When Stokes took office in 1969 there was little black representation in politics, but the civil rights movement had helped to give way to the emergence of black political power. Stokes realized that as a black congressman he couldn’t serve the same way as white representatives could, he felt he had an obligation to represent African Americans everywhere. So not long after his election, Stokes and several other black congressmen and women began forming the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC). The CBC which still exists today, mission was, and still is, to challenge the status quo and leverage its political force to advocate and influence issues of special concern that affected black communities nationwide.
Congressman Louis Stokes never lost an election; he was elected fifteen times and served for 30 years. For three decades the spotlight shined on Louis Stokes, Ohio’s first black congressman. He has said that his goal was to set a standard of hard work, ethics, and good character so that those who followed in his footsteps would need to demonstrate a higher level of service to their constituents. As a congressman Louis Stokes accomplished this and much more by making significant achievements in health care, education and employment, and racial injustice that continue to effect voters today
As chairman of the Intelligence Committee Louis Stokes was struck by the lack of diversity within the intelligence community, he remarked,” They were all white, a few females, and zero minorities.” He felt embarrassed by it, which led him to spearhead a program that recruited minority and disadvantaged students into the FBI, CIA, NSA, and the Defense Intelligence Agency. The program was a huge success, and Stokes continued his commitment to support programs to engage minorities in science, engineering in math right here in Cleveland. Stokes is shown here discussing the NASA Science Engineering Mathematics and Aerospace Academy (SEMAA), a project that was designed to increase participation and retention of underrepresented youth in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM.
Many of Stokes’ colleagues and fellow politicians described him as being tough, principled, analytical, and steadfast. He was known as a well-respected leader on Capitol Hill, and an advocate for the poor and disenfranchised in Cleveland and beyond. Stokes secured his legacy by working tirelessly within the system to bring about major changes to equal education and job opportunities for all, while devoting his entire political career to health care reform and abolishing health care disparity. He also was an early advocate of federal government intervention in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
The congressman’s daughter, former Cleveland judge Angela Stokes, is shown pictured here in a Plain Dealer article about children from political families. Louis Stokes was proud of his family and considered family one of the pillars of a life fulfilled, the others being meaningful work and friendships. Stokes tried to instill in his children and family the spiritual strength and values that his mother had instilled in him and his brother. He said of his mother “She gave us the grit to overcome our poverty...she insisted to Carl and me that we needed to educate ourselves in order to grasp onto a better life.”
Louis Stokes never forgot his Cleveland roots. The congressman is shown here with students from The Law and Public Service Magnet School. Stokes was very involved and beloved in the community, and was known for his ability to talk with people from all walks of life. His legacy is honored through the naming of various Cleveland institutions like the Louis Stokes Laboratories at the National Institute of Health, the Louis Stokes wing of Cleveland Public Library, the Louis Stokes Head Start, the Louis Stokes Cleveland Department of Veteran Affairs Medical Center, and the Louis Stokes Station at Windermere.
Never one to mince words, as a ranking black member of Congress, Stokes was frequently vocal and critical of presidential policies. Stokes perceived his role in Congress as a champion of the underclass, and that remained his focus for his entire congressional career. Early on Stokes battled a number of conservative movements, such as the Nixon Administration's attempts to weaken the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which enabled blacks to take full advantage of their voting rights. Stokes also vocalized concerns that the Reagan administration was intent on rolling back minority gains made in the 1960's and 1970's. He also advocated for more funding for minority colleges, affirmative action programs, housing and urban development projects, and initiatives to improve access to health care for the poor and working-class.
Whether serving as a committee member or chairman, Louis Stokes would become a fixture at many hearings over the course of his career. One of the most notable hearings of his career was the Iran-Contra Affair. He would gain national recognition as a member of the House Select Committee to Investigate Covert Arms Transactions with Iran when he interrogated Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North in 1987. And as Chairman of the House Ethics Committee, Stokes oversaw the investigation of the high level corruption scandal known as ABSCAM, which led to convictions of a senator and six members of the House
During his time as a congressman house leaders frequently called upon Strokes’ due to his demeanor of stability, trustworthiness, and competency. Louis Stokes would go on to serve and chair many committees during his career, including the prestigious Appropriations committee, the House Select Committee on Assassinations, the Education and Labor committee, and the Ethics Committee. He eventually became an Appropriations subcommittee chair, or “Cardinal,” for the Veterans, HUD, and Independent Agencies—controlling more than $90 billion annually in federal money. Stokes was the second African American “Cardinal” ever.
