Skip to main content

You can try to silence women of color in Congress, but it won’t work

June 20, 2017

Sometimes that "double minority" status, particularly in an institution that has long been dominated by white men, also presents challenges to women of color. Some women of color expressed specific concerns about being heard and respected. Rep. Grace Napolitano (D-CA) explained, "[You have to understand that] this has always been the good ol' boys' system, that men 
usually ruled in this area." But her response — and the response of her peers — has not been to accommodate this entrenched system by staying quiet, but to disrupt it by speaking out.