Elizabeth Furse
| Elizabeth Furse | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon's 1st district |
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In office January 3, 1993 – January 3, 1999 |
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| Preceded by | Les AuCoin |
| Succeeded by | David Wu |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 13, 1936 Nairobi, Kenya |
| Political party | Democratic |
Elizabeth Furse (born October 13, 1936 in Nairobi, Kenya) is a small business owner and former faculty member of Portland State University. She was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1993 to 1999, representing Oregon's 1st congressional district. She is a Democrat, and was the first naturalized American born in Africa to win election to the United States Congress.
Furse was born in Nairobi, Kenya, to British parents, and grew up in South Africa. Inspired by her mother, she became an anti-apartheid activist in 1951, joining the first Black Sash demonstration in Cape Town, South Africa.
She moved to England in 1956, before eventually moving to the United States, settling in Los Angeles, California. While in Los Angeles, she became involved in a women's self-help project in Watts, and with Cesar Chavez's United Farm Workers movement, working to unionize grape farm workers. Moving to Seattle, Washington, in 1968, she became involved in American Indian/Native American rights causes including fishing and treaty rights. She became a United States citizen in 1972. Two years later, she graduated from The Evergreen State College.
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