Representative Barbara Lee has broken down major barriers to reach her current position as a member of Congress for the last 25 years. And even at 78 years old, Lee isn’t showing any signs of slowing down.
Earlier this year, she was in the running for the U.S. Senate and came in fourth place, losing to her Democratic colleague Rep. Adam B. Schiff of Burbank. To run, Lee had to give up her seat as California’s 12th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, and her season in the role will end in January. While this may seem like a good time for Lee to retire, Lee says she’s “forging ahead.”
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) arrives for a Congressional Progressive Caucus news conference at the U.S. Capitol on May 16, 2024 in Washington, DC. The Congressional Progressive Caucus unveiled their agenda for policies they plan to push next year if Democrats win the 2024 election including a higher minimum wage, strengthened antitrust laws and new federal benefits for seniors on Social Security and parents raising kids. Source: Kent Nishimura / Getty
Lee got her start in her political journey by working with one of the OG trailblazers, Shirley Chisholm. Chisholm was the first Black woman in Congress serving in New York’s 12th Congressional District and the first Black woman to seek a major party’s nomination for U.S. president. Lee volunteered to work for Chisholm on her presidential campaign.
During that time, she learned quite a bit from Chisholm. “One thing Shirley Chisholm taught me was that in many ways, she was a revolutionary; she was not about just tinkering around the edges to make things better,” Lee said in a Forbes interview.
“She talked about systemic change, institutional change, racial justice. And she definitely was a good politician and a great human being,” Lee continued. “She had a lot of Republican support for many of the issues she championed, such as fairness for pay equity and fairness for domestic workers.”
Rep. Barbara Lee participates in a debate on stage with other democrats who are running to succeed Sen. Feinstein at Westing Bonaventure Hotel on Sunday, Oct. 8, 2023 in Los Angeles, CA. Source: Dania Maxwell / Getty
In 1990, Lee was elected to the California State Assembly before becoming the first Black woman to serve in the 1996 State Senate, becoming the highest-ranking Black woman in Democratic Leadership. Two years later, she got the Congressional District position and has held that role for nearly 30 years. Now, Lee is working on paying it forward to the following generation of Black women who want to follow in her footsteps.
“I have been the only Black woman north of Los Angeles ever elected to the California legislature until a couple of years ago when we finally got Mia Bonta in,” she said. “I have been, and still am, the only Black woman north of Los Angeles elected to the California Senate. Think about that: that’s darn near 40 years, right? So my responsibility was to make sure I wasn’t the only and last but to do everything I could to prepare other women of color to run for public office.”
“That’s the responsibility that we all have. And it’s a heavy-duty responsibility because while you’re constantly fighting to have a seat at the table yourself with your peers, you’re fighting for people who’ve been marginalized, and you’re fighting to make sure other people have the opportunities that you’ve had,” she added. “You’re constantly running a race on many fronts if you’re a Black woman, if you’re a woman, if you’re a woman of color. So it’s constant; this is a marathon, not a sprint.”
Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, speaks at her Super Tuesday election night gathering in downtown Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday, March 5, 2024. Source: MediaNews Group/East Bay Times via Getty Images / Getty
Additionally, Lee has built a relationship with Vice President Kamala Harris, who Donald Trump just defeated in the 2024 run for the 47th president of the United States. In fact, Lee endorsed Harris when she attempted to run for president for the first time in 2019 before she dropped out of the primaries and eventually became President Joe Biden’s vice president.
Before finding out her fate on Nov. 6, Lee continued her support for Harris. “She’s been a fighter. She’s been somebody who took on the toughest issues as a prosecutor, as attorney general, as district attorney,” she said. “So she understands what it means to protect our freedoms, including reproductive freedom, the right to vote, the freedom to not just get by, she says, but to get ahead. I have seen her over the years being consistent with her values in terms of fighting for people and being on the side of people, not on the side of corporate greed.
“I think this country and the world benefits from having a woman like Kamala Harris because of the challenges she’s been through, the experiences, for instance, being a caretaker to her mother with cancer. All of this comes to help others and help strengthen this country and help close a lot of the gaps and disrupt many of the barriers and really move forward to help everyone benefit from the American dream, which so many don’t at this point.”
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) speaks during a rally to urge President Biden to use his executive powers to stop approving fossil fuel projects, phase out fossil fuels on federal lands and waters, and declare a climate emergency, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on September 14, 2023. Source: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI / Getty
During her time in California’s legislature, Barbara Lee built an impressive record of fighting for social justice, economic equality, and civil rights. Some of her efforts include saving 25 million lives by driving HIV/AIDS initiatives, working with President George W. Bush, and drafting a passage for the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.
She also fought for global peace as the only person to vote against the authorization of use of military force following the 9/11 attacks. As a single mother of two on public assistance, before hitting the ground running in her political career, Lee also fought to preserve programs like unemployment insurance, housing assistance, Earned Income Tax Credit, and SNAP.
After having a tireless career while holding chairs for the Congressional Black Caucus, the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and the House Democratic Steering Committee, what could be next for Lee?
“Again, when you look at what I’m trying to do now, repeal those authorizations that I voted against, still haven’t got it done, but I’m working with Republicans to try to get it done. And if it doesn’t get done now, I’ll keep working on the outside to be part of the outside agitators, to get a lot done that I haven’t been able to complete. I’m really not retiring, I’m forging ahead.”
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