#IllinoisLegislature

[jennifermnhi]

Activist, former Illinois State Sen. Alice Palmer dies at 83 [Video]

[instapicsil2]

Former Sen. #CarolMoseleyBraun On Making History, Watching It in #ChicagoMayor Race https://bit.ly/2uxcxk4 (Link in bio) Remember the last time two African-American women vied for the 5th floor of #CityHall? It was only eight years ago — in the 2011 election won by Mayor Rahm Emanuel. With the historic runoff heralding Chicago’s first African-American woman mayor winding down, I caught up with former U.S. Sen. Carol Moseley Braun, who came in fourth in that 2011 election. “A black female running the city of Chicago, in my lifetime, is a sea change. I did not think I’d ever see this,” the 71-year-old retired politician said of the election that has #ToniPreckwinkle and #LoriLightfoot perched on the edge of history. “I think it’s wonderful,” said the #HydePark native, whose resume also includes elected offices in the #IllinoisLegislature and #CookCounty government, and U.S. ambassador to #NewZealand. Braun currently practices law and is a visiting professor of political science at @northwesternu. A #trailblazer who broke multiple barriers when she was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1992 — serving from 1993 to 1999 — Braun reflected on a rich political career that began when, as a young assistant U.S. Attorney, she decided to run for the Illinois House. “They said, ‘You can’t possibly win. Blacks won’t vote for you because you’re not part of the #ChicagoMachine. Whites won’t vote for you because you’re black. And nobody’s going to vote for you because you’re a woman,” she recalled Sunday at a #WomensHistoryMonth event .... https://ift.tt/2FxWAiP