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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