When Shirley Chisholm was asked why she would dare run for president, her response was, why not her?
Shirley Anita St. Hill Chisholm rose from being the child of immigrants to the United States to running for the highest office in the land. She was both the first African American woman elected to the US Congress and the first African American woman of a major political party to make a serious run for president of the United States.
These achievements were not in spite of her background but rather because of it. She persevered by being steadfast in her political convictions and unwilling to compromise on the issues she believed in. Chisholm directly challenged the political establishment and gave a political voice to so many segments of society that were historically ignoredāwomen, racial minorities, young people, the gay community, domestic and agricultural workers, and the poorānot only in her home district in Brooklyn, New York, but across the country.
Her run for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination may not have ended in victory, but it was successful in forging a grassroots campaign that united diverse Americans behind a candidate who championed their collective interests. Her efforts laid the groundwork for change then, now, and in the future.
Without Shirley Chisholm there may not have been a Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, or Kamala Harris.

- 336 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
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Table of contents
- Cover Page
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Contents
- Introduction
- 1 Chisholm's Early Life
- 2 Getting Into and Out ofĀ Politics
- 3 Getting Back Into Politics andĀ theĀ New York State Legislature
- 4 Running forĀ Congress
- 5 Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm
- 6 Shirley Chisholm's Legislative Focus
- 7 Opposition forĀ theĀ White House
- 8 OnĀ theĀ Campaign Trail
- 9 Back inĀ Congress
- 10 Chisholm's Final Years inĀ Congress
- 11 Life After Congress
- 12 TheĀ Legacy of Shirley Chisholm
- Notes
- Index
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