Patricia Roberts Harris (1924-1985) was the first Black woman to serve as a United States Ambassador, the first Black woman to be dean of a law school, the first Black woman to be part of a presidential cabinet and thereby the first Black woman to be in the line of succession for the presidency.
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Hello! From Wonder Media Network, I’m Jenny Kaplan, and this is Encyclopedia Womannica.
As we gear up for the election on November 3rd, we’re spending the month highlighting politicians from around the world and throughout history. It’s vital that we look back and appreciate the people who shaped our present, in good ways and more complicated ones, especially as we think about who we want to elect to shape our future.
Our politician of the day today held a lot of firsts. She was the first Black woman to serve as a United States Ambassador, the first Black woman to be dean of a law school, the first Black woman to be part of a presidential cabinet and thereby the first Black woman to be in the line of succession for the presidency. She was also a fervent and dedicated Civil Rights Activist. We’re talking about Patricia Roberts Harris.
Patricia Roberts was born on May 31, 1924, in Mattoon, Illinois, and grew up there and in Chicago.
Patricia attended public schools for her elementary through high school years, where she was noted for being a particularly gifted student. Following high school, Patricia received a full scholarship to the prestigious Howard University, a historically Black university in Washington, D.C. While at Howard, Patricia was active in the Civil Rights Movement. She served as Vice Chairman of the Howard University chapter of the NAACP, and in 1943, she participated in a sit-in at a cafeteria where racist policies barred Black people from eating.
In 1945, Patricia graduated summa cum laude from Howard. She then headed back to Illinois to continue her studies. She pursued a graduate degree at the University of Chicago and was a program director at the YWCA, before moving back to D.C., where she continued her graduate studies while working as the Assistant Director for the American Council of Human Rights.
After that, Patricia became the executive director of the national headquarters of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority.
In 1955, Patricia married William Harris, a prominent lawyer in D.C. and a professor at Howard law school.
Five years later , Patricia earned her own law degree from the George Washington University Law School, where she ranked first in her class. After passing the DC bar, Patricia worked for a year in the U.S. Department of Justice before returning to Howard University as associate dean of students and lecturer of law.
Throughout her graduate studies and early career, Patricia became increasingly dedicated to activism and the Civil Rights Movement. From 1962 to 1965, she worked with the National Capital Area Civil Liberties Union. She also got increasingly involved in Democratic politics.
In 1963, she was nominated to co-chair the National Women’s Committee for Civil Rights by President John F. Kennedy. The following year, Patricia was the seconding voice to nominate Lyndon B Johnson as the Democratic nominee for president at the 1964 Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
After Lyndon Johnson’s victory in the 1964 election, he appointed Patricia to the role of Ambassador to Luxembourg. This appointment made Patricia the first Black woman nominated as a U.S. ambassador. In response to that fact, Patricia said she was both deeply proud and grateful, and a little sad that she earned the distinction, because it implied that Black women were not considered previously.
When Johnson’s time as president came to a close, so did Patricia’s ambassadorship. Still, she wasn’t finished making history. Patricia returned to DC and in 1969 she was named the first woman Dean of Howard University’s School of Law. She also served on a number of prestigious Boards, including the boards of IBM and Chase Manhattan Bank.
At the same time, Patricia continued to be a force in Democratic politics. In the early 1970s, she was named chair of the credentials committee and an at-large delegate to the DNC. When Democrats took back the White House in 1976, Patricia, once again, was asked to step up.
In 1977, President Jimmy Carter appointed Patricia to the role of Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. Patricia was the first Black woman to break another glass ceiling: the presidential cabinet. Her appointment meant that she was also the first Black woman to be in the line of succession for president.
In her confirmation hearings, Patricia’s ability to represent and empathize with the nation’s poorest and most vulnerable was questioned. In response to Senator William Proxmire’s question to that effect, she said:
“Senator, I am one of them. You do not seem to understand who I am. I am a Black woman, the daughter of a dining car waiter. …a Black woman who could not buy a house eight years ago in parts of the District of Columbia. I didn't start out as a member of a prestigious law firm, but as a woman who needed a scholarship to go to school. If you think I have forgotten that, you are wrong… if my life has any meaning at all, it is that those who start out as outcasts may end up being part of the system."
As Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Patricia worked tirelessly to invest in neighborhoods on the decline and to develop programs to encourage businesses to move into troubled neighborhoods.
Impressed with her performance as the department of Housing and Urban Development, in 1979, President Jimmy Carter appointed Patricia to a new position: Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare. Then when Carter separated out the Education department the following year, Patricia became the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
After Carter’s Administration came to a close, Patricia dipped her toes into elective politics: she ran for mayor of Washington, D.C., in 1982. Unfortunately she didn’t win.
Having been unsuccessful in electoral politics, Patricia turned back to teaching as a professor at the George Washington University National Law Center.
On March 23, 1985, Patricia Roberts Harris died from breast cancer. She was 60 years old.
During her life and after her death, Patricia has received many honors and awards. In the year 2000, she was featured on a United States Postal Service commemorative postage stamp.
All month, we’re talking about politicians. For more on why we’re doing what we’re doing, check out our newsletter, Womannica Weekly. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram @encyclopediawomannica and follow me directly on twitter @jennymkaplan.
Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co-creator.
Talk to you tomorrow!