Gerald Anthony Neal (born September 22, 1945) is an American politician and attorney. He is a
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
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*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
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member of the
Kentucky Senate
The Kentucky Senate is the upper house of the Kentucky General Assembly. The Kentucky Senate is composed of 38 members elected from single-member districts throughout the Commonwealth. There are no term limits for Kentucky Senators. The Kentu ...
, representing District 33 since January 1989.
Life and career
Born September 22, 1945, Gerald Anthony Neal is a Kentucky State Senator and attorney-at-law. He graduated from
Shawnee High School (Kentucky) in 1963 and
Kentucky State University in 1967 with a
B.A.
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
in History and Political Science, and was later bestowed an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters.
Neal received a
J.D. in 1972 from the
Brandeis School of Law, University of Louisville, and was later named the 2006 Distinguished Alumni Law Fellow. Neal pursued graduate studies in Political Science at the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
, and later returned to Kentucky to begin his legal career.
Neal and his wife Kathy have two children Brandon and Kristin.
Career
Neal was appointed Senior Fellow of Public Policy and Adjunct Professor in the College of Arts & Sciences, at the University of Louisville, where he taught/teaches courses in History, State and Local Government, Health and Welfare Policy, Civil Rights & the Law(including voter, housing, employment, education, and criminal justice). Neal is a practicing attorney with the law firm, Gerald A. Neal & Associates, LLC., in Louisville (KY).
Neal is the founder of the Kentucky African American All Children's Caucus which was dedicated to addressing issues of educational diversity, and the promotion of high educational standards facilitated by appropriate methodologies. He also is the founder of The African American Community Agenda Initiative (AAI) which focus on policy research, development, and community education. AAI brings together top policy makers and implementers for the purpose of engagement, analysis, and policy scrutiny leading to change.
Neal was elected to represent District 33 (in
Jefferson County), being the second African American to serve, and first African American man elected to the Kentucky State Senate. Senator Neal was first elected in 1989 and has since been re-elected consecutively over the years. This represents the longest service of any African American member of the Kentucky General Assembly. He was elected Senate Democratic Caucus Chairman (2014), becoming the first African American elected to a leadership position in the history of
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...
.
Neal was inducted into the Kentucky Civil Rights Hall of Fame (2001), and the Gallery of Great Black Kentuckians (2012). He has served as vice president, regional director and parliamentarian of the
National Bar Association
The National Bar Association (NBA) was founded in 1925 and is the nation's oldest and largest national network of predominantly African-American attorneys and judges. It represents the interests of approximately 65,000 lawyers, judges, law profess ...
, and as president of the Kentucky Chapter of the National Bar Association. He is a member of the
Kentucky Bar Association
The Kentucky Bar Association (KBA) is the integrated (mandatory) bar association of the U.S. state of Kentucky.
History
In 1871, the first meeting of lawyers from across Kentucky was held in Louisville and created a voluntary association.
In ...
and is a Louisville and Kentucky Bar Association Fellow.
Neal has served as assistant director of Public Health and Safety for the
City of Louisville, was a hearing officer for the State Workers' Compensation Board and worked as a juvenile
probation officer
A probation and parole officer is an official appointed or sworn to investigate, report on, and supervise the conduct of convicted offenders on probation or those released from incarceration to community supervision such as parole. Most probati ...
. He served five terms as chair of the Louisville-Jefferson County Metropolitan Sewer District, where he increased the transparency of the agency, opening it to public scrutiny and involvement.
Legislation
In the Kentucky Senate, he has sponsored legislation requiring school districts to focus on equal educational opportunities. He is the founder of the Kentucky Education Reform African American and All Children's Caucus. He sponsored the law that created the KCHIP Program to provide health care coverage for more of Kentucky's uninsured children and expanded
Medicaid
Medicaid in the United States is a federal and state program that helps with healthcare costs for some people with limited income and resources. Medicaid also offers benefits not normally covered by Medicare, including nursing home care and pers ...
coverage for children. He sponsored laws that required the identification of the special needs of the minority elderly population and created the African American Heritage Commission. He sponsored legislation amending the Kentucky Constitution to remove segregation by race, prohibit racial profiling by law enforcement, and prohibit the execution of a person when evidence shows racial bias in prosecution.
On May 27, 2010, the Senate adopted Senator Neal's resolution reaffirming the principles of equality preserved in the
U. S. Constitution, the
Civil Rights Act of 1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 () is a landmark civil rights and United States labor law, labor law in the United States that outlaws discrimination based on Race (human categorization), race, Person of color, color, religion, sex, and nationa ...
, and the Kentucky Civil Rights Act of 1966. The resolution states that the Senate "recognizes the need for equality of all persons in the United States, and in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and the protection of that equality."
Health
Neal was hospitalized in Louisville with
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
on September 7, 2020.
Honors and awards
Senator Neal has received many honors and commendations for his distinguished service to community, the legal profession, and as a Kentucky State Legislator. Among his honors for distinguished service are the Clarence Mitchell Award from the Kentucky State Conference of NAACP Branches for his support of Civil Rights legislation; the Anderson Laureate Award for his impact on his community, state, and nation; the 1998 Man of the Year from
Sigma Pi Phi
Sigma Pi Phi (), also known as The Boulé, founded in 1904, is the oldest fraternity for African Americans among those named with Greek letters. The fraternity does not have collegiate chapters and is designed for professionals at mid-career or o ...
fraternity-Psi Boule chapter; the 2001 Distinguished Citizen Award from the
Kappa Alpha Psi
Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. Since the fraternity's founding on January 5, 1911 at Indiana University Bloomington, the fraternity has never restricted membership on the basis of color, creed ...
fraternity; the Georgia Davis Powers Humanitarian Award; the Public Advocate Award for passage of legislation to Abolish Racial Profiling; the Kentucky Public Advocates Award for passage of the Racial Justice Act; and the Nelson Mandela Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kentucky Department of Public Advocacy. He served as a
United Nations observer and Monitor for the historic April 1994 all- race elections in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. He is a 2001 inductee of the Kentucky Civil Rights Hall of Fame.
References
External links
Kentucky Legislature - Senator Gerald Neal official KY Senate website
Project Vote Smart - Senator Gerald A. Neal (MT)profile
*''Follow the Money'' - Gerald A Neal
20062004200220001996
campaign contributions
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neal, Gerald
1945 births
20th-century African-American people
21st-century African-American politicians
21st-century American politicians
African-American state legislators in Kentucky
Democratic Party Kentucky state senators
Living people
Politicians from Louisville, Kentucky