Barbara Charline Jordan

Statue of Barbara Jordan at Austin Airport

What is a hero? To me a hero is a hard worker, not always famous, but someone who helps other people. A person who is brave, courageous, caring and loving, that is a hero. In my eyes Barbara Jordan is a hero. In this essay you will read about how Barbara Jordan was a great role model to many African Americans; how she was brave, and how she fought for justice.

Barbara Jordan's gravesite

Barbara Jordan is a great role model to many African Americans. In the year of 1966 she was elected to the Texas Senate making her the first African American to do that. In 1972 she was elected president pro-tempore for the Texas Senate. She was the first African American nominated to preside over a legislative body anywhere in the country. When Jordan was selected to the U.S. House of Representatives she became the first African American female to represent a previously Confederate state in Congress because before it was only white men. Jordan also gained national prominence for her role in 1974 when she gave the most powerful speech at the Nixon Impeachment hearings. It was considered to be the most powerful speech of the hearings. She was the first African-American female to deliver a Keynote Address. The Keynote Address was given at the Democratic National Convention. Barbara Jordan was also the first African American female to be buried at the Texas State Cemetery. This has shown me that as an African American I should never give up because I can do as much as she did.

Barbara Jordan was very brave, which is a characteristic of a hero. Barbara Jordan was brave because even though she was an unsuccessful candidate for nomination as state representative in 1962 and 1964, she stayed strong. Her motivation earned her a spot in the Texas Senate in 1966. She spoke against President Nixon to eliminate him for President. This took courage to go to a hearing and speak eloquently and to say what president Nixon was doing wrong. Another example of Barbara Jordan’s bravery is that she also struggled with multiple sclerosis. She had trouble walking up stairs and then had to use a wheelchair, but this did not stop her from working or going to the Democratic National Convention. President Carter offered Jordan a position in his staff but Jordan refused because it wasn’t the position she wanted. This is important to me because she told the President of the U.S. “no”. That is one of the things that inspired me to never be afraid to speak my mind about what I think is wrong even if it is to someone who is bigger than me or more powerful than me.

Fighting for justice was another thing Barbara Jordan was famous for. As a state senator and a woman in Congress, she helped with the laws for disadvantaged people. Jordan co-sponsored legislation to bring out state ratification for the Equal Rights Amendment. She fought for truth on the Judiciary Committee during the Nixon Impeachment hearings in 1974 to eliminate President Nixon for president because he was doing things incorrectly. She was involved with the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to allow Mexican Americans and other minorities that had been rejected, the right to vote. How Barbara Jordan fought for justice has shown me that it is okay to stand up for people that are lonely and that nobody talks to.

Barbara Jordan has been through tough battles and good moments that show me that she is a true hero. I never thought that politics was important but now Barbara Jordan, my hero, has shown me that politics is very important. I hope that you understand why I chose Barbara Jordan as my hero, not because she is famous, but because she was hard working and has taught me to never give up.