but there was one african-american woman there who was shirley chisolm and barbara jordan and i were elected at the same time. and we came in and we were really should i say unusual. but somehow, i had to tell you i was treated very well in washington. i had great opportunities. i had a chance to serve on appropriations. i had opportunities to get my legislation passed. and it was a marvelous experience. i have to say as i look back on it, i had no regrets. it was tremendous. i came to congress in a very unique time. i came to congress at the first time when it was not totally seniority. so i got on appropriations by election in my caucus. in the california caucus. i did not get there by seniority, obviously. and i did not get there by anyone selecting me. i ran for appropriations and i won within any caucus. there is no question the fact that i was on that committee, had real implications for the district that i represented. you know, i represented a district that had a lot of air force contracts that had a lot of defense. and i was able to help them tremendously. even though i wasn

and you know, think -- shirley chisolm, dorothy height, the list goes on and on.attorney general reference them, are righteous and wonderful, fantastic women in history. and from a historical perspective, there's a trailblazer for me he why didn't learn about until well after i graduated from law school and was practicing an attorney. her name is charlotte rae. how many of you i shall dance have heard of pasha i see a handwaving in the back. i see a few. my daughter says she has. [laughter] i did not know about this one but and i will tell you all a bit about it. charlotte rae was the first african-american female lawyer in the united states of america. and the first female lawyer of any race to practice right here in washington, d.c. she graduated from howard law school, my husband's alma mater, in 1872. and after graduating she was admitted to the d.c. bar and opened up her own practice. so gone that. 1872 she goes to law school, graduates and opens up her own practice. aand african-american woman here in d.c. she was truly a pioneer in the legal field. but sadl