I am a person who likes to fill my head up with knowledge of African-American trail-blazers. This post I had to go towards South Carolina. A state that is really similar to Mississippi in many ways except Darlington, SC (which sponsors NASCAR) and other sporting events. So when I have a chance to hear about a trailblazer in South Carolina, I listen.
With that being said here is a story of Juanita Goggins, the first African-American woman elected to the South Carolina Legislature.
When Juanita Goggins became the first black woman elected to the South Carolina Legislature in 1974, she was hailed as a trailblazer and twice visited the president at the White House.
Three decades later, she froze to death at age 75, a solitary figure living in a rented house four miles from the gleaming Statehouse dome.
Goggins, whose achievements included key legislation on school funding, kindergarten and class size, had become increasingly reclusive. She spent her final years turning down help from neighbors who knew little of her history-making past. Her body was not discovered for more than a week.
Those neighbors, as well as former colleagues and relatives, are now left wondering whether they could have done more to help.
Read more: http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2010/03/11/underplayed-story-of-the-day-juanita-goggins/#ixzz0hzT8DE0O
This is sad and underplayed especially in her hometown. When reading the article this reminds me of two situations from different books “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens. Reading this seems like Mrs. Goggins did not want any help from people because of her status. Sort of like Scrooge. She was a fighter in her days but every fighter needs help when the time is passing you by. She was more of her status that “I don’t need help for anybody,” which is a situation that bothered friends, colleagues, and even her own family. I believe that when she got mugged last year also showed her something that many people do not see these days; the world is different after the goals are accomplished. It is very sad to see a woman like that who helped with sickle-cell anemia testing to education with pride and joy to be so secretive toward any illness or ill-will (if possible) about how the new generation of African-Americans are not stepping up in South Carolina. That is something we will never know. It will be only a mystery to us.
What do you feel about trailblazers, black or white, being forgotten, even in death?
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