POLITICS
African-American Role
Since the 1870s, African-Americans have played an on-again, off-again role in Arkansas's political system. The first African-American legislators appeared during the Reconstruction era. After 1900, there were no African-American legislators elected to the Arkansas General Assembly until the 1970s. Jerry Jewell, Bill Lewellen, Irma Hunter Brown, Ben McGee, Bill Walker and Jimmie Wilson are a few names that are familiar to Arkansas constituents in the 1990s.
Although they were not elected to the state legislature, many African-Americans took part in elections. Dr. Marshall Robinson assisted Sid McMath in obtaining over 20,000 African-American votes for this liberal governor. He founded the Arkansas Negro Democratic Association in the 1920s and petitioned for the admission of African-Americans to the Democratic primaries through an Arkansas Supreme Court Case, Smith v. Allwright, which gave African-Americans the legal right to vote in primaries.
A woman of distinction in Arkansas politics is Lottie Shackleford. The mayor of Little Rock from 1987 through 1988, Shackelford was listed in Esquire magazine as "one of the 40 people who will shape American society in the next two decades." She is a member of the Democratic Party and a director of Arkansas Regional Minority Purchasing Council.
At the national level, Rodney Slater has served as the U.S. Secretary of Transportation since 1992. This native of Marianna was the first African-American to serve on the Arkansas Highway Commission. He also served as assistant attorney general for Arkansas and on the faculty of Arkansas State University in Jonesboro.
Back to Top