Sens. Duson, Talbot Ross, Hickman recognize and celebrate Black History Month on the Senate Floor
AUGUSTA — Throughout the month of February, Senate Assistant Majority Leader Jill C. Duson, D-Portland, Sen. Rachel Talbot Ross, D-Portland, and Sen. Craig V. Hickman, D-Winthrop, led the recognition and celebration of Black History Month on the floor of the Maine Senate.
The three senators sponsored Joint Resolutions honoring Black pioneers and leaders, many with ties to Maine. Sen. Talbot Ross also sponsored a Joint Resolution declaring February 2025 as Black History Month.
“This month served as an important opportunity to uplift the historical contributions of Black Americans in Maine and across the country, as our national rhetoric seems to try to bury and erase Black History,” said Sen. Duson. “I was honored to work with my fellow Black Senators to remind my colleagues and the people of our state that Black History is both Maine and American History.
“Black History Month is more than a celebration — it is a call to remembrance, recognition, and action,” said Sen. Talbot Ross. “As the first Legislature in Maine’s history to have three Black Senators serving together, we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us and carry forward the responsibility to ensure that Black history is fully acknowledged as Maine history. Our work must honor the past while shaping a future where equity, justice, and opportunity are truly accessible to all.”
“This is the first Black History Month ever in which there are three Black Senators in the Maine Legislature, and I am proud to be part of making history in this way,” said Sen. Hickman. “I thank my colleagues for joining us in celebrating great figures in Black history, including Stagecoach Mary Fields, Frederick Douglass, and Bayard Rustin. These trailblazing African Americans were proud of their identities and worked hard to take care of others and advance equality and civil rights. They remain an inspiration to me everyday as I work hard for the people of Maine.”
Sen. Duson’s joint resolution honored the life of Mary Mcleod Bethune, a labor leader and passionate educator who would become the first woman president of the National Education Association. Duson also led the Chamber in the singing of “Lift Every Voice and Sing” on Feb. 25.
Sen. Talbot Ross sponsored a joint resolution recognizing the 125th anniversary of the poem “Lift Every Voice and Sing” by James Weldon Johnson. She is also sponsoring legislation to rename a railroad in Wiscasset to honor Mr. Weldon Johnson who tragically lost his life in an accident on that railroad. Last month, Talbot Ross sponsored a joint resolution to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Maine.
Sen. Hickman sponsored joint resolutions celebrating the legend and history of Stagecoach Mary Fields, the first black woman who carried mail on a Star Route for the U.S. Postal Department, honoring the life and work of Frederick Douglass, and recognizing the contributions of Bayard Rustin to the civil rights movement.
