Higher Heights Spotlights Black Women Leaders in Politics in Full Page NYT Ad on International Women's Day
NEW YORK, March 8, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In a powerful full page ad in The New York Times, Higher Heights, the only national organization exclusively dedicated to harnessing Black women's political power from the voting booth to elected office, is marking International Women's Day by highlighting nearly 100 current and former Black women leaders in politics, while also calling for action to address the shameless absence of Black women at nearly every level of power in America.
"Zero Black women in the Senate. Zero Black women on the Supreme Court. Zero Black women Governors. Zero Black women... Presidents," reads the ad. "52 years after Shirley Chisholm's historic election as the first Black woman in Congress, Black women remain the backbone of our democracy and are more than qualified to lead it. On this International Women's Day, #ReachHigher with Higher Heights for America to support Black women leaders. We need them now more than ever."
While Black women are 6.8 percent of the population and continue to prove their influence as a voting bloc (91 percent of Black women voted for the Biden-Harris ticket), they continue to be minimally represented in statewide and national civic and political leadership roles. There are currently zero Black women in the Senate, and 25 in the House of Representatives. In addition, no Black woman has ever served as Supreme Court justice, governor or president in our country's 243-year history.
"Black women have shown how powerful our activism and organizing can be in politics, yet we are still grossly underrepresented in leadership at the local, state, and federal levels," said Glynda C. Carr, President and CEO of Higher Heights. "The theme of this year's International Women's Day is #ChooseToChallenge. While we celebrate the gains that Black women have made in politics in the last decade, we must also challenge the lack of representation that still exists, and take steps to fix it. There is no doubt that Black women are uniquely qualified to lead our communities and country. It's up to all of us to address this major gap in representation, and ensure that our country's leadership is fully reflective of the people it serves."
In 2020, Black women showed up in historic numbers on ballots, with 61 Black women running for Congress and a record 117 Black women candidates in primary contests for major-party House nominations. With a record number of Black women in the current Congress and Vice President Kamala Harris in the White House, Higher Heights is providing a critical platform to continue growing Black women's elected representation and voting participation in years to come.
Higher Heights for America is the only national organization that is exclusively dedicated to harnessing Black women's political power and expanding Black women's elected representation and voting participation. The organization has been a key force in opening doors for Black women to serve in elected office from city hall to the White House for the last ten years. For additional information, please visit: www.higherheightsforamerica.org.
Contact:
Aprill O. Turner,
[email protected],
(202) 499-0102
SOURCE Higher Heights for America
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