Remembering Shirley Chisholm

Shirley Chisholm 

(1924-2005)

Unbought and Unbossed

Chisholm was born in Brooklyn on November 30h, 1924.

She graduated from Brooklyn Girls' High School in 1942

and Brooklyn College cum laude in 1946. Chisholm

became a teacher while finishing her MA in early childhood

education at Columbia University. After finishing school,

Chisholm joined the Democratic Party club in Brooklyn to

fight gender and racial inequality.

Chisholm went on to serve in the New York State Assembly

and later won a seat in Congress. She fought for domestic

workers' rights, increased funding for education and health

care, maternity rights for teachers and access to child care.

Accomplishments

• In 1964. Chisholm became the first African

American woman from Brooklyn to join the

New York State Assembly.

• In 1968, Chisholm became the first African

American woman elected into Congress.

• Chisholm fought to expand the Food Stamps

program and created the Women, Infants,

and Children (WIC) program.

• In 1972, Chisholm became the first African

American major-party candidate to run for

president and the first woman to run for the

Democratic Party's presidential nomination.

• shirley chisholm