Amazon.com: Barbara Jordan: American Hero: Mary Beth Rogers: Books

Barbara Jordan: American Hero (Hardcover)

by Mary Beth Rogers (Author) "BARBARA CHARLINE JORDAN was born February 21, 1936, the third daughter and last child of Benjamin Meredith and Arlyne Patten Jordan..." (more)
Key Phrases: debate partner, bilingual ballots, city sales tax, Barbara Jordan, African American, Ben Jordan (more...)

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Barbara Jordan spoke in the cadences of a black preacher, backed by the moral force of the United States Constitution, and became Texas's first black senator since the Reconstruction era. She served in Congress for two decades before dying of multiple sclerosis at the age of 59 in 1996. "Barbara Jordan was the first African American elected official to become an American hero," Mary Beth Rogers writes. "She broke through previously impenetrable barriers to become an 'inside' political player who was taken very seriously by the white politicians in power." The height of Jordan's power (and fame) came from her interpretation of the Constitution during the 1974 Watergate hearings, a speech that set the stage for President Richard Nixon's resignation. Two years later, Jordan riveted America with her televised keynote speech at the Democratic Party National Convention.

Tracing Jordan's upbringing in Houston's Fifth Ward as the daughter of a Baptist minister, Rogers takes us through her battles with sexism and racism (including black Americans' internal color-based caste system). She also peels away the mysteries of her personality, which was described as "stubborn," "cold," and "sarcastic," the result of emotional shields forged by too many social and psychic wars. But those traits also accounted for her determination to deal with her multiple sclerosis with courage and dignity. "Barbara Jordan's story reflects both the America dream and a fundamental human hope for a sense of community," Rogers writes. "If we understand her lessons, then we will know that the making of an American hero is a rare--and wondrous--event." --Eugene Holley Jr.

From Publishers Weekly
Rogers, who knew Jordan (1936-1996) as a political and academic colleague at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs in Austin, Tex., skillfully weaves together the events of Jordan's personal life with her public persona and the painful struggle for black voting rights in the South. Born in Houston's black ghetto, Jordan attended an all-black high school and college. Not until she began law school in Boston did she understand just how "separate but equal" had denied her the education her white classmates had received. After graduating, Jordan returned to Houston but quickly found that a law career was not fulfilling. She stuffed envelopes for the Democratic Party in 1960 until the party discovered that her commanding physical presence, rich oratory and personal charisma made her a valuable speaker. In segregationist Texas (even LBJ could only convince four of 24 Texans in Congress to vote for his Civil Rights Act), she was determined to work within the system. She won the support of the white male party leadership, beginning her elective career at the age of 31 in the Texas State Senate; then, in 1972, she was elected to Congress. Jordan kept her private life private: she never wed, claiming she didn't want to chose between success and marriage, and when she could no longer hide her multiple sclerosis, she retired from Congress, though not from public speaking. Rogers's writing tends to be stolid at best, but with the full cooperation of the Jordan estate and interviews with staff, family and friends, she has managed to create an inspiring story of an extraordinary woman.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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