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Fannie Lou Hamer was a poor black woman with a sixth-grade education who spent much of her life working in the cotton fields. Her legacy, however, demonstrates that each of us has an important voice and role to play in our democracy, and as we near the end of Women’s History Month, it is a mighty reminder of the real power black women have in blazing the path toward true political equity and leadership.
Activist Hamer showed up at the 1964 Democratic National Convention as a member of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, intent on securing voting rights for black people. Her formidable presence and insistence that she, too, deserved a seat at the decision-makers’ table rattled the likes of President Lyndon B. Johnson and Sen. Hubert Humphrey and threatened their bid to secure the Democratic Party’s nomination for the presidential ticket.
Fifty years later, black women are among the country’s most politically active citizens. In 2012,70 percent of eligible black female voters went to the polls, providing the highest rate of voter turnout for any group. This statistic highlights black women’s ability to be defining factors in election outcomes. But despite this growing power, black women’s electoral heft is not translating into legislation and policies that address their concerns.
Black women continue to experience significant inequities in public education, health outcomes and economic opportunities that hurt not only them, but also their families and communities. The data is sobering. Research shows that employers paid black women just 64 cents for every dollar they paid white men. Black women lost more jobs than their male counterparts during the recent recession, and they are significantly more likely than white women to go without health insurance. Lack of health insurance is a primary barrier to receiving lifesaving health care.
The good news is that across the country we see examples of black women running for office, winning and taking on the hard issues. This is evidenced by women like California Attorney General Kamala Harris, whose policies have helped reduce jail sentences and the recidivism rate of black males. We observe it in the work of Rep. Yvette Clarke, who has sponsored bills aimed at broadening access to family planning services and affordable housing in the state of New York. And we see it in many other black women on the local and state level.
Source: The Root | GLYNDA C. CARR AND KIMBERLY PEELER-ALLEN
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