Former Black lawmakers reflect on history-making election
BY CHRISTINA L. MYERS, The State
March 6, 2021
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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — On the twelfth day of the new year in 1971, South Carolina lawmakers ascended on the capital city for the opening session of the 99th General Assembly. But for three African American men it was a Tuesday of historical proportions — a symbol of progress since the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
James Felder, Isaac Samuel (I.S.) Leevy Johnson and Herbert Fielding entered the State House as the first elected Black lawmakers to serve in the Legislature since the turn of the 20th century.