Betty Lou Bolden Thompson (December 3, 1939 - July 11, 2021) was an American Democrat politician who served in the Missouri House of Representatives.
Born in Helm, Mississippi, she attended Vashon High School, Sumner High School, Hubbards Business College, Harris-Stowe State University, and Washington University in St. Louis. [1] [2]
Betty L. Thompson was a civil rights leader and politician from St. Louis, Missouri. She was born on December 3, 1939, and was raised in a large family of 12 siblings. Thompson was born with alopecia, a condition that causes hair loss, which she embraced throughout her life.
Thompson graduated from Sumner High School and attended Harris-Stowe State College.
In 1996, Thompson was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives, where she served for eight years as a member of the Democratic Party. During her time in office, she was known for her advocacy for education and civil rights. She was a champion of public schools and worked to increase funding for education programs in the state.
Throughout her life, Thompson was actively involved in civil rights and community organizations, including the NAACP and the Urban League. She also served on the boards of several organizations, including the National Conference of State Legislatures and the National Black Caucus of State Legislators.
Thompson passed away on July 11, 2021, at the age of 81. She is remembered as a trailblazer and advocate for justice, education, and civil rights in Missouri.
Warren Eastman Hearnes was an American politician who served as the 46th governor of Missouri from 1965 to 1973. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first officeholder eligible to serve two consecutive four-year terms as Governor. He previously served as the Secretary of State of Missouri from 1961 to 1965.
Dr. Rev. Margaret J. Tor-Thompson was a Liberian politician and member of the Freedom Alliance Party of Liberia (FAPL). She has completed her doctorate in Biblical Studies.
Sumner High School is a St. Louis public high school that was the first high school for African-American students west of the Mississippi River in the United States. Together with Vashon High School, Sumner was one of only two public high schools in St. Louis City for African-American students and was segregated. Established in 1875 only after extensive lobbying by some of St. Louis' African-American residents, Sumner moved to its current location in 1908. It has historically also been known as Charles H. Sumner High School, and Sumner Stone High School.
Maria Nicole Chappelle-Nadal is an American politician who served in the Missouri House of Representatives from the 86th district from 2019 to 2021. A Democrat from University City, Missouri, she represented district 14 in the Missouri Senate from 2011 to 2019. She previously served in the Missouri House of Representatives from district 72, a position which she held from 2005 to 2011. In 2010, Chappelle-Nadal was elected to the Missouri Senate to succeed fellow Democrat Rita Heard Days of St. Louis.
Rebecca Rios is an American Democratic politician who previously served in the Arizona State Senate representing District 27 from 2019 to 2023. She also served in the Arizona House of Representatives, including as Minority Leader.
Dr. Julia Davis was an African-American woman who for more than 60 years served as an educational force in St. Louis.
Hazel M. Erby was an American politician who was a Democratic member of the St. Louis County Council. In 2004, she became the first Black woman on the council and then represented the first district from 2004 to 2019. In 2009, she became the first Black woman to chair the council. In 2019, she became the first Director of Diversity and Inclusion in St. Louis County.
Harris–Stowe State University (HSSU) is a public university. It is in St. Louis, Missouri. It is an HBCU, a historically Black university. The university offers 50 majors, minors, and certificate programs in education, business, and arts & sciences. It is a member-school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. It is immediately east of the Saint Louis University campus. The school enrolled 1,098 students in 2023.
Rory Vincent Ellinger was an American lawyer and politician. Ellinger was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He served as the Representative for Pagedale, University City, and Wellston in St. Louis County in the Missouri House of Representatives. He was elected to his first two-year term in November 2010 on the Democratic Party ticket.
Joshua D. Peters is an American politician in the Democratic Party who was the Missouri State Representative of Missouri's 76th District from 2013 to 2019. Peters was first elected in a special election on April 2, 2013. He represented portions of north Saint Louis City. At the time of his election, he was the youngest African American ever elected to the Missouri House of Representatives. In 2016 Peters served as the House Minority Chief Deputy Whip.
Johnetta "Netta" Elzie is an American civil rights activist. She is one of the leaders in the activist group We The Protesters and co-edits the Ferguson protest newsletter This Is the Movement with fellow activist DeRay Mckesson.
J. B. "Jet" Banks was an American Democratic politician who served in the Missouri Senate and in the Missouri legislature for three decades. Banks, the son of a sharecropper, rose to become state senate majority leader, making him Missouri's highest-ranking black elected official.
Ben Baker is a Republican politician who has served as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 160th district since 2019.
Suzie Pollock is an American politician who served as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 123rd district. A member of the Republican Party, she was elected in 2018 and assumed office in 2019.
Chad Perkins is an American politician, radio host and police officer from Bowling Green, Missouri. A member of the Republican Party, he has served in the Missouri House of Representatives since 2021. He represents the 40th district, which includes all of Pike and part of Lincoln counties in northeastern Missouri. Previously, Perkins served as the mayor of Bowling Green.
Kimberly-Ann Collins is an American politician serving as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 77th district. Elected in November 2020, she assumed office on January 6, 2021.
Theodore D. McNeal was a union organizer, employment opportunity activist, and state legislator in Missouri. He was the first African American to serve in the Missouri Senate.
Herman H. Dreer (1888–1981) was an American academic administrator, educator, educational reformer, activist, author, editor, Baptist minister, and civil rights leader. He is best known for writing curriculum and programming for teaching African American History at most grade levels for early 20th-century public schools. Dreer is also credited with initiating Black History Month observance in the United States, alongside Carter G. Woodson.
Ann Kelley is an American politician and educator serving as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 127th district. Elected in November 2018, she assumed office in January 2019.
Jessie Housley Holliman was an African-American educator, muralist, printmaker, and commercial artist active in St. Louis, Missouri from 1929 until 1949.