The Honorable Patsy Takemoto Mink was the first woman of color to serve in Congress. She fought for gender and racial equality, affordable childcare, and environmental protection. She is best known for championing Title IX, legislation which opened new opportunities to women in education and school sports.
A third-generation Japanese American, Mink was born and raised on the island of Maui in Hawaii. She pursued college studies on the mainland where she faced racial discrimination, including segregated facilities. She ultimately returned to Hawaii to earn a BA at the University of Hawai’i in 1948.
Mink originally planned to pursue a medical degree, but several medical schools rejected her application. She turned to law school and earned a law degree from the University of Chicago in 1951. She was one of only two women and two Asian Americans in her law school class.
Upon returning to Hawaii with her husband and baby daughter, Mink initially faced restrictions when applying for jobs at law firms. She opened her own practice instead, becoming the first Japanese American woman to practice law in Hawaii.
She entered politics in the mid-1950s, serving in Hawaii’s territorial legislature and then Hawaii State Senate. In 1964, she became the first woman of color elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
As a member of Congress, she fought for gender and racial equality, affordable childcare, support for low-income women and families, and environmental protection. She co-authored Title IX in the Education Amendments of 1972, which prohibits sex discrimination in education programs and activities. Title IX opened up new opportunities to women, who had been excluded from certain courses, sports, and other opportunities in high schools and colleges.
Mink served a combined 24 years in Congress, from 1965-1977 and again in 1990-2002. After her death in 2002, Title IX was renamed the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act.
