Cynthia Delores Tucker (née Nottage; October 4, 1927 – October 12, 2005) was an American
politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...
and
civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...
activist. She had a long history of involvement in the American
Civil Rights Movement
The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
. From the 1990s onward, she engaged in a campaign against
gangsta rap music.
Early life and education
![C](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/C._DELORES_TUCKER_MANSION%2C_NORTH_PHILADELPHIA.JPG)
Born in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
to a
minister Whitfield Nottage from the Bahamas and a "Christian feminist mother" Captilda Gardiner Nottage from the Bahamas on October 4, 1927, Tucker was the tenth of thirteen children.
[New York Times - C. DeLores Tucker, a Voice for Minorities and Women, Is Dead at 78 - November 6, 2005]
/ref> Tucker attended Temple University
Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then calle ...
and the University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
's Wharton School of Business
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania ( ; also known as Wharton Business School, the Wharton School, Penn Wharton, and Wharton) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in ...
. Tucker was later the recipient of two honorary doctoral degrees from Morris College in Sumter, South Carolina, Baptist Training Union in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, and California State University Northridge in California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, and for this reason, she is sometimes referred to as "Dr. C. Delores Tucker".
Career
Civil activities
Tucker had a long history in the Civil Rights Movement
The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
. Early on, her civil activities included participating in the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches
The Selma to Montgomery marches were three protest marches, held in 1965, along the 54-mile (87 km) highway from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital of Montgomery. The marches were organized by nonviolent activists to demonstrate the ...
alongside the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
and raising funds for the NAACP. In 1990, Tucker, along with 15 other African American women and men, formed the African-American Women for Reproductive Freedom. She was the convening founder and national chair of the National Congress of Black Women, Inc. (NCBW), having succeeded the Hon. Shirley Chisholm
Shirley Anita Chisholm ( ; ; November 30, 1924 – January 1, 2005) was an American politician who, in 1968, became the first black woman to be elected to the United States Congress. Chisholm represented New York's 12th congressional distr ...
in 1992.
Tucker also was responsible for the Governor's appointment of more women judges and more women and African Americans to boards and commissions than ever before. She also led the effort to make Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
one of the first states to pass the Equal Rights Amendment. As Chief of Elections of Pennsylvania, she was a leader in instituting a voter registration by mail and reducing the voting age from 21 to 18 years of age.
Political
In 1971, Tucker became the first black female Secretary of State when Pennsylvania Governor
The governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is the head of state and head of government of the U.S. state, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, as well as commander-in-chief of the Commonwealth's military forces.
The governor has a duty to enforc ...
Milton Shapp
Milton Jerrold Shapp (born Milton Jerrold Shapiro; June 25, 1912 – November 24, 1994) was an American businessman and politician who served as the 40th governor of Pennsylvania from 1971 to 1979 and the first Jewish governor of Pennsylvania. H ...
appointed her Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
The secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (or "secretary of state") administers the Pennsylvania Department of State of the U.S. state (officially, " commonwealth") of Pennsylvania. The secretary is appointed by the governor subject to co ...
. During her tenure, she instituted the first Commission on the Status of Women
The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW or UNCSW) is a functional commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), one of the main UN organs within the United Nations. CSW has been described as the UN organ promoting gend ...
.[Dr. C. DeLores Tucker](_blank)
University of Maryland
The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...
. Last accessed August 24, 2007. Shapp fired Tucker in September 1977 for allegedly using state employees to write speeches for which she received honorariums. Two years later, one of Tucker's successors as Secretary of the Commonwealth, Dr. Ethel D. Allen, would also be fired for using public employees to write speeches.
She was the founder and president of the Bethune-DuBois Institute, Inc., which she established in 1991 to promote the cultural development of African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
youth through scholarships and educational programs. Tucker also launched, and served as publisher of the publication, ''Vital Issues: The Journal of African American Speeches''.
