The event was brief and featured speeches alongside a portrait Rainey sitting cross-legged in the Capitol with prominent mutton chop sideburns. He was also wearing a dark suit and prominent mutton-chop sidesburns. It was held during Black History Month, as Republican-run States have enacted voting restrictions which in some cases may affect minorities voters.
“I have children. Clyburn, who represents a South Carolina district like Rainey, said that he has grandchildren. “I want them as proud of this nation as I am.”
Clyburn pointed out that eight African Americans were elected into the House of Representatives from their home states during the 19th century, but stated that “the problem is there are 95 years between No. 8 and No. 9,” Clyburn, who was first elected to office in 1992. “Anything can happen again.
His great-granddaughter, who was also a legislator, said that Joseph Rainey had done so much in his lifetime. As we pay tribute to this man, let’s remember his ideals, the things he sacrificed for, and why his legacy will endure today.
The small room that now bears Rainey’s name is located on the Capitol’s first floor. It was used by the House Committee on Indian Affairs (on which he served), and is now on display. Outside the room, a plaque was dedicated to Rainey.
It is currently being used by the House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) who stated of Rainey that he didn’t come up to just hold the title. He came here to make an impact, and he did.
Rainey, who was never educated in formal education, was forced to build Confederate fortifications around Charleston (South Carolina) and to work on a blockage-running vessel.
He fled to Bermuda, a British colony. He returned to South Carolina in 1866 to help found the Republican Party. He was elected to Congress in December 1870 and was sworn in as a replacement for a resigned lawmaker.
Rainey was elected four times and served during Reconstruction. His first major speech was in April 1871 to support the Ku Klux Klan Act which increased federal law enforcement power in the South. During Reconstruction, he was accompanied by 13 other African-American legislators, all Republicans.
Rainey stated that the Constitution was created to protect “the most humble citizen, regardless of rank, creed or color.” President Ulysses Grant signed it into law a few days later.
In 1871, Rainey was threatened with death by the Klan. He also sent a red-ink letter to other Black officials, which he gave to a newspaper, which stated, “Your doom has been sealed in blood.”
Rainey was the first Black member of the House to lead a House debate about a Native American reservation spending bill in 1874. The Springfield Republican, a Massachusetts newspaper compared Rainey’s appearance to “the days when men from Mr. Rainey’s race were sold under hammer within bowshot at the Capitol.”
Rainey, who had contracted malaria in 1886, died naturally in 1887. He was 55.
According to the Senate website Hiram Revels was the first Black senator after he was sworn in as a senator in February 1870. This was months before Rainey arrived.
GOP Rep. Tom Rice of South Carolina, whose district includes Georgetown, where Rainey is from, stated that his grandparents lived only blocks away from Rainey’s home. Rice stated, “Can you imagine how he felt under pressure and the obstacles he had to overcome?”
Rice stated that he had proposed a bill to name a local postoffice after Rainey in a rare moment of bipartisan cooperation. Without Clyburn’s support, it wouldn’t have been possible.
Clyburn stood behind Rice and said, “That’s right.”
