There’s so much #BlackGirlMagic at the DNC that I don’t know where to start. From the Mayor of Baltimore, Stephanie Rawlings-Blake hitting the gavel to kick things off, to Rep. Maria Fudge being the devastating diva that she is, to the amazing interim chairwoman Donna Brazile, it’s just magical! After Debbie Wasserman-Schulz, chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee was ousted, Brazile was tapped as interim chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee. and Fudge was named permanent chair of the Democratic National Convention.
If you don’t know by now, Brazile is a political powerhouse who has been in the political arena for decades, and Fudge is a political heavyweight in her own right.
As they continue to wow us during this week and beyond, let’s take a moment to learn more about them:
1.) Donna Brazile is a New Orleans native.
Born the third of nine children, her interest in politics was sparked as a child when a local politician promised to build a playground. A graduate of LSU, she reminded the world during her speech at the DNC of what it was like to be a little black girl growing up in the south. “I sat at the back of the bus at a time when America wasn’t yet as great as it could be,” she said.
2.) She is a well known political commentator and powerhouse.
When she took over as interim chair, she had to suspend her contract with CNN as a contributor and ABC as an analyst. She is known for adding her political genius into those hard political discussions. She worked on Rev. Jesse Jackson’s 1984 presidential campaign and was the campaign manager for Al Gore in 2000.
3.) This isn’t her first time serving as interim DNC chair.
Brazile took over in 2011 when the then chair, Tim Kaine (now Hillary Clinton’s running mate), decided to leave so that he could run for Virginia senator. She stayed on post until Debbie Wasserman-Schultz became the chair.
4.) She is a part of the a sisterhood which calls themselves “The Colored Girls”
Members of this elite sisterhood include Leah Daughtry, chief executive of the party’s convention, Yolanda Caraway, who runs podium operations here, Minyon Moore, a top aide to Hillary Clinton and Tina Flournoy, Bill Clinton’s chief of staff. If you think she cares about how you feel in terms of using the word colored, she has a response for that. “Now they are colorblind. They want to be neutral. I’m never going to be neutral.”
5.) She has a long standing history with the Clintons.
In 1992, she was the black voter turnout senior adviser for the Clinton-Gore campaign. She also served as the DC campaign director for the campaign in 1996. She met Hillary Clinton when she was 21 at the Children’s Defense Fund.
6.) She is an actress.
#BeingMaryJane season3. pic.twitter.com/g4tDqXUDsI
— Donna Brazile (@donnabrazile) May 12, 2015
She has appeared in the House of Cards, The Good Wife and Being Mary Jane.
7. Never doubt, she still has it.
Brazile can still break it down like the down south nola girl that she once was.
8.) Marcia Fudge has always been a barrier breaker.
Fudge went from being a prosecutor to the first Black mayor and first female mayor of Warrensville Heights, Ohio. From there she made her way to Congress where she has been unstoppable ever since. She has served as Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and became the original co- chair for Democrats for Public Education.
9.) She is a past national president of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
A photo posted by Rep. Marcia L. Fudge (@repmarciafudge) on
She was the sorority’s 21st national president and past co-chair of the National Social Action Commission.
10. She hopes to move the party away from the email scandal.
Fudge has been a fighter for decades and is poised and ready to take on this position. She has yet to read those emails and is not concerned about the negative press surrounding the party. She has every intention of moving the party forward and away from the scandal. She said, “I think we just need to run our convention and let the email scandal take care of itself. I can’t get into it, I haven’t even read the emails, thank goodness, so I can’t even discuss them with you. I just want us to do what Democrats do, we’re gonna run the convention, we’re gonna make sure that everybody understands that it’s fair, that everyone has an opportunity to say what they want to say, and we’re gonna move forward.
11.) She has no problem speaking out against police brutality.
After the death of Timothy Russell and Malissa Williams, where thirteen officers mistook the sound of a car backfiring for gunshots and shot into a car of two unarmed black people, Fudge shared her outrage. “The verdict is another chilling reminder of a broken relationship between the Cleveland Police Department and the community it serves, today we have been told – yet again – our lives have no value,” she said.
12.) She has no problem demanding respect.
This week at the DNC she started things off letting people know exactly what it is. “There are many of you in this room that do not know me. Let me say to you, I intend to be fair. I want to hear the varying opinions here. I am going to be respectful of you, and I want you to be respectful of me.”
13.) Like Donna, she still got it.
If I can just have half of their #BlackGirlMagic when I get to be their age, I’ll be able to conquer the world. Thank you ladies for representing us and for lighting a path for future generations.
