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Making history every day: Jennifer McClellan

 


Another first crossed out for black women, and during Black History Month? Double win. Today, the state of Virginia made history by having the first black woman to represent in Congress. NPR states, "Virginia Democratic state Sen. Jennifer McClellan cruised to an easy victory in Tuesday's special election for Virginia's 4th Congressional District, making her the first Black woman to represent the state in Congress. The race was called shortly after polls closed by the Associated Press." (Paragraph 1) Virginia was one of the many states that have yet to have a woman of color in office. With the state's history with black women, I am not shocked. It is known that Virginia forced freed slaves to continue to work for their counterparts. Many denied it as another form of slavery and deemed it as a "job". Jennifer being elected is like a breath of fresh air after those horrific events,

Jennifer McClellan has education from the University of Virginia, Virginia School of Law, and Richmond. She has been the Senator since 2017 and has been in the legislature for over 14 years now. She has been recognized and known for a while now. Adding her to the history books, we have now had 30 black women in Congress. A quote from McClellan that stuck with me states, ""The first step is really listening, trying to find common ground where you can, and if you can't you just keep pushing until you get to the solution." A woman on a mission to get the job done no matter what. #blackgirlmagic


Citation:

Paviour, Ben. “For the First Time, a Black Woman Will Represent Virginia in Congress.” NPR, NPR, 22 Feb. 2023, https://www.npr.org/2023/02/21/1158659747/virginia-elects-its-first-black-women-to-congress-in-richmond-area-special-elect.

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