organized fourteen African American members of Congress into a loose confederation,known as the Democratic Select Committee.The goal of this group was to communicate the concerns of African Americans in Congress and their constituents to the Democratic leadership in the House of Representatives and thereby "promote the public welfare of ...millions of neglected citizens." Charles became the first chairman of the caucus,and Howard Robinson,an administrator who worked for the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo,served as the group's first executive director.African American had entered Congress in the decades following the Civil War.In 1870, Hiram Rhodes Revels of Mississippi was elected to fill the unexpired term of Jefferson Davis, who had resigned to became president of the Confederate states. Hiram who served in the U.S. Senate for only thirteen months, who succeeded by Blanche Kelso Bruce of Mississippi,who served a full six year term from 1875-1881.Twenty-two African Americans served in Congress between 1870 and 1901, when George Henry White of North Carolina left the House of Representatives.It took more than a quarter century before another African American sat in the Congress of the U.S. In 1929, Oscar Stanton Depriest of Chicago was elected to the House of Representatives and served in that capacity until 1935.Between 1929 and 1970,with the exception of the leadership of a few African American congressmen,notably William Levi Dawson of Chicago and Adam Clayton Powell of New York City,African Americans had no organized congressional presence to represent their many-faceted interests.In 1971,the lack of organization prompted Charles to form the Congressional Black Caucus.The birth of the Caucus was aided by a series of events that sparked a rising tide of militancy among African Americans during the late 1960s and the 1970s.Among these momentous events were the 1969 publication of James Forman's Black Manifesto,charges of military discrimination against African American soldiers,the December 1969 killings of two Black Panther leaders,and the May 1970 riot at Jackson State College in Mississippi that left two African American students dead and twelve others wounded.These events frustrated and angered many African Americans, galvanized the African American members of Congress,and hastened the formation of the caucus.In the wake of these events, African American congressman approached Republican President Richard M.Nixon.In late 1970, Congressman Diggs formally requested that Nixon meet with the African American congressmen.Two months later,the White House responded,not though the president but though a low-level staff member.For than a year, Nixon refused to meet with the African American congressmen.Incensed over the intransigence of the president,they decided to boycott the session at which Nixon was to give the State of the Union address. The boycott was successful.Senator Edward Brooke of Massachusetts was the lone African American member present when the president gave his speech in January 1971.Amid unfavorable publicity following the boycott,Richard finally agreed to meet with the Congressional Black Caucus on March 25,1971.At this meeting,the caucus presented the president with sixty recommendations dealing with numerous concerns,including federal aid to minority businesses, home rule for the District of Columbia,an end to the Vietnam conflict,prevention of entry of drugs into the United States,grants instead of student loans for African American college students,and justice for African American soldiers.The May 18 response of the president was half-hearted and vague, and the members of the caucus was left dissatisfied.On May 23,Congressmen Charles Diggs & Augustus Hawkins of California appeared on national television to express the concerns of the caucus and to criticize Richard's inadequate response.Over the next years,the relationship between Richard and the Caucus showed little improvement.On January 31,1973,the Congressional Black Caucus presented a "true State of Union" address before the House of Representatives.The address expressed the views of African American congressmen on domestic issues such as poverty,welfare,health,reform,housing,education,civil rights,employment,revenue sharing,and the status of minorities in the military and the criminal justice system,as well as on America's foreign policy in Africa and other Third World countries.Vice President Spiro T.Agnew,responding for the White House,criticized the address.Spiro claimed that the American public was tired of the constant complaining of the caucus and informed the black congressmen that "more constructive action" was expected of them.Nixon was not the only president who was aloof in his dealings with the Black Caucus.President Jimmy Carter often opposed the efforts of caucus members.Most notable was his opposition to the Full Employment and Balanced Growth Act,known as the Humphrey-Hawkins bill.Even though Carter signed the bill on October 27,1978,he was lethargic in his support of it.Carter also opposed the efforts of African American congressmen to designate Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday as a legal holiday.Representative John Conyers of Michigan had first introduced such a bill in the United States House in 1968,and in 1971 he tried again while Senator Brooke did the same in the Senate.Both attempts failed.Perhaps President Carter was not supportive of African American congressmen because he was angered by events surrounding the Congressional Legislative Dinner of 1978.The turnout for the dinner was so overwhelming that hotels in Washington,D.C., to be booked.The Washington Hilton was to be the main hotel, and the Shoreham was to be the backup site.Carter was scheduled to make his appearance at the Shoreham and was given fifteen minutes to address the audience.At first,he refused to speak at the Shoreham,demanding to address the guests at the main hotel.The caucus changed the arrangements and permitted Carter to speak at the Hilton;the fifteen-minute time limit and spoke for one hour and fifteen minutes, throwing the entire schedule out of the kilter.Relations with President Carter grew progressively worse after the dinner episode and reached their nadir in 1979.That year,Carter fired former caucus member Andrew Young as ambassador to the United Nations.Relations with with other presidents,particularly Republicans,were stressful,perhaps