Media
In 1988 she made an extended appearance on a British television discussion programme, '' After Dark''.
Hip-hop/rap music
Tucker dedicated much of the last few years of her life to condemning sexually explicit lyrics in rap and hip-hop tracks, citing a concern that the lyrics were misogynistic
Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practiced f ...
and threatened the moral foundation of the African American community.
Called "narrow-minded" by some rappers who often mentioned her in their lyrics, Tucker picketed stores that sold rap
Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...
music and bought stock in Sony
, commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professiona ...
, Time Warner
Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States.
It was originally established in 1972 by ...
, and other companies in order to protest hip-hop at their shareholders' meetings. She also fought against the NAACP's decision to nominate late rapper Tupac Shakur
Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...
for one of its Image Awards and filed a $10 million lawsuit against his estate for comments that the rapper made in his song "How Do U Want It
"How Do U Want It" is a song by American rapper 2Pac from his fourth studio album, ''All Eyez on Me'' (1996). It was released on June 4, 1996 as a double a-sided single with " California Love" from the same album and was his final single to be re ...
?"[ on the album '']All Eyez on Me
''All Eyez on Me'' is the fourth studio album by American rapper 2Pac and the last to be released during his lifetime. Released on February 13, 1996, by Death Row and Interscope Records, the album features guest appearances from Dr. Dre, Sno ...
'', in which Shakur rapped ''"C. Delores Tucker you's a motherfucker / Instead of trying to help a nigga you destroy a brother"''. In her lawsuit, Tucker claimed that comments in this song, and on the track "Wonda Why They Call U Bitch" from the same album, inflicted emotional distress, were slanderous and invaded her privacy. This case was eventually dismissed.
Other rappers have taken similar stances. In his song " Church for Thugs", The Game raps "''I've got more hatred in my soul than Pac had for De'ores Tucker''." Jay-Z chimes in as well, with the lines "''I don't care if you're C. Dolores Tucker or you're Bill O'Reilly, you only riling me up''," from '' The Black Album's'' "Threat." Lil' Kim also referenced her in a leftover track, entitled "Rockin' It", from her second studio album. Kim raps "''C. Delores T., Screw her, I never knew her"'', after Tucker dubbed her music as "gangsta porno rap" and "filth".
Much of KRS-One and Channel Live
Channel Live is an American hip hop duo composed of Vincent "Tuffy" Morgan and Hakim Green, which recorded for Capitol Records and Flavor Unit Records.
Discovered by KRS-One, the duo released its debut album, ''Station Identification'', in 199 ...
's "Free Mumia" is a direct criticism of what the MCs see as Tucker's misplaced energy. Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman, joining ...
also referenced her a couple times, once on his leftover song "Million Dollar Baby" rapping "Can't be banned I'm sorry Miss Delores" and more recently on his Carter IV album song "Megaman" rapping "The heater ima Tucker, Tucker, like Delores." Tucker later went on to serve on the Advisory Board of the Parents Television Council
The Parents Television and Media Council (PTMC), formerly the Parents Television Council (PTC), is an American media advocacy group founded by conservative Christian activist L. Brent Bozell III in 1995, which advocates for what it considers ...
until her death in 2005. Eminem referenced her in the song "Rap Game" by D12 rapping "Tell that C. Delores Tucker slut to suck a dick".
Accolades
Selected as one of ''25 of the World's Most Intriguing People'' by ''People
A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...
'' magazine, Tucker was also selected as a ''People Magazine'' 1996 Yearbook Honoree, and was featured in the inaugural issue of John F. Kennedy, Jr.'s ''George
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...
'' magazine for her crusade against gangsta rap. In addition, she has been acknowledged for her deep concern for children by First Lady Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
in the book ''It Takes A Village
''It Takes a Village: And Other Lessons Children Teach Us'' is a book published in 1996 by First Lady of the United States Hillary Rodham Clinton. In it, Clinton presents her vision for the children of America. She focuses on the impact individu ...
