One of the visionaries behind Title IX—the federal legislation passed in 1972 that mandates gender equality in education—was a fierce and fearless congresswoman from Hawaii, Patsy Takemoto Mink. As Congress’s first woman of color and a 1972 presidential aspirant, Mink served 24 years in Congress, from 1965–1977 and then again from 1990–2002. Mink broke traditional gender boundaries, championed peace, the environment, equality and social justice, and never wavered as an advocate and ally for social change.
Author: Judy Tzu-Chun Wu
Judy Tzu-Chun Wu is a professor of Asian American Studies at the University of California, Irvine, and serves on the National Women’s History Museum’s (NWHM) Scholars Advisory Council. Her coauthored book, Fierce and Fearless: Patsy Takemoto Mink, First Woman of Color in Congress, is due out in May.