Hakeem Jeffries Makes History as the First Black Lawmaker to Lead a Party In Congress

Hakeem Jeffries

“There’s nothing more unifying than being in the minority and having a clear-eyed objective and goal of getting back into the majority”

— Hakeem Jeffries

By: Adonis Armstrong

Meet the Brooklyn native and the first Black Lawmaker to lead a party in Congress, Hakeem Jeffries. He is 52 years old which also makes him the first leader of the House of Representatives to be born after the end of World War II. He graduated in 1992 from Binghamton University with a Bachelors Degree in Arts with honors and also received a Masters of Public Policy from Georgetown University in 1994 He then attended New York University School of Law, where he received a Juris Degree in 1997, while being a member of the New York University Law Review.

After being chosen to the House of Representatives in 2012, Jeffries’ had a quick rise to top as more seniors gave up holding out for Pelosi and leaving for new occupations. To get there, he hand to face a former Black Panther then serving as a city councilman in the primary which he won easily.

Jeffries sponsored bills centered on criminal justice reform, drug policy, affordable medication access. He announced he has three major operating principles, “empowering every member, prioritizing security, and reclaiming the majority.”

Mr Jeffries has a passion for Hip Hop as he stated in a interview in 2021. “A substantial part of my upbringing related to my coming of age in the midst of the golden era of hip-hop music,” Jeffries stated at his yearly Hip Hop on the Hill event. Which is a different spin on Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson’s yearly catfish from the Delta.

The United States Representative is definitely down with the culture as he quotes some of Hip Hop's legends in his speeches at the House. This is just another stepping stone for what is more to come from people of color in positions of power.

---

YOU MAY ALSO BE INTERESTED IN:

SHARE TO SOCIAL MEDIA

Black Millennials Need To Go Out And Vote: Black Candidates You Need To Know

By: Omar Cook

We’re living in a current moment of a huge political shift. One that took us from 8 years with a black democratic president, to a new regime that brings an entirely new wave of division and hate driven politics. With that being said, it’s imperative that black millennials go out and vote. This is bigger than the cliche saying of “every vote counts", but our generation needs to be leaders in making sure that the black voice is heard through politics.

Black millennials are an extremely important factor in all areas of American culture so there is no reason that our own voices should not be loud in the political landscape. With that being said, there are a number of black democratic candidates that are running for office in this current election and it’s up to us to put them in position.

Andrew Gillum

Office Running For: Governor, Florida

Gillum, a Florida A&M graduate, is the current mayor of Tallahassee and has advocated for bringing the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour and expanding health care coverage.

Ben Jealous

Office Running For: Governor, Maryland

Ben Jealous is the former President and CEO of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and has advocated for reducing the state’s prison population, and working to reimburse teachers who are using their own money to pay for school supplies for their classrooms and and also wants to get rid of the the sales tax.

Stacy Adams

Office Running For: Governor, Georgia

Adams was elected into the state’s house of representatives in 2006 and has been fighting against the republican agenda since day 1. She already made history in May as the first Black female major-party nominee for governor in the U.S. She has the chance to make history again as not only Georgia’s first female governor, but as the America’s first black female governor. This is a big deal.

Letitia “Tish” James

Office Running For: Attorney General, New York

Working as New York City’s public advocate, Letitia James has worked to fight on behalf of working class New Yorkers for things such as securing heat for tenants in public housing units. If Letita wins, she would be New York first Black attorney general.

Ayanna Pressley

Office Running For: U.S. Representative for the 7th Congressional District, Massachusetts

Ayanna Pressley is expected to become the first Black woman to represent Massachusetts since she will have no Republican opponent running against here in the November election. She will also likely be a fierce critic to President Trump once in office office. In her primary victory speech, she had some very direct criticisms of Trump calling him “A racist, misogynistic, truly empathy-bankrupt man” and vowed that “change is coming.”

Antonio Delgado

Office Running For: U.S. Representative for the 19th Congressional District, New York

Antonio Delgado is highly educated as a Rhodes scholar who earned his master’s degree in philosophy and political science from the University of Oxford in England and is also a graduate of Harvard Law School Delgado. Delgado is working to create thousands of jobs to his district, and reform the country’s tax code, but ultimately he wants everyone to have access to universal health care! A Delgado win, along with a couple other close races, could help Democrats gain control of the U.S. House of Representatives in November.

Juliana Stratton

Office Running For: Lieutenant Governor, Illinois

Juliana Stratton currently serves as a member of Illinois’ House of Representatives, representing its 5th district. Stratton is a DePaul University law school graduate and has her sights set on reform for the criminal justice system. She also supports raising the minimum wage and is an advocate for women’s rights.

Stephany Rose Spaulding

Office Running For: U.S. Representative for the 5th Congressional District, Colorado

Stephany Rose Spaulding is looking to become the first African-American woman to represent Colorado in Congress. She works as a community activist, educator and an ordained minister and is working to improve people’s access to a good education and is also fighting for environmental protections.

Jahana Hayes

Office Running For: U.S. Representative for the 5th Congressional District, Connecticut

Jahana Hayes will try to make history by becoming the first African-American woman to represent Connecticut in Congress. Hayes works as a history teacher and told The Hartford Courant that “living in the margins” makes her uniquely qualified to run for political office. “I know what it’s like to go to bed to gunshots outside, I know what it’s like to wake up in the morning to a dead body in the hallway,’’ she said at the Washington forum in July, according to the Courant. “No job gives you that kind of experience. Life gives you that kind of experience.” Hayes was the 2016 National Teacher of the Year and wants to prioritize providing a high-quality education for public school students, providing immigrants the help they need to get citizenship and to reduce gun violence.

Lauren Underwood 

Office Running For: U.S. Representative for the 14th Congressional District, Illinois

Initially, Lauren Underwood didn’t have the intention of running for office, but when her congressman, Rep. Randy Hultgren, broke his promise and voted for a GOP health care bill that would exclude pre-existing conditions, She embarked on a journey to unseat him. Underwood is advocating for health care reform and decriminalizing marijuana.

---

YOU MAY ALSO BE INTERESTED IN:

SHARE TO SOCIAL MEDIA