By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent
William Lacy Clay Sr., a civil rights leader, legislative powerhouse, and one of the 13 founding members of the Congressional Black Caucus, has died. He was 94. “The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) extends heartfelt condolences to the family of Congressman William Clay Sr.,” NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. stated. The NNPA is the trade association of the more than 200 African American-owned newspapers and media companies that comprise the 198-year-old Black Press of America. “He was a freedom fighting member of the Congressional Black Caucus and a staunch supporter of the Black Press of America.”
Clay made history in 1968 when he became Missouri’s first Black congressman, representing St. Louis in the U.S. House of Representatives. His election marked a turning point for Black political representation in Missouri and nationally, as he joined the House alongside former Reps. Shirley Chisholm (D-N.Y.) and Louis Stokes (D-Ohio) laid the groundwork for the Congressional Black Caucus, which was formally established in 1971. “Congressman Clay helped build the CBC into a force for equity and accountability in American Democracy,” CBC Chair Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) said Thursday. “As a member of Congress, he was a fierce defender of labor rights, education, and social justice.”
Clay served for 32 years in the House, where he spent his entire tenure on the Education and Labor Committee. He pushed landmark legislation, including reforming the Hatch Act, which restricts political activities of federal employees, and helped usher in the Family and Medical Leave Act, which President Bill Clinton signed into law in 1993. In his final term, Clay was also a cosponsor of H.R. 40, the federal bill that calls for a commission to study reparations for slavery and racial discrimination. After his retirement in 2001, his son, William Lacy Clay Jr., succeeded him and continued representing Missouri’s 1st District until 2021.
“William Lacy Clay Sr. was a giant—not just for St. Louis, not just for Missouri, but for the entirety of our country,” said Missouri Rep. Wesley Bell. “I counted Mr. Clay as a grand mentor, as a trailblazer, and as a dear friend. But more than that, I carry his example with me every time I walk onto the House Floor. My heart is with his family, with Lacy, and with every person whose life was better because Bill Clay chose to serve.”
Roy Temple, a former chair of the Missouri Democratic Party, recalled working closely with Clay during Mel Carnahan’s 1992 campaign. “He was probably one of the three most influential people in Mel’s primary win,” Temple said. “Learned a ton in every single interaction. He was an icon.” “His work laid the foundation for future generations of Black leadership in public service,” Clarke wrote. “May he rest in power and everlasting peace.”