Texas
Related: About this forumThe Making of Barbara Jordan (and Happy Birthday)
The club of politicians who are immediately recognizable for a particular statement or turn of phrase is a small one. Lloyd Bentsen is in it (Senator, youre no Jack Kennedy.); Ronald Reagan is too (Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.). And so is Barbara Jordan. Even if you didnt know she was Texass first black state senator since 1882 or the first black congresswoman from the South, you know that she is the only person who could have spoken these words during the ordeal of the Watergate scandal:
My faith in the Constitution is whole, it is complete, it is total.
Today is Barbara Jordans birthday, and had she lived she would have turned 78 years old. So its worth looking back at a cover story Texas Monthlys Bill Broyles, the magazines first editor, wrote about her in 1976, titled, The Making of Barbara Jordan. Given all of her accomplishments, heres an excerpt worth considering:
-snip-
Happy birthday, Congresswoman Jordan. The state was lucky to have you.
Source: http://www.texasmonthly.com/burka-blog/making-barbara-jordan
hlthe2b
(102,304 posts)I was mesmerized hearing her speak as a child... I still am in awe of her.
Little_Wing
(417 posts)Her too-early death was tragic for the whole country. She became a personal hero of mine during the Watergate hearings, and I think of her often, especially when the political discourse devolves into insanity. How great it would be to hear her speaking out in that magnificent voice of hers in these days of so few true leaders.
Thank you for remembering her today, TexasTowelie.