Roxanne Jones

Roxanne H. Jones (May 3, 1928 – May 19, 1996)[3] was an American social activist and politician who served as a Democratic member of the Pennsylvania State Senate for the 3rd district from 1986 to 1996.[4] She was the first African-American woman to serve in the Pennsylvania State Senate[5] and the second woman to serve in the Senate[6] since Flora M. Vare in 1928.

Roxanne Jones
Member of the Pennsylvania Senate
from the 3rd district
In office
January 1, 1985 – May 19, 1996
Preceded byMilton Street
Succeeded byShirley Kitchen
Personal details
Born(1928-05-03)May 3, 1928[1]
South Carolina, United States
DiedMay 19, 1996(1996-05-19) (aged 68)[2]
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Political partyDemocratic

Early life

Jones was born in South Carolina to Gilford and Mary Beatrice Burton Harper. She was educated at Edward High School.[5] She had to rely on welfare support as a young, single mother raising two children on a waitress salary.[7]

Career

Jones served as chair of the Southwark public housing chapter[8] of the Philadelphia Welfare Rights Organization from 1967 to 1968.[9] She was the founder of Philadelphia Citizens in Action, a board member of the Pennsylvania Minority Business Development Authority, a member of the Martin Luther King Center of Social Change and a member of the National Congress of Black Women.

She was elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate, District 3 in November 1984 and served from 1985 until her death in office in 1996.[5]

Jones died of a heart attack the week after she fought unsuccessfully to defeat Governor Tom Ridge's welfare bill that cut medical benefits to poor Pennsylvanians.[10]

Legacy

A mural of Jones was created on a building on Broad Street in North Philadelphia in her honor.[11]

Notes
  1. Pennsylvania; Pennsylvania. Dept. of Property and Supplies; Pennsylvania. Bureau of Publications (1995). The Pennsylvania Manual. 112. Department of Property and Supplies for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
  2. "Jet". Jet : 2004. Johnson Publishing Company: 53. 1978-07-06. ISSN 0021-5996. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
  3. Cox, Harold (2004). "Pennsylvania Senate - 1995-1996" (PDF). Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.
  4. Cox, Harold (2004). "Legislatures - 1776-2004". Wilkes University Election Statistics Project. Wilkes University.
  5. "Pennsylvania State Senate - Roxanne Jones Biography". www.legis.state.pa.us. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  6. Washington 1994, p. 142.
  7. Steckler, Paul. "Interview with Senator Roxanne Jones". www.digital.wustl.edu. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  8. Kusmer, Kenneth L. (2009). African American Urban History since World War II. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press. p. 334. ISBN 978-0-226-46509-8. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  9. Washington 1994, p. 83.
  10. O'Matz, Megan. "Colleague's Death Reminds Lawmakers of Mortality When Senator Roxanne Jones Died. They Wondered: Could It Have Been Me?". www.articles.mcall.com. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  11. "Roxanne Jones mural on Broad Street in North Philadelphia". www.soulofamerica.com. Retrieved 1 February 2019.

References
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