Augustus F. Hawkins
| Augustus F. Hawkins | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 21st district |
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In office January 3, 1963 – January 3, 1975 |
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| Preceded by | Edgar W. Hiestand |
| Succeeded by | James C. Corman |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 29th district |
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In office January 3, 1975 – January 3, 1991 |
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| Preceded by | George E. Danielson |
| Succeeded by | Maxine Waters |
| Member of the California State Assembly | |
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In office 1935-1963 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
Augustus Freeman Hawkins August 31, 1907 Shreveport, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Died |
November 10, 2007 (aged 100) Bethesda, Maryland |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Pegga Adeline Smith (1945–1966) Elsie Hawkins (1977–2007) |
| Alma mater | UCLA |
Augustus Freeman "Gus" Hawkins (August 31, 1907 – November 10, 2007) was a prominent American Democratic Party politician and a figure in the history of Civil Rights and organized labor. He served as the first African American from California in the United States Congress. Over the course of his career, Hawkins authored more than 300 state and federal laws, the most famous of which are Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the 1978 Humphrey-Hawkins Full Employment Act. He was known as the "silent warrior" for his commitment to education and ending unemployment. Hawkins emphasized throughout his career that “the leadership belongs not to the loudest, not to those who beat the drums or blow the trumpets, but to those who day in and day out, in all seasons, work for the practical realization of a better world—those who have the stamina to persist and remain dedicated." Hawkins remained devoted to this principle throughout his life, dedicating himself to meaningful reforms rather than rhetoric.
Hawkins was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, the youngest of five children, to Nyanza Hawkins and Hattie Freeman. In 1918, the family moved to Los Angeles. Hawkins was fond of his new home. He later wrote, "When people from Texas or Louisiana came out and wrote back South it made people in the South believe that this was heaven... It was a land of golden opportunities—orange groves and beautiful beaches—and life was a matter of milk and honey." Hawkins graduated from Jefferson High School in 1926, and received a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1931. After graduation, he planned to study civil engineering, but the financial constraints of the Great Depression made this impossible. The impossibility of Hawkins to afford further schooling contributed towards his interest in politics, and his lifelong devotion to education. At this time, Hawkins operated a real estate company with his brother and studied government. While serving in the California State Assembly, Hawkins married Pegga Adeline Smith on August 28, 1945. After she died in 1966, he married Elsie Taylor on June 30, 1977.
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