Shirley Chisholm's 1972 presidential campaign placed a black woman squarely in the center of a political spotlight previously reserved for white men. If anyone thought she might tone down her rhetoric to fit in with the existing old boys' club of presidential candidates, she proved them wrong.

As she had promised in her announcement speech, 'tired and glib cliches' had no place in her candidacy.

Telling it Like it Is

As Chisholm's campaign buttons reveal, she never held back from letting her attitude emphasize her message:

• Ms. Chis. For Pres.
  
• Chisholm - Ready or Not
  
• Take the Chisholm trail to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
  
• Chisholm - President of All the People
  

"An Independent, Creative Personality"

John Nichols, writing for The Nation, explains why the party establishment - including most prominent liberals - rejected her candidacy:

Chisholm's run was dismissed from the start as a vanity campaign that would do nothing more than siphon votes off from better-known anti-war candidates such as South Dakota Senator George McGovern and New York City Mayor John Lindsay. They were not ready for a candidate who promised to "reshape our society," and they accorded her few opportunities to prove herself in a campaign where all of the other contenders were white men. "There is little place in the political scheme of things for an independent, creative personality, for a fighter," Chisholm observed. "Anyone who takes that role must pay a price."

Instead of Old Boys, New Voters

Chisholm's presidential campaign was the subject of filmmaker Shola Lynch's 2004 documentary, "Chisholm '72," broadcast on PBS in February 2005.



In an interview discussing Chisholm's life and legacy
in January 2005, Lynch noted the particulars of the campaign:

She ran in the majority of the primaries and went all the way to the Democratic National Convention with delegate votes.
She entered the race because there was no strong Democratic front runner....there were about 13 people running for the nomination....1972 was the first election impacted by the voting age change from 21 to 18. There were going to be millions of new voters. Mrs. C wanted to attract these young folks as well as anyone who felt left out of politics. She wanted to bring these people into the process with her candidacy.

She played ball until the end because she knew her delegate votes could have been the difference between the two candidates in a closely contested nomination battle. It did not exactly turn out that way but it was a sound, and clever, political strategy.

Shirley Chisholm ultimately lost her campaign for the presidency. But by the conclusion of the 1972 Democratic National Convention in Miami Beach, Florida, 151.95 votes had been cast for her. She had drawn attention to herself and the ideals she had campaigned for. She had brought the voice of the disenfranchised to the forefront. In many ways, she had won.