Four women who call themselves The Colored Girls—and have worked behind the scenes in national politics for over 30 years—describe their journeys into public service that took them to positions on the Presidential campaigns of Jesse Jackson, Walter Mondale, Michael Dukakis, Bill Clinton, Al Gore, Barack Obama, and Hillary Rodham Clinton.
If you aren’t an insider, fasten your seat belt. You’ll learn a lot about the inside machinations of the Democratic Party. You’ll also discover the backgrounds of these women. All come from relatively humble beginnings, and all are grateful and amazed at the roads they have traveled ... I can hear each of their voices in the book, and I must compliment their co-writer Veronica Chambers, who has deftly interwoven their challenges with their political histories, and their mother wit with their sage wisdom ... These women have cried together, yelled at each other, reconciled and been pulled apart again, and the book is candid about some of it ... Anyone who has considered politics will be renewed by the strength, vision and sharing of this volume.
It offers a wealth of advice for women of color looking to enter politics ... At times, the memoir’s name-dropping can feel like a victory lap—the acknowledgments section alone is nine pages long. And for an account of the African-American female experience, much of the narrative focus is on the men who shaped their political careers. Chapters are devoted to Bill Clinton and Ron Brown, while idols like Barbara Jordan or Shirley Chisholm are confined to passing paragraphs ... Still, that may be less an indictment of the authors than another proof of the lack of diversity in the political sphere they rose in. For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Politics is a fascinating look at the cultural diaspora charting their path as the behind-the-scenes movers of American history.
In this intimate portrait of their careers, the Colored Girls detail their separate but overlapping journeys ... They describe the behind-the-scene feel of political campaigning, conventions, deal making, policy shaping, and voter courting ... Told with obvious deep respect and affection, this is a spirited look at the politics and personal lives of four iconic women.
