Who is Sharice Davids?

Two years ago, Sharice Davids and Deb Haaland, became the first Native American Congresswomen. Both women fought courageous campaigns in 2018 and ultimately won their districts. This is important to know because one of them later becomes Secretary of Interior, making herstory for a second time. Here’s a hint…it’s Deb Haaland, which we will get to know in a later issue. (Photo Credit; https:// browngirlmagazine.com/2018/11/diversity-and-politics-winners-from-the-2018-midterm-elections/)

Sharice Davids is a warrior, in more than one sense of the word. She has fought battles all her life, mental, physical, and spiritual. Davids was sworn into the 116th Congress and serves the 3rd District of Kansas. She represents her constituents in the areas of Education, Energy & Environment, Healthcare and Jobs but if we dig a little deeper, we see the vision of hope and real life experience behind her platform. Notably her road to success should and does inspire many women from different walks of life and that of various ages as well. It is the fight that caught this writer’s attention.

Representative Sharice was born on May 22, 1980, in Frankfurt, West Germany.   She is a member of the “Ho-Chunk (Winnebago) people, and an enrolled member of the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin.” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharice_Davids) Sharice came from a single parent family home. Her mother served in the United States Army for 20 years. After high school, Sharice attended Johnson Community College, then earned her way to University of Missouri-Kansas City, earning her bachelor’s degree in business administration. She worked her way through school her entire academic career. Once she graduated from university, she set her sights on Cornel Law School, where she attained her law degree in 2010. She passed the bar and became a member of the Missouri Bar Association that same year. Keeping her focus on economic and community development, she also served as a White House Fellow under President Barack Obama. (https://davids.house.gov/about)

Remember I called her a warrior a moment ago? Well, she was also an amateur and professional mixed martial artist and a champion for the LGBTQ community! Again, herstory was made when she was elected to 116th Congress not just for being the first Native American Congresswoman but also being the first out LGBTQ person elected to Congress from Kansas. 

So why should we know the name Sharice Davids? Sharice represents a new era in American politics. I am not talking about political parties or bipartisan attributions. Sharice the Representative is a living and breathing illustration of what years of struggle looks like. In short, she represents Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. A strong, educated, qualified, battle tested, individual who is dedicated to serving others. She heads down a path paved by women before her, with their sweat and tears. From her Native fore-mothers down to her personal struggles of identity and belonging, she overcomes with gumption and perseverance to get more out of life than coasting through the “what ifs” and the “should haves” of regret. Sharice is making a difference the way that she knows how, by serving the people she has sworn to serve under the United States Constitution. She is not a trend. She is not a political party. She is a DIY to the DEI. Just an opinion. That’s how I see it. Hope you can see it too. Thanks for reading.