In 1966, Edward W. Brooke III was the first African American popularly elected to the U.S. Senate and the first black politician from Massachusetts to serve in Congress. His election to the U.S. Senate ended an 85-year absence of African–American Senators. He was also elected attorney general of Massachusetts in 1962. Born in Washington, DC, on October 26, 1919, Brook attended #HowardUniversity like his father Edward Brooke, Jr., a graduate of Howard University Law School (#HUSL) and a longtime lawyer with the Veterans Administration. He studied social studies and political science at Howard. Labeled himself a “creative Republican,” he was able to successfully court voters from both parties. Brooke was an independent thinker who took many liberal positions. Shortly after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., Brooke urged his congressional colleagues to recognize the renowned civil rights leader by declaring January 15 (King’s birthday) a national holiday. He was one of the...