Mirsky: Shirley Chisholm and the 2016 NH Primary

U.S. Sen. George McGovern of South Dakota was the Democratic Nominee for President of the United States in 1972. In 1972, liberal Democrats were on the march, trying to stop the Vietnam War, which had killed thousands of young Americans and civilian Viietnamese people, with very little explanation from those in charge in our government.

McGovern won the nomination in 1972 but could not win the Presidency. He was courageous but not victorious. McGovern’s ideas about giving tax breaks to individuals in the middle class, and his ideas about what was wrong with the Vietnam War, prevailed in the end. McGovern did not win the election in 1972. Richard Nixon won that election.

But there was an African American Congresswoman from Brooklyn, NY, who was a very successful presidential candidate in 1972. Her name was Shirley Chisholm. Chisholm was the first African American woman to become a Member of Congress. Chisholm was also the first African American AND the first woman to run a serious campaign for President of the United States.

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Chisholm was a very brave woman. She had very little support from those who should have given her the strongest support. Shirley Chisholm had to make her way into history without the support of many liberals, many men, and many African Americans, who turned their backs, because she was too far ahead of her time. No matter how liberal they thought they were, some just could not imagine succeeding at what Shirley Chisholm was trying to do. Or maybe they weren’t ready for it.

We now know that Chisholm was the forerunner for one of the most important electoral accomplishments in U.S. history, the election of Barack Obama. We have another candidate like Chisholm running for President this year here. I’m talking about Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Clinton, a woman running for President, is also a former U.S. Secretary of State, a former U.S. Senator from New York, and a former highly significant and involved First Lady of the United States.

This year is different than 1972 because everyone knows that Hillary Clinton has come far enough, and America has come far enough, that Hillary Clinton actually has a chance to win the Presidency in 2016.

This is an election that can change the world in a positive way.