Mrs. President: Shirley Chisholm

"When I die, I want to be remembered as a woman who lived in the twentieth century and who dared to be a catalyst for change. I don't want to be remembered as the first black woman who went to Congress, and I don't even want to be remembered as the first woman who happens to be black to make a bid for the presidency. I want to be remembered as a women who fought for change in the twentieth century. That's what I want."
 - Shirley Chisholm


Shirley Chisholm was a congresswoman, author and educator in the 20th Century with the intention to change.  The first black woman to run for President of the United States of America in 1972 and an advocate for education and health care. In 1968 She defeated Republican opponent James Farmer and became the first Black woman elected to Congress. 


"I faced more discrimination because I was a woman rather than being black"


During her term in Congress Shirley Chisholm worked to improve education and unemployment programs to improve inner city life and opportunity. After retirement from Congress in 1982 she continued teaching politics and women studies and visiting scholar at Spelman College.  Before her death in January 2005, she was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.