BHS Day 12: Joseph Hayne Rainey

Hi! For today's Spotlight, I wanted to trade off like I've been doing with the other categories, and this week we're taking on the political half. I have to admit that politics weren't originally on my mind for the Spotlight, partially because politics aren't something I make a habit of conversing about and partially because I am rather suspicious of most politicians in general. But despite my own personal feelings, there have still been a number of notable accomplishments from African-Americans since the world of politics was opened to us, which culminated in the election of the nation's first Black president in Barack Obama. I don't agree with all of his views, but it was still quite the achievement for a people once considered to be 3/5 of a vote. I'd like to think that the door was possibly opened for that to happen by those who paved the way. With that said, let's go on to today's Spotlight!

Source

Name: Joseph Hayne Rainey, 1832-1887 Profession: Politician and businessman
Why is the Spotlight on him today? For creating a path for African-Americans in politics Accomplishments: --The second Black man to have a seat on Congress
--The first Black man to serve the House of Representatives and the first Black officer --Former Chairman of the Senate Committee on the State senate 
--Was the first Black man to preside over a House session
--Was selected as a Republican delegate to the state constitutional convention
--Was appointed an Internal Revenue Agent by the President Rutherford B. Hayes
--Supported the Enforcement Acts and spoke on the then not-yet-passed Civil Rights Act
--Served on the Committee of Freedmen's Affairs Further reading links: Black Past | Wikipedia | 

At one time, Republicans were the chosen political party for many Blacks because the laws and ordinances were more favorable to minorities at that time. Today, a vast majority of Blacks are liberal-minded and align with the Democratic party instead. It's crazy to me how political views and alignments can change over time, This was another day in which I knew nothing about the person I was writing about, but unfortunately there wasn't a ton of information about Joseph Hayne Rainey's life, so many of the websites I sourced to do my research merely repeated information. I still hope you enjoyed and I'll see you tomorrow!