[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 5 (Wednesday, January 12, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E50-E51]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 IN HONOR OF JUDGE JEAN MURRELL CAPERS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. DENNIS J. KUCINICH

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 12, 2011

  Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Judge Jean 
Murrell Capers, a courageous woman whose very productive life serves as 
example of what can be accomplished through determination and 
dedication.
  Judge Capers will celebrate her 98th birthday on January 11, 2011. 
Her 98 years have been filled with selfless service to others.
  From 1949 to 1956 she served on the Cleveland City Council, becoming 
the first African-American women elected to the city council of a major 
city. Between 1960 and 1964 she worked as assistant attorney general 
and from 1964 to 1966 she was special counsel to the Ohio Attorney 
General. In 1977, she was appointed as an Ohio Municipal Judge and was 
subsequently reelected to a 6 year term. Judge Capers fulfilled her 
campaign promises by assisting many black Clevelanders in finding 
positions with the city and by speaking out against injustice, 
including segregation in the local taxi cab industry. She continues 
today to work as an attorney with a special focus on elder law, 
advocating for victims of social injustice.
  Judge Capers is one of the original members of the Women's Advisory 
Council of the Women's Division previously known as the Ohio Bureau of 
Employment Services, now the Ohio Department of Job and Family 
Services. In 1941, she won Cleveland's tennis championship which was 
organized by the city recreation department. She went on to teach 
health and physical education at Central High School and has worked 
throughout her life to support youth, encouraging them to strive to 
achieve academic and social success.
  She was elected to the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame in 1997. In 2010, 
she received a Cleveland Marshall College of Law honorary doctorate of 
laws degree, 64 years after graduating from that institution. That same 
year,

[[Page E51]]

she was named one of Cleveland's ``Most Interesting People.''
  Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honoring Judge Jean 
Murrell Capers.

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