5 things Shirley Chisholm will be remembered for besides her iconic presidential bid

Her spirited presidential campaign

When Chisholm formally made her intentions about contesting the Democratic presidential nomination, many people were shocked including members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) who were not enthused that she took a decision without any formal or unified decision being made by the body. When she began campaigning, she faced a lot of challenges including inadequate funding, death threats and being taken out of televised debates of which she had to sue to be included. After several assassination attempts, she was granted Secret Service protection to ensure her safety.

Her supporters were also shocked when she visited one of her political opponents, George Wallace who had been admitted to the hospital after an assassination attempt had left him paralysed. The Alabama governor who was noted for his racist comments would later be helpful to Chisholm on an important piece of legislation in 1974 that would give domestic workers the right to a minimum wage.

Despite the setbacks and controversies, Chisholm fought hard to get her name on the primary ballot in 12 states and won 28 delegates in primary elections. She got about 152 delegates at the Democratic National Convention, coming fourth for the party.