This week’s posts will be much different than my typical posts on redistricting. Today and tomorrow we’ll be reviewing the roster of the Congressional Black Caucus to celebrate the many strides African Americans have made in attaining representation in government. It’s worth noting from the top that all members of the CBC are part of the Democratic party. (The caucus has welcomed Black Republicans in the past, the most recent being former Rep. Mia Love from Utah. Love lost her seat in the 2018 elections. ) But before we dive into the CBC, I want to introduce another new section that I’ll be publishing this week: Black on Substack.

Black on Substack: Sharon Hurley Hall

Many people associate Substack newsletters with “grey tribe” techbros and this assumption glosses over some really awesome work by Black creators on the platform. I want to help others get connected to this impactful content so that we can disrupt the stigmas associated with Substack. So today’s Black on Substack feature is:

Sharon’s Anti-Racism Newsletter

An abbreviated description from Sharon: “Global perspectives on race, including essays, interviews and personally curated tools for fighting racism. Published twice weekly.”

Sharon’s newsletter is a fantastic resource for anti-racism content and understanding the diversity in the Black experience. Roughly half of her content is behind a paywall; definitely consider supporting her since her freely available work is stellar. If you like what you see, please spread some positivity about what you enjoyed and tell her Battleground sent you! :)

I’ll be walking through the CBC roster by seniority. Today we’ll be looking at members who were elected recently, dating back to the 2014 elections. Tomorrow we’ll dive into older members as well as the current leadership roster.

Class of 2020/21 - The Newest Trailblazers

Many of the members joining Congress following the 2020 elections are already congressional trailblazers: both Rep. Mondaire Jones and Rep. Ritchie Torres (both representing districts in New York) simultaneously became the first openly gay Black men to serve in Congress. Both Rep. Marilyn Strickland and Rep. Cori Bush became the first African American women elected to a congressional seat in their states (Washington and Missouri, respectively.) Sen. Raphael Warnock became the first African American man to represent Georgia in the US Senate.

Class of 2018/19 - The Blue Wave

The 2018 cohort is most known for Reps. Ayanna Pressley and Ilhan Omar, originators of The Squad, six House representatives known for being some of the most left-leaning Democrats in the party. (Reps. Cori Bush and Jamaal Bowman joined the original four members: Pressley, Omar, Rashida Tlaib and AOC, after being elected in 2020.) Also included in this class is Lauren Underwood, the youngest Black woman to serve in Congress. She was 32 years old when she was sworn in.

Class of 2016/17 - The Trump Class

The women of the this cohort stand above the pack. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester is the first African American to represent Delaware in Congress. Meanwhile, Val Demings won her seat after the state Supreme Court mandated a new majority-Black district be drawn in Florida. Demings is also known for being one of the top contenders to become Joe Biden’s presidential running-mate in the 2020 election. She is now challenging Sen. Marco Rubio to become the first African American to represent Florida in the US Senate.

Class of 2014/15 - The Red Wave

This cohort is incredibly small as Republicans saw major electoral success in the 2014 elections, resulting in the largest Republican House majority in almost 100 years. The CBC only saw four of its current members join its ranks during this “red wave” period (one of whom is currently in leadership, hence why only three members are shown in the graphic above.) The most notable member of this group is Stacey Plaskett. While many overlook her role in Congress as a non-voting representative for the Virgin Islands, she is best known for her role as House manager for Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial. This was record-setting as she’s the first non-voting member of the House in US history to hold such a role.

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