Louis Stokes represented his Ohio District in the U.S. House of Representatives for 30 years. Elected on November 6, 1968 he was the first African American member of Congress from the state of Ohio. The thrust of his career focused on advocacy for the poor and disadvantaged, especially those in urban America. He sponsored legislation to help people of color enter the intelligence community, fought for adequate housing for the poor, and was the sponsor of the Disadvantaged Minority Health Improvement Act of 1989. Other legislative efforts included sponsorship of programs for minority professionals in health, science, and engineering at the National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation respectively. He served under six Presidents during his 30 years in Congress.
Congressman Stokes and his brother, Carl, grew up in an impoverished part of Cleveland. After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II, he worked for the U.S. Department of the Treasury during the day while attending Case Western Reserve University at night. He earned a law degree from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.
The recipient of innumerable distinguished service awards, recognitions, certificates of appreciation, and honorary degrees, he now serves as senior counsel at Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, and is the Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve University. He has been married to Jeannette Jay since 1960—they have four adult children.
|
