We join with residents of California in mourning the loss of one of the state’s most remarkable leaders and a key figure in the founding of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies in 1970, the Honorable Mervyn Dymally. For more than 40 years, he embodied the notion that anyone who works hard and plays by the rules can realize the American Dream.

A native of Trinidad, Congressman Dymally’s career in public service was marked by a series of “firsts.”  He was the first African American to serve in the California Senate and became the first to hold statewide elective office when he became Lieutenant Governor.  In the United States House of Representatives, he distinguished himself as a member of the House Foreign Relations Committee by championing the sanctions that helped end apartheid in South Africa. During his six terms in the House, he served as Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Congressman Dymally was a mentor to a generation of California politicians and an inspiration to public servants and civic leaders across the country.  We salute him for his lasting contributions.