Eleanor Holmes Norton · 1993 Honoree

Eleanor Holmes Norton has always called Washington, D.C. “home.” So have several generations of her family before her and it was from them that she learned commitment and  to take risks to shape the city’s future. Her deep feeling for the nation’s capital and its residents has permeated her career. So much so, that she is in her second term as the Congresswoman from the District of Columbia.

Eleanor was educated in the city’s public schools. Through her family and its wide circle of friends and associates she learned the lessons of being on the cutting edge of change. One of her grandfathers, for instance, was a member of Engine Company No. 4, the city’s first contingent of Black firefighters. The story of the struggle to get the city to establish even one Black unit in the otherwise all-white force was one which young Eleanor took to heart.

Eleanor pursued her BA at Antioch College in Ohio, then went to Yale University for an MA in American studies. These achievements served as a stepping stone to a law degree from Yale Law School. With her mind finely tuned and J.D. in hand, she was ready to serve the people in her home town.

Eleanor became a faculty member at the Georgetown University School of Law and rose to the rank of tenured professor. At the same time she worked in local politics for increased rights for D.C. citizens.

As she refined her skills Eleanor gained stature as a speaker, first at local gatherings, then at national meetings and conferences. Much of her work out-side of academia has been in the field of civil rights, including the rights of women. In her first truly national political role she chaired the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission during President Jimmy Carter’s administration.

Eleanor also has made significant inroads into the world of business and commerce. Years before she sought elective office, she was elected to the Boards of Directors of three Fortune 500 companies and the Rockefeller Foundation, and to the Board of Governors of the D.C. Bar Association. Such kudos led Washingtonian Magazine to select her as one of the city’s most powerful women and the Ladies Home Journal to name her one of America’s 100 most important women.

As a member of Congress Eleanor fights for urban areas; for civil rights; for a more efficient use of Federal resources, such as expanding the boundaries covered by the U.S. Capitol Police, for a 40% increase in Federal contributions to the D.C. budget; and on and on.

Even a person who had no idea who Eleanor Holmes Norton is would think of the word “powerful” within a few moments after meeting her. Listen to her speak at a Capitol Hill Kiwanis meeting about the city’s young children and what volunteers must do to help. Watch her hands as they punctuate her remarks at a CHAMPS gathering. Look at her jog on the Hill to keep fit. Eleanor Holmes Norton is a passionate fighting force, self-disciplined to reflect the power and persuasion that she has selected to perfect and give to the culturally diverse city that she has selected to perfect and give to the diverse city that she and her children John and Katherine call their hometown.