Patsy Mink
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Hawaii's 2nd district
In office 1991 – 2002
Preceded by	Daniel Akaka
Succeeded by	Ed Case
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Hawaii's 1st district
In office 1965 – 1977
Preceded by	Thomas Gill
Succeeded by	Cecil Heftel
Born	December 6, 1927(1927-12-06) Maui, Hawaii
Died	September 28, 2002 (aged 74) Honolulu, Hawaii
Political party	Democratic

Patsy Matsu Takemoto Mink (Japanese: パッツィー・T・ミンク; December 6, 1927–September 28, 2002) was an American politician from the U.S. state of Hawaiʻi. The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the Year 1991 ( MCMXCI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Daniel Kahikina Akaka (born September 11, 1924) is the junior U Edward Espenett "Ed" Case (born September 27, 1952) is a Democratic Politician. The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the Year 1965 ( MCMLXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. Also 1977 (album by Ash. Year 1977 ( MCMLXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays Thomas Gill, formally Thomas Ponce Gill (born April 21, 1922) a Democrat, served in the United States Congress from 1963 to 1965 Cecil Landau Heftel popularly known as Cec Heftel (born September 30, 1924) is a politician and businessman from Hawai'i. Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev Year 1927 ( MCMXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at 727 The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the Events 48 BC - Pompey the Great is assassinated on orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt after landing in Egypt. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Honolulu is the Capital and most populous Census-designated place (CDP in the U The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev Year 1927 ( MCMXXVII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 48 BC - Pompey the Great is assassinated on orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt after landing in Egypt. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Politics of the United States takes place in the framework of a presidential, Federal republic where the President of the United States (the Head of A US state is any one of the fifty subnational entities of the United States of America that share Sovereignty with the federal government The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the Mink was a Japanese American and member of the Democratic Party; she also was the Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs. are Americans of Japanese heritage Japanese Americans have historically been among the three largest Asian American communities but in recent decades have become the sixth largest group The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. The Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES is a bureau within the United States Department of State. Mink served in the U.S. House of Representatives for a total of 12 terms, representing Hawaiʻi's second congressional district. The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. While in Congress she was noted for authoring the Title IX Amendment of the Higher Education Act. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, now known as the Patsy T Mink won her last election after her death in 2002. See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. She was the first Asian American woman elected to Congress. She was also the first woman elected to Congress from the state of Hawaii, and became the first Asian American to seek the Presidential nomination of the Democratic Party in the 1972 election, where she stood in the Oregon primary as an anti-war candidate. The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the The United States presidential election of 1972 was waged on the issues of radicalism and the Vietnam War. ^[1]

For her significant contributions towards equal rights in the country, Congress commissioned a likeness of her image to forever look down upon those who tread through the halls of the United States Capitol. They also renamed the Title IX Amendment of the Higher Education Act to become the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act.

Early years

Mink was born on the island of Maui. The Island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at 727 There she was raised by her parents, second generation Japanese Americans or Nisei. Nisei ( 二世, second generation is a Japanese language term used in countries in North America, South America and Australia to specify It was in her junior year of high school on Maui that Mink won her first election, becoming student body president. High school is the name used in some parts of the world (in particular Scotland, North America and Australia) to describe an institution Her election to the position came with great challenges that would influence the means by which she would later govern in the territorial legislature and in Congress. In order to get elected, Mink had to overcome a great deal of anger from most of the student body, which hated anything Japanese-oriented. Just months before, Honolulu had been attacked by the Japanese. Mink also had to overcome the fact that she was the only female who had ever showed ambition for student office in the school's history. It was unheard of during the time. Mink orchestrated a strategy of impressing the various cliques on campus including the popular American football team. American football, known in the United States and Canada simply as football, is a competitive Team sport known for mixing strategy with Her coalition building strategy worked and she was swept into office by a close margin. A coalition is an alliance among individuals during which they cooperate in joint action, each in their own Self-interest. Her ability to build effective coalitions would later become her trademark accomplishment on the floor of the United States House of Representatives. The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. In 1944, Mink graduated from high school as class valedictorian. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Valedictorian is an academic title typically conferred upon the highest ranked student among those being graduated from an educational institution

Educational adversity

Mink moved to Honolulu where she attended the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Honolulu is the Capital and most populous Census-designated place (CDP in the U The University of Hawaii at Mānoa is a public co-educational University and is the flagship campus of the greater University of Hawai{{okina}}i system. She then transferred to the University of Nebraska where she once again faced discrimination. The University of Nebraska is the public University system in the state of Nebraska, USA. The university had a long standing racial segregation policy whereby students of color were forced to live in the same dormitories apart from the whites. White People is the second album by Handsome Boy Modeling School. An angered Mink organized and created a coalition of students, parents, administrators, employees, alumni, sponsoring businesses and corporations and ended the university's segregation policies.

After her successful war against segregation at the University of Nebraska, Mink moved back to Honolulu to prepare for medical school. Medical education A medical school or faculty of medicine is a Tertiary educational institution—or part of such an institution—that teaches Medicine She received from the University of Hawaiʻi dual bachelor's degrees in zoology and chemistry. Zoology (from Greek ζῷον, zoon, "animal" + λόγος, " Logos " "knowledge" is the branch of Chemistry (from Egyptian kēme (chem meaning "earth") is the Science concerned with the composition structure and properties However in 1948, none of the twenty medical schools to which she applied would accept women. Year 1948 ( MCMXLVIII) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the 1948 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A disappointed Mink decided the best way to force medical schools to accept women would be through the judicial process. Mink decided to go to law school. A law school (also known as a school of law or college of law) is an institution specializing in Legal education.