''. The National Women's Political Caucus
The National Women's Political Caucus (NWPC), or the Caucus, describes itself as a multi-partisan grassroots organization in the United States dedicated to recruiting, training, and supporting women who seek elected and appointed offices at all ...
and '' Redbook'' also named her as the woman best qualified to be Ambassador to the United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
.
For five consecutive years, from 1972 through 1977, she was listed as among ''Ebony
Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus '' Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely textured and has a mirror finish when ...
'' magazine's ''100 Most Influential Black Americans''. During that period, she was listed as ''Ladies Home Journal
''Ladies' Home Journal'' was an American magazine last published by the Meredith Corporation. It was first published on February 16, 1883, and eventually became one of the leading women's magazines of the 20th century in the United States. In ...
'' Nominee for Woman of the Year in both 1975 and 1976. She was recognized by ''Ebony'' as one of the '100 Most Influential Black Organization Leaders' in the country in 2001 and 2002. Tucker was also a prominent member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.
On April 25, 2006, a state historical marker honoring Tucker was unveiled by Bill Tucker and Governor Ed Rendell
Edward Gene Rendell (; born January 5, 1944) is an American lawyer, prosecutor, politician, and author. He served as the 45th Governor of Pennsylvania from 2003 to 2011, as chair of the national Democratic Party, and as the 96th Mayor of Philad ...
in a ceremony at the State Museum of Pennsylvania, in Harrisburg
Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...
. In addition, it was announced that the North Building, which is adjacent to the State Capitol Building, was to be renamed the Secretary C. Delores Tucker Building. The state marker, which was commissioned by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC) is the governmental agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania responsible for the collection, conservation and interpretation of Pennsylvania's historic heritage. The commission cares fo ...
, was installed outside the entrance to the building.
The marker reads:
Personal life and death
In 1951, Tucker married William Tucker,[ a successful Philadelphia ]real estate
Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...
agent. Tucker herself had worked in real estate and insurance
Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...
sales early in her career. Tucker had no children. She died on Wednesday, October 12, 2005, at Suburban Woods Health Center in Norristown, Pennsylvania, at the age of 78. She is interred at West Laurel Hill Cemetery
West Laurel Hill Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1869, is 200 acres in size and contains the burials of many notable people. It is affiliated with Laurel Hill Cemetery in neighboring P ...
in Bala Cynwyd
Bala Cynwyd ( ) is a community in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania. It is located on the Philadelphia Main Line in Southeastern Pennsylvania, bordering the western edge of Philadelphia at U.S. Route 1 (City Avenue). It was originally two separ ...
, PA.
References
External links
Official Website of the Philadelphia Congress of the National Congress of Black Women
Delores Tuckers's oral history video excerpts
at The National Visionary Leadership Project
*
Interview of The Honorable C. Delores Tucker
1982-12-10, In Black America
Produced at KUT, ''In Black America'' is a long-running, nationally syndicated program dedicated to all facets of the African American experience. John L Hanson Jr. profiles a diverse selection of current and historically significant figures wh ...
, KUT Radio, American Archive of Public Broadcasting
The American Archive of Public Broadcasting (AAPB) is a collaboration between the Library of Congress and WGBH Educational Foundation, founded through the efforts of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The AAPB is a national effort to digital ...
( WGBH and the Library of Congress)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tucker, C. Delores
1927 births
2005 deaths
Criticism of hip-hop
Politicians from Philadelphia
American people of Bahamian descent
Secretaries of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Activists for African-American civil rights
Political activists from Pennsylvania
Philadelphia High School for Girls alumni
African-American women in politics
African-American gender relations in popular culture
Women in Pennsylvania politics
20th-century American politicians
Activists from Philadelphia
Pennsylvania Democrats
20th-century American women politicians
20th-century African-American women
20th-century African-American politicians
21st-century African-American people
21st-century African-American women