On November 5, 1968, Louis Stokes was elected Congressman of the 21st Congressional District of Ohio on his first try for public office. This 1969 newspaper article shows Congressman Stokes with his brother, and Cleveland’s first African American Mayor, Carl Stokes. They’re shown here in front of the Capitol Building in Washington D.C after his swearing into Congress. He began his tenure as a congressman in the US House of Representatives in 1969, at a time when there were only 7 African Americans serving, but as Stokes remarks in his book The Gentleman from Ohio, “I didn’t have any qualms that I’d be able to take my place there. I was ready to go to Washington—and go to work.” And he did just that.
Backed by the political muscle of the Twenty-First Congressional District Caucus, which served as his base throughout his political career, Louis Stokes never lost an election. The caucus provided the support structure that he needed, replacing the Democratic political machine. His support within the black community was outstanding, earning endorsements from the Call and Post, Cleveland’s local black newspaper at the time, and the local ministers and church community.
Louis Stokes positioned himself as a political standout by becoming a founding member of the Twenty-First District Caucus, alongside his brother Carl Stokes, Arnold Pinkney, and George Forbes. The Twenty-First District Caucus’ aim was to structure and use independent black political power to benefit its constituents. Most black voters were loyal to the Democratic Party, but the caucus asserted that black voters should not be loyal to either party, but support only those candidates who responded to their community needs. The caucus would only work to elect those working in their best interest, and work just as hard to defeat those who did not.
Shown shortly after winning his first election, Louis Stokes is shown with his wife Jay and their four children. Stokes was very proud of his family, and said of his of his wife and of their 55 years of marriage “I can hardly believe my good fortune...my children, my inspirational wife…all I can say is that I have been more than fortunate; I have been blessed.” From r to l: Jay, Lori, Louis Sr., Shelley, Chuckie, and Angela.
The United States House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) was established in 1976 and Louis Stokes was appointed by Speaker of the House, Tip O’Neill to serve as the chairman. As the chairman he oversaw the high profile assassination investigations, and hearings, of both John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. who were assassinated in 1963 and 1968, respectively. Under his leadership the committee found that both murders possibly involved multiple assassins, but concluded there was no evidence to support conspiracy theories involving domestic or foreign governments. Shown here, a poster for the Distinguished Lecture Series hosted by Georgia State University.
After leaving the army he was determined to become a lawyer and defend the rights of those who had been taken advantage of by the justice system. He attended Western Reserve University and Cleveland Marshall College of Law, and began practicing law in 1953. In 1962 Louis’s brother Carl joined him at his law firm Stokes, Stokes, Character, and Terry. In 1967 Stokes argued the historic case Terry v. Ohio, commonly known as the “Stop-and-Frisk“ case, in front of the Supreme Court. This case set a precedent for police search and seizure procedures, and a number of Supreme Court cases that followed. By the time he ran for Congress in 1968, Louis Stokes was the most prominent civil rights lawyer in Cleveland
Louis Stokes was born on February 23, 1925 in Cleveland, Ohio. He and his younger brother Carl were the only children to his widowed mother, who worked as domestic cleaning houses. Stokes and his brother had a very poor upbringing, and didn’t have many opportunities as children. After high school Louis worked as a shoe shiner, a machine operator, a dishwasher, and a clothing salesman, and then soon after he was drafted into the Army. Growing up in Cleveland segregation and inequality had never really made an impression on Louis Stokes until he joined the Army. It was during his service in the military that he began to realize that people thought he was inferior because of the color of his skin, and also when he began to understand the impact an education could have on changing his life, and the life of many others.