As Sen. Raphael Warnock was sworn in Wednesday, he was reminded of his father Jonathan Warnock who would’ve been 104 that day.
“He was born in a different country, he has seen the arc of our country’s push toward a more perfect union,” Warnock said, speaking to the Savannah Morning News a day after his historic swearing-in. “My dad was in the Army during World War II era and was once asked to give up his seat while he was in uniform to a young white teenager as he was riding a city bus. Well, his son was sworn in as a United States Senator.”
Jan 6, 2021 / 06:39 PM EST
Verlene Warnock spent her summers picking cotton and tobacco as a teen in Waycross, Georgia, in the 1950s before becoming a pastor.
“Because this is America, the 82-year-old hands that used to pick somebody else’s cotton went to the polls and picked her youngest son to be a United States senator,” Warnock said in a speech shortly after midnight Wednesday.
Her story was not uncommon. In the Jim Crow South, many poor Black people built savings by working in the fields because it was almost impossible for them to own land, said Karlos Hill, chair of African-American studies at the University of Oklahoma.
El primer senador afroestadounidense de Georgia ecuavisa.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from ecuavisa.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Raphael Warnock becomes Georgia s first black senator: Democratic pastor, 51, who leads church where Martin Luther King Jr. preached pays tribute to mother who used to pick somebody else s cotton as he claims Senate seat
Warnock said last night: Because this is America, the 82-year-old hands that used to pick somebody else s cotton picked her youngest son to be a senator
He was elected the first black Senator in the traditionally red state and became the first Democrat to be sent to the upper chamber by Georgians for 20 years
Warnock grew up in the projects of Savannah with his 11 brothers and sisters
Democrats declare victory in BOTH Georgia run-offs and control of the Senate: Jon Ossoff follows Raphael Warnock by claiming triumph as Republicans blame Trump for disaster - and he demands Pence overturn Joe Biden s win today in Congress
Jon Ossoff declared victory in his Senate race on Wednesday morning - despite the contest not being officially called
His win gives Democrats control of the upper chamber of Congress It is with humility that I thank the people of Georgia, Ossoff said
The Democratic victory came as Congress prepares to convene a Joint Session to certify Joe Biden as the winner of the presidential election