Q: Who was the first black woman from a Southern state to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives? Hint — she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994.
A: Barbara Jordan was the first African-American elected to the Texas Senate after reconstruction and the first Southern black woman ever elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. In 1976, she became the first African-American woman to deliver the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention. Her speech is ranked 5th in Top 100 American Speeches of the 20th Century list and is considered by some historians to have been the best convention keynote address in modern history. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, among numerous other honors.
