Pressley, Ayanna, 1974-

PRESSLEY, Ayanna, a Representative from Massachusetts; born in Chicago, Cook County, Ill., February 3, 1974; graduated from Francis W. Parker School, Chicago, Ill., 1992; attended Boston University, Boston, Mass., 1992-1994; staff, United States Representative Joseph P. Kennedy II of Massachusetts, 1996; staff, United States Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, 1996-2009; member of the Boston, Mass., city council, 2011-2019; elected as a Democrat to the One Hundred Sixteenth and to the succeeding Congress (January 3, 2019-present).

<p>Ayanna Soyini Pressley (born February 3, 1974) is an American politician who is serving as the U.S. Representative for Massachusetts's 7th congressional district since 2019. Her district includes the northern three quarters of Boston, most of Cambridge, and parts of Milton, as well as all of Chelsea, Everett, Randolph, and Somerville.</p>

<p>A member of the Democratic Party, Pressley defeated the ten-term incumbent Mike Capuano in the primary election and ran unopposed in the general election. She had previously been elected as an at-large member of the Boston City Council in 2010. Pressley was the first black woman elected to the Boston City Council and the first black woman elected to Congress from Massachusetts.</p>

<p>Pressley was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, but raised in Chicago, Illinois, an only child. Her mother, Sandra Pressley (née Echols), worked multiple jobs to support the family and also worked as a community organizer for the Chicago Urban League advocating for tenants' rights. Her father, Martin Terrell, struggled with addiction and was incarcerated throughout Pressley's childhood, but eventually earned multiple degrees and taught at college level. The marriage ended in divorce.</p>

<p>Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley is an advocate, a policy-maker, an activist, and a survivor. On November 6, 2018, Congresswoman Pressley was elected to represent Massachusetts’ 7th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, making her the first woman of color to be elected to Congress from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Massachusetts 7th is the most diverse and most unequal district in the state, requiring a representative whose experiences are reflective of the people.</p>

<p>Like many in her district, Congresswoman Pressley has endured numerous hardships throughout her life, and it is because of those experiences that she remains a dedicated activist who’s devoted to creating robust and informed policies that speak to the intersectionality of her district’s lived experiences. She believes that the people closest to the pain should be closest to the power and that a diversity of voices in the political process is essential to making policies that benefit more Americans.</p>

<p>Born in Cincinnati and raised in Chicago, Congresswoman Pressley is the only child of a single mother and a father who was in and out of the criminal justice system - creating an unstable household and forcing her to mature at a rapid rate. While her father ultimately overcame his addiction and went on to become a published author, Congresswoman Pressley was primarily raised by her mother Sandra Pressley, a tenants’ rights organizer who instilled in her the value of civic engagement. Thanks to her mother’s dedication to activism, Congresswoman Pressley has always been acutely aware of the role that government can play in lifting up families and communities.</p>