Genoa Washington | |
|---|---|
 Washington in 1967–1968 | |
| Member of theIllinois House of Representatives from the 22nd district | |
| In office 1967–1972 | |
| Preceded by | At-large representation |
| Succeeded by | Susan Catania (Republican representative of multi-member district) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1895 or 1896 Washington, D.C., US |
| Died | (aged 76) Chicago, Illinois, US |
| Party | Republican |
| Education | Northwestern University (BS,JD) |
Genoa Sebastian Washington (born 1895 or 1896; died October 14, 1972) was an American politician who served in theIllinois House of Representatives from 1967 until his death in 1972. ARepublican member from Chicago, he worked on legislation related to civil rights and women's rights. Washington ran unsuccessfully for theU.S. House of Representatives in 1954 and 1960. He also served as alternate U.S. delegate to theUnited Nations General Assembly in 1957, and asdelegate to theRepublican National Convention in 1952, 1964, and 1968.
Washington earned hisBachelor of Science degree andJuris Doctor atNorthwestern University. He later held positions as vice president of theCook County Bar Association, and as president of the Chicago branch of theNAACP. He served in theU.S. Army and was involved inFreemason organizations.
Genoa Washington was born in 1895 or 1896[note 1] in Washington, D.C. He was the oldest of three children and the only son. His parents were Virgil William Washington, aMethodist minister and general secretary of missions at theChristian Methodist Episcopal Church, and Lucy Virginia Bonner. The younger Washington attended primary and secondary schools wherever his father's work took the family. He earned aBachelor of Science degree andJuris Doctor atNorthwestern University inEvanston, Illinois, and was admitted to the Illinoisbar in 1929. Washington served as vice president of theCook County Bar Association, and as president of the Chicago branch of theNAACP. He was enlisted in theUS Army as aprivate and was discharged as acaptain of infantry. As aFreemason, Washington was a member of theScottish Rite, affiliated withPrince Hall Freemasonry, and a master of the Richard E. MooreLodge.[3][4]
Washington served as an alternatedelegate during the1952 Republican National Convention. He was the only member of the Illinois delegation to vote forDwight D. Eisenhower; the rest voted forRobert A. Taft.[5] During the1954 U.S. House elections, Washington ran to representIllinois's 1st congressional district, winning theRepublican primary[6] but losing the general election to theDemocratic incumbent,William L. Dawson.[7]
Eisenhower, by then elected president, appointed Washington as alternate American delegate to theTwelfth session of theUnited Nations General Assembly in 1957,[3][8] where he served on theSpecial Political Committee.[4] Eisenhower ended up appointing eight African Americans as alternate representatives to the UN, surpassing his Democratic predecessor,Harry S. Truman, who had appointed only three.[8]
Washington then ran again in the1960 US House elections for the 1st district. In the Republican primary, he ran against James M. Burr, who previously had sought the nomination unsuccessfully in 1958.[5] Washington won the Republican primary[9] but again lost the general election to Dawson.[10] During the1964 Republican National Convention, Washington and Euclid Taylor, a Chicago-based attorney, served as the only two African American delegates from Illinois, representing the 1st congressional district. Even though both were pledged toNelson Rockefeller, Washington stated during a closed caucus meeting that he had wanted to vote for the eventual nominee,Barry Goldwater, to show unity.[11][12] During the convention, Washington gave one of the speechesseconding Rockefeller's nomination.[13] He and Taylor joined two other Illinois delegates in supporting a proposal byWilliam Scranton, governor ofPennsylvania, which would have modified the Republican platform to call for strengthening federal enforcement of civil rights legislation. Scranton's proposal failed at the convention.[14] At the nextRepublican National Convention in 1968, Washington again supported Rockefeller for the presidential nomination, while most of the Illinois delegation backedRichard Nixon.[15] Washington was also one of two Illinois delegates who abstained on the vice presidential ballot, declining to supportSpiro Agnew.[16]
Washington was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in1966. He represented the 22nd district, reclaiming a seat that Democrats had taken control of in1964.[note 2][18][4] From 1967 through 1972 he worked on bills related to civil rights and women's rights.[3] Washington supported a fair housing proposal in 1967 that prohibited real estate brokers from refusing to sell or rent African Americans, but it contained an exception when the property owners explicitly consented to the discrimination. Washington did not believe the legislature would pass a bill prohibiting discrimination by homeowners, as such a proposal would have been seen as "forced housing".[19] In 1969, he and other Black members of the Housefilibustered anappropriations bill for theIllinois Department of Conservation to secure funding for recruitment and job training of minorities.[20] In 1972, Washington sponsored an emergency appropriations bill directing $19 million to public aid.[21]
During his campaign for reelection in1972, Washington faced three challengers for the Republican nomination, includingSusan Catania, a freelance technical publications consultant. TheChicago Tribune reported that Catania was running "one of the most vigorous campaigns of the year", in contrast to the other candidates. Washington was confident of his reelection and led a relatively quiet campaign.[1]
Washington had cancer and did not survive the election season, dying in his home on October 14, 1972, at age 76. Catania succeeded him as the Republican representative from their district.[note 3][2][25]
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.