Many women of color have served in America’s government. Today there are 49 women of color in Congress. The vice president is a woman of color. But it hasn’t always been this way.
Women — especially women of color — have had to work hard for . Patsy Mink led the way. In 1964, she became the first woman of color elected to Congress. She served for 24 years as a U.S. representative for Hawaii. Mink was also the first Asian American woman to run for president.
Mink fought for change in America. She pushed hard for women’s rights — and equal rights for all. She spoke out against the Vietnam War. Mink was also a leader in education and the environment.
Perhaps Mink is most famous for her work on a law called Title IX (9). This made it possible for women to be treated fairly in sports and education. If you are a girl in America, that law has likely affected — or will affect — your life in some way.
Early Life
Patsy Mink was born in Maui, Hawaii, in 1927. Her grandparents had come there from Japan. They often experienced
in Hawaii.
Most students at Mink’s elementary school were white. Mink often felt mistreated there. In high school, she met more diverse students and made friends. Soon Mink ran for student president. She became the first female president at her school — the start of her many “firsts.”
Facing Challenges
Mink had dreams of becoming a doctor. She tried to get into medical schools but did not get in. “She was rejected by all of them,” said Judy Tzu-Chun Wu, “even though she was a good student.” Wu is writing a book about Mink. She told News-O-Matic that Mink decided to become a lawyer instead. She got a law degree in 1951.
Sadly, Mink struggled to find work because of the color of her skin and because she was a mother. Wu said that Mink realized “the United States was not living up to its ideals of being a democracy.” Instead of giving up, Mink started her own law firm in Hawaii in 1953. Then, she began working as a lawyer for the Hawaii House of Representatives.
Breaking Barriers
Hawaii was not yet a state at this time. It was a U.S.
, and it had no members of Congress. That changed in 1959 when Hawaii became the 50th state.
In 1964, Mink made history by winning her campaign for Hawaii’s second seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. “In Congress, she tried to uplift the people who tend to be most excluded in American society,” said Wu.
Mink served as a U.S. representative from 1965 to 1977. Then she was a congresswoman again from 1990 to 2002.
Creating Change
Mink co-wrote the Title IX law, which passed in 1972. This law made it illegal to treat men and women differently in education. It also gave women more chances to play sports in school. Before Title IX, colleges often had many more sports programs for men than for women. Now they cannot do that.
But Mink didn’t stop there. In 1974, she introduced the Women’s Educational Equity Act. This law gave money to classrooms to protect women from discrimination. It also helped create new ways for women to get jobs. As a result, more girls began studying math and science.
Mink saw education as a way to improve the world. “In many ways, she thought of her role as a as being an educator,” Wu said. Mink even answered students’ questions about the government.
Lasting Legacy
Mink worked to protect others. And she changed the way women are treated. Mink once said: “We have to build things that we want to see ... to make sure that others do not have to suffer the same discrimination.”
Mink died in 2002. After that, Title IX got a new name. It is now called the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act.
Updated March 26, 2021, 5:02 P.M. (ET)
By Victoria DeCoster
