Americans and sixty-nine women will be sworn in as Members of the House in the 109th Congress, and one African American and fourteen women will serve in the Senate. As we take our oaths we should all remember and appreciate Shirley Chisholm's contribution to the growth of our numbers and influence in the Congress and in American politics.
Shirley Chisholm was a special person whose motto, "Unbought and Unbossed" only began to describe her fierce determination to be independent of traditional political influences and accountable only to the people who elected her and whom she passionately served. Those of us who served with her in the New York State Assembly and watched her career in the House, to which she was elected in 1968, knew of her boldness and passionate commitment.
But even we were surprised when she began her Congressional career refusing her assignment to the Agriculture Committee and winning a position on the Veterans Affairs Committee, which she felt was more relevant to the needs of her inner city constituency. She later joined the Committee on Education and Labor and the powerful Rules Committee. Thus she embarked on a Congressional career noted for her compelling advocacy for causes in which she believed, particularly on behalf of working families and children. Nonetheless, we were equally unprepared for her audacious decision to run for the Presidency of the United States.
Shirley Chisholm's campaign for the Presidency was not only unprecedented but extremely bold, coming at a time of extraordinary racial turmoil and political upheaval in the country. Challenging all accepted practices of politics, this very junior Member of the House, an African American woman at that, by declaring for the Presidency, single-handedly raised the profile and aspirations of all those newly empowered Blacks and women of that era. Today, her visionary leadership in Congress and her quest for the Presidency continue to inspire new generations of young minorities and women to higher aspirations in public service."
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