Mink applied to the University of Chicago Law School. The University of Chicago is a Private university located principally in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. Unusually, The Law School had admitted women from its inception in 1902 and Mink attended law school with several other women. While there, she met hydrologist John Mink (1924-2005), who was to become her husband and lifelong partner. Mink obtained her juris doctor in 1951. Juris Doctor (abbreviated JD or JD, from the Latin, Teacher of Law) is a first professional graduate degree and Professional Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January

Hawaiʻi politics

Newly married, Mink settled in Honolulu, where she began practicing law. She became the first woman in Hawaiʻi to do so. Also during this time, in 1952, Patsy gave birth to her daughter Gwendolyn, who was later to become a prominent author and educator on labor and women's issues. In 1956 as the Territory of Hawaiʻi debated statehood, Mink was elected to the territorial legislature representing her district in the House of Representatives. Year 1956 ( MCMLVI) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Territory of Hawaii, abbreviated officially as TH, was established on July 7, 1898 and dissolved on August 21, 1959 when In 1959, Hawaiʻi became the 50th state of the Union. The year 1959 ( MCMLIX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. In 1965, Mink became the first female minority to join the ranks of Congress. Year 1965 ( MCMLXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. She served six consecutive terms. During the 1972 Presidential race, Mink ran in the Oregon primary as an anti-war candidate.

Title IX Amendment

Main article: Title IX

Mink took what she learned in high school and built some of the most influential coalitions in Congress. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, now known as the Patsy T Her most important coalition was one to support the Title IX Amendment of the Higher Education Act, which she wrote, prohibiting gender discrimination by federally funded institutions, an outgrowth of the adversities Mink faced through college.

Mink also introduced the first comprehensive Early Childhood Education Act and authored the Women's Educational Equity Act. The Early Childhood Education Act is the name of various landmark Laws passed by the United States Congress outlining federal programs and funding for childhood All of these laws written by Mink were declared landmark laws by Congress as they advanced equal rights in America beyond what could be imagined during the time. Title IX Amendment of the Higher Education Act was renamed by President George W. Bush on 29 October 2002 to become the Patsy T. George Walker Bush ( born July 6 1946 is the forty-third and current President of the United States. Events 437 - Valentinian III, Western Roman Emperor, marries Licinia Eudoxia, daughter of his cousin Theodosius II See also 2002 (disambiguation Year 2002 ( MMII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act.

Assistant Secretary of State

In 1976, Mink gave up her seat in Congress to run for a vacancy in the United States Senate. After she lost the primary election for the Senate seat to Spark Matsunaga, President of the United States Jimmy Carter appointed Mink to his cabinet as Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs. A primary election ( nominating primary) also referred to simply as a primary, is an election in which voters in a Jurisdiction select candidates Spark Masayuki Matsunaga ( Japanese: スパーク松永 (born October 8, 1916, in Kukuiula Hawaii – died April 15, 1990 James Earl "Jimmy" Carter Jr (born October 1 1924 was the thirty-ninth President of the United States, serving from 1977 to 1981 and the recipient of the 2002 Assistant Secretaries of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs Title Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific She served alongside Cyrus Vance, Edmund Muskie, and National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski. Cyrus Roberts Vance ( Clarksburg West Virginia, March 27, 1917 &ndash January 12, 2002) was the United States Secretary of State Edmund Sixtus "Ed" Muskie ( March 28, 1914 – March 26, 1996) was an American Democratic Politician Zbigniew Kazimierz Brzezinski (Zbigniew Kazimierz Brzeziński ˈzbigɲev bʐɛˈʑiɲski: (born March 28 1928 Warsaw, Poland) is a Polish-American

Later years

After her service in the Carter Administration, Mink settled in Honolulu, where she was elected to the Honolulu City Council. Her peers on the council eventually elected her Chairwoman, and she often butted heads with the controversial Mayor of Honolulu Frank Fasi. Frank Francis Fasi (born August 27, 1920) is a United States Politician having the distinction as the longest serving Mayor of Honolulu

In 1990, Mink was swept back into Congress, serving alongside Neil Abercrombie who represented the First Congressional District of Hawaiʻi. Neil Abercrombie (born June 26, 1938) is a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Hawaii's 1st congressional

On August 30, 2002, Mink was hospitalized in Honolulu's Straub Clinic and Hospital with complications from chickenpox. Chickenpox is a highly contagious illness caused by primary infection with Varicella zoster virus (VZV Her condition steadily worsened, and on September 28, 2002, Mink died in Honolulu of viral pneumonia, at age 74. Hawaiʻi and the nation mourned as President George W. Bush ordered all flags to be lowered to half staff in honor of her contributions towards the equal rights of Americans. George Walker Bush ( born July 6 1946 is the forty-third and current President of the United States. Mink received a national memorial and was honored with a state funeral in the Hawaiʻi State Capitol Rotunda attended by leaders and members of Congress. The Hawaii State Capitol is the official statehouse or capitol building of Hawaii in the United States. She is buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. The National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (also Punchbowl National Cemetery) is a Cemetery located in Honolulu, Hawai'i that serves a memorial

Mink's death occurred one week after the 2002 primary election, too late for her name to be removed from the general election ballot. On November 5, 2002, Mink was posthumously re-elected to Congress. Her vacant seat was filled by Ed Case after a special election on January 4, 2003. Edward Espenett "Ed" Case (born September 27, 1952) is a Democratic Politician.

References

External links

• Patsy Mink at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress

• Ahead of the Majority - The Life and Times of Patsy Takemoto Mink, a documentary by Kimberlee Bassford
• All Politics Profile on CNN
• Honolulu Advertiser Special Edition, September 29, 2002
• Honolulu Advertiser Special Edition, October 5, 2002
• National Organization for Women Memorial of Patsy Mink
• National Women's History Project Biography of Patsy Mink