Black Heritage Month

 

Gwen Moore

Moore, who was born in Racine and raised in Milwaukee, graduated from Marquette University while a single mother on welfare. Her perseverance helped her become VISTA’s nationwide “Volunteer of the Decade,” and she was elected to the state Assembly in 1989 and the state Senate in 1992 (becoming the first Black woman to serve in that chamber). In 2004, Moore became the first African American – and only the second woman – elected to represent Wisconsin in Congress. She’s now serving her 10th term representing a Milwaukee-area district.