Shirley Chisholm : A Visionary Leader

Shirley Chisholm is an African American politician, educator, and author. She is the first African American to be in Congress. On August 10, 1970 she stood in front of the US House of Representatives in Washington, DC to present a speech. The speech called “For the Equal Rights Amendment”, communicates the discrimination against women and how they’re being treated against men. She uses ethos, logos, pathos and questions to help explain how women are treated unfairly.

Shirley Chisholm, first African American woman to be elected to Congress was born in Brooklyn on November 30, 1924. She is one of the most profound and admired women that challenged society not only as a woman, but a woman of color. She made many contributions to the women's movement and society.

Michelle Obama is the topic of this research for she is a role model and inspiration to Americans across the nation. Michelle’s life has shown nothing but mere dedication, outstanding perseverance, a willingness to learn, affect change and be a leader to those who believe and admire her work. Raised on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois, Obama is the daughter of Fraser Robinson III, a city water plant employee and Democratic precinct captain (Slevin, 2015). During her early years, Michelle has seen the detrimental effects segregation can have on a community, which was later reflected on her fight against inequality. Being raised on the

The impact of the movement of peoples to Australia is evident in an examination of the life of Caroline Chisholm. She was born on the 30th of May 1808, in Northampton, England and was one of sixteen children. She was brought up as a Christian girl in the tradition of Evangelical philanthropy meaning she continued in life doing a lot of charitable work and was an extremely progressive 19th century humanitarian philanthropist. Her major passion in life was to promote immigration to Australia and particularly look after single, unsupported women arriving on the shores of Australia.

Humanitarian, community advocate and aid to immigrants, Caroline Chisholm spent her life in the service of others. Her legacy of good will and economic empowerment spans several continents and several decades. Mrs. Chisholm advocated for immigrant women and girls in India, England and Australia. Because of her faith, Mrs. Chisholm was met with much opposition. As a Catholic in a time where Catholicism was viewed with mistrust and disdain, she had to overcome barriers simply because of her belief system even though if anything, her beliefs helped to motivate her to do all the great work she did for immigrant women and girls.

Shirley Chisholm’s deep involvement within the community strengthened her political influence. She grew more alert to the problems that affected her people such as police brutality, poverty, and women’s lack of rights. Chisholm was an active participant in many community groups such as the League of Women Voters and the Seventeenth Assembly District Democratic Club while also being active in the Democratic Party. Through her experiences, she gained great leadership skills by having responsibilities and learning the art of organizing and

There were diffused ideals among African American leaders on how to handle racial inequalities in society during the progressive era, but its leaders would form the pathways on which future generations would commence on in gaining racial equality. Following is a part of an essay written by African American

Across cultures and throughout history, women have experienced ongoing systemic oppression; and they have responded with progressive movements of protest and creative alternatives. Harriet Tubman in the fight against slavery: Fannie Lou Hamer for voting rights: Ella Baker and Mary White Ovington in the civil rights movement: Rosa Luxemburg in the German socialist movement: Winnie Mandela in the anti-apartheid movement: Puerto Rican independence leader and poet Lolita Lebron: and American Indian movement activists Anna Mae Aquash, Ingrid Washinawatok, and Winona LaDuke (Mink and Navarro). Women have pioneered in movements for labor rights, prison reform, reproductive rights and health, education, affordable housing, affirmative action and equal rights, human rights, and environmental safety. These women’s leadership styles span a range from soft to harsh, from wielding individual, hierarchical power to possessing a commitment to collectivism, and from identifying as “woman as caretaker of life” to woman as requiring and utilizing equal power to man. There is no one characteristic that applies to all women as social change leaders (Hurtado).

discussed. One can sense her urgency for the unity of black people and how her past experiences

The gender bias found in relation to leadership in the civil rights movement often excludes African-American women’s contributions as being of less importance and prominence; however, in hindsight informal leaders were on equal level with formal leaders and bridge leaders served an important function resulting from exclusion.

Mary believed the only difference between whites and blacks was the matter of reading and writing (“Biography: Mary McLeod Bethune”). In 1935, she founded the National Council of Negro Women. Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed her as Director of the Division of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration. He frequently consulted with her about interracial relations and minority affairs. In fact, she was the first African American woman to be a presidential advisor. This role as director suited her well because it allowed her to reach out to the nation’s black youth and let her advocate for equal pay for blacks (Lewis). Mary once said, "My people needed literacy, but they needed even more to learn the simples of farming, of making decent homes, of health and plain cleanliness,” ("Biography: Mary Mcleod Bethune"). Eleanor Roosevelt was a close friend of Mary, and even requested to sit next to her at conferences, which defied segregation laws. She urged the Democratic Party to include black women in party offices and urged African Americans to vote democratic

Women fought harder for equality. They protested the Miss America pageant because it promotes unrealistic expectations of beauty. Additionally, women burned symbols of female oppression such as bras, diapers and brooms. African-Americans also fought for racial equality. During the 1968 Olympic games, African Americans and black sprinters advocated black power on the podium. Shirley Chisholm was the first African-American women to be elected to Congress. The increase in advocacy for equality incited many people. This caused more protests and riots and led to a more confused nation. The election of an African-American women to congress shows that many of these protests were working and should be continued. Many of the civil rights movements started as peaceful but turned violent as police came to the scene. Unfortunately, the protesters who were fighting for equality were often beaten and arrested. The tumult of these protests led to an increase in uncertainty and chaos throughout the citizens of the United

If one man never steps forward to show all the others that change is possible, nothing will ever change. When you look back at history of the American civil rights movement, Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. are still often two of the first names even someone of today’s society may think of. They were, and still are, some of the most influential men to ever live. As young African-American men living during a time of harsh global, but most importantly, national racism and prejudice; teaching effective techniques to achieve peace and equality to others was extremely difficult for Dr. King and Malcolm X.

Hillary R. Clinton once said that “There cannot be true democracy unless Women’s voices are heard” (conference in Vienna, Austria 1997). That very brilliant quote relates to a very strong woman by the name of Maya Angelou. Angelou is “America’s most visible black female autobiographer and speakers” (scholar Joanne M. Braxton). She is known for her speeches, poems, and books, but what stood out to me the most was her 1993 inauguration speech when Bill Clinton was sworn into the White House. Ironically, in her poem “On the Pulse of Morning” Maya Angelou uses clear rhetoric, prehistoric metaphoric images, and inspirational concepts to alert her audience to treat the world differently.

Society continues to nurture these depriving situations and demonstrate lack of concern towards black women by not celebrating them for the roles they played in the movements. Taylor (1998) asserted that, “despite the fact that the most celebrated leaders of the modern civil rights movements were men, African American women participated at every stage in the struggle for justice and equality” (239). Although black women were not in public eyes during these movements, it was their vision and organizing roles they played that helped in the progression of many liberation movements.