because almost all of the members of the Caucus served in the House of Representatives,which was often dominated by Democrats.Caucus members,for example,were opposed to President Ronald Reagon's concept of New Federalism,which they perceived as the states-rights concept in new garb and one that was inimical to the best interest of African Americans and other minorities.Reaggan did meet with caucus members early in his first term,but eight years passed before the caucus was again invited to the White House by President George Bush.During this meetings on May 23,1989,caucus members told Bush that,if he wanted to be known at the education president he would have to stop the decline of inner cities.One of the most visible activities of the Congressional Black Caucus is the annual dinner held during the Legislative Weekend in Washington,D.C. The first dinner,held in June 1971,attracted more than twenty-five hundred prominent political leaders and politically active citizens to the nation's capital.The popularity of the $100-a-plate dinner gala and the weekend has grown tremendously so that reservations must be made early to guarantee seating.In recent years,criticisms of the dinner have surfaced.Critics charge that the gala has degenerated into a social extravaganza characterized by frivolity.Nevertheless,proceeds from the dinner underwrite the costs od caucus activities.While the caucus does not have a staff,it provides funding for the Congressional Black Caucus Political Action Committee (PAC),which supports the political campaigns of caucus members,and the Congressional Black Caucus Foundations,which administers charitable funds received from individuals,corporations,and organizations.For the development of policy and position papers,caucus leaders have relied on the support and resources of the Joint Center for Political Studies (renamed Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies in 1990),founded in 1970.Aided by a grant from the Ford Foundation,the operation of the Center involved and arrangement with Howard University and the Metropolitan Applied Research Corporation (MARC) of New York City,headed by Dr.Kenneth Clark.This tripartite partnership,which ceased in 1972,allowed Howard University and MARC to receive the funds helped preserve the tax-exempt status of the caucus.The Joint Center because the clearinghouse to receive and disseminate information.It publishes a series of monographs on issues of concern to African Americans and also provides internships for political-science students.
In addition to the publications of the Joint Center for Political studies the caucus holds conferences on current issues.Between July 1971 & September 1972,the caucus sponsored seven national conferences dealt with such issues as racism in the military,the health of African Americans,careers for minorities in the communication,racism in the media,education,African American politics,and the legislative process.The conferences and hearing were conducted in various parts of the country to help caucus members determine a national agenda.Drawing on the conferences and hearings,caucus members opposed budget cuts to programs such as aid to Families with Dependent Children and Small Business Administration funding,and they succeeded in restoring funding for minority educational institutions.
By the end of the first decade of its existence,the caucus had come of age.Not only had its membership increased,from fourteen to nineteen,but so had its influence.The caucus challenged the budget -slashing initiatives of Presidents Gerald Ford,Carter,Regan,and Bush,and it waged constant warfare to save domestic programs from being gutted or eliminated.
Throughout the years,the caucus also has experienced difficulities due to internal dissensions and external attacks.Internal squabbles,for example,arose when the group discussed the purchase of a building as its permanent home.In 1983,the trouplesome issue was finally resolved with the acquisition of a building on Pennsylvania Avenue.Other problems dividing the membership surfaced when U.S. Representative Shirley Chisholm,declared her candidacy for president in 1972.Shirley,a Democrat from New York City and a member of the Black Caucus,expected to receive the support of the caucus but instead was criticized for taking this unprecedented step for an African American woman.During her campaign,Shirley receive hardly any support from the caucus,which she charged was due to male chauvinism.There were other occasions when sharp political differences caused some members to threaten resignation from the group.A particulary strange episode involved Representative Gary Franks of Connecticut,the first African American Republican to serve in the House of Representatives since 1935.In 1993 caucus members denied Gary full membership because of his affiliation with the Republican Party Several caucus members accused Gary of having views that were not in the interest of African Americans,and,at one time the group voted not to transact any Business in his presence. After considerable wrangling,the move to oust Gary was reserved.In 1995,Gary became a member of the caucus,and in the same year,a second African American Republican J.C.Watts of Oklahoma,joined him.
In addition to internal dissensions,the caucus was weakened by external assaults.Some caucus members became targets of criminal investigations and alleged activities such as wiretapping and office burglaries.In more than one instance,alleged criminal charges proved to be without foundation and were subsequently withdrawn.In addition,the caucus suffered a severe setback when it lost two of its most influential members to death:Congressmen George Collins (Democrat) of Illinois and Mickey Leland (Democratic) of Texas both perished in fatal air tragedies.
Since its founding in 1971,the Congressional Black Caucus had more than sixty members.For more than two decades,in spite of internecine battles,severe financial problems, harsh criticism,and attempts to tarnish its leadership,the caucus has succeeded in becoming a powerful political voice for African Americans.In recent years,female members of the caucus have played a prominent role.During the 105th Congress,twele African American women,most of them representing majority white districts,joined the caucus.In 1997, U.S. Representative Maxine Waters,a Democrat from California,became chairperson of the caucus.
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