Laphonza Butler, first Black lesbian U.S. senator, steps down from office for Adam Schiff

Author: Trudy Ring

Laphonza Butler, the first Black lesbian U.S. senator, has stepped down to make way for the newly elected Adam Schiff and given a farewell speech of gratitude.

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Butler, a California Democrat and former union leader who has also been president of EMILY’s List, which works to elect pro-choice Democratic women to office, was only the third Black woman in the U.S. Senate — after Kamala Harris and Carol Moseley Braun — and the first LGBTQ+ person of color overall in the body.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed her last year to fill the remainder of the late Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s term, and she said she did not intend to run for the seat this year. Schiff, a prominent Democrat and LGBTQ+ ally who has represented a California district in the U.S. House for several years, was elected to the Senate in November. Newsom approved Schiff’s early appointment to the Senate before he is sworn in to his six-year term in January. Butler’s last day was Monday.

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In her final floor speech last week, Butler thanked Newsom for giving her the opportunity to represent California’s 40 million residents, and she said it has been a “remarkable honor” and “unimagined adventure” to follow in Feinstein’s footsteps and those of Harris and Braun, Democrats from California and Illinois, respectively.

“Indeed, the footsteps that I have had the opportunity to follow in this walk of service have been filled with decency, honor, integrity, and courage,” Butler said. “And I can only hope that for the people of California that I was able to do half as well as those who came before me.”

She thanked her “capable, incredibly talented staff” and her wife, Neneki Lee, and their daughter, Nylah; her mother, siblings, aunts, uncles, and friends; Senate colleagues on both sides of the aisle, especially California’s senior senator, Democrat Alex Padilla; Schiff and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer; and the labor movement.

She further gave a shout-out to young people, future leaders who she dubbed the “now generation,” and her Head Start teacher of 40 years ago, Carrie Hilbert. She recalled the seeds planted by rehearsing “We Are the World” for her Head Start graduation, about coming together and doing for others.

“So my final prayer as a member of this august body is that we realize that as policymakers we are our generation’s Head Start teachers,” she concluded. “Every single day we can plant seeds that will grow in the hearts and minds of young leaders, and we get to decide the seeds we plant. Will we plant seeds that will help them understand and imagine what’s possible for an America filled with different walks, different faces, different bank accounts, different languages? Will we plant seeds to help them realize and see what is possible, not just for the United States but for the world? And as was taught to me in that old church building, we will reap what we sow.”

Schumer, Padilla, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, and Sen. Tina Smith all delivered floor remarks honoring Butler. Schiff has succeeded her on the Senate Judiciary Committee to move forward on President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees.

In a press release, Butler highlighted her accomplishments in her 14 months in the Senate. She introduced 33 bills, cosponsored 333 pieces of legislation, and helped more than 2,000 constituents with federal casework. She has voted to confirm 82 judges and worked to fill four vacancies in California, helping to surpass the achievements of previous administrations. She has worked for voting rights, reproductive freedom, economic opportunities, more humane immigration policy, inclusive democracy, and more.

She also spotlighted the problem of schools and libraries across the country banning books. She gave two floor speeches on the issue, where she read excerpts from books that were banned, one of them Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde and the other I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. Smith joined her to read an excerpt from And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell. Butler further hosted an Instagram Live conversation with authors Kimberly Crenshaw and Sandra Cisneros about censorship of literature and its impact on democracy.

With the departure of Butler and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who decided not to run for reelection, there will be just one out member of the LGBTQ+ community in the U.S. Senate, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, who was just elected to a third term.

Original Article on The Advocate
Author: Trudy Ring