John Lesinski Jr. (December 28, 1914 in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

– October 21, 2005 in Dearborn) was a

U.S. Congressman The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

for seven terms from the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

. He was the son of

John Lesinski Sr. John Lesinski Sr. (January 3, 1885 – May 27, 1950) was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan. He was the father of John Lesinski Jr., who succeeded him in the United States House of Representatives. Early life Lesinski was born in Erie ...

He was of Polish descent.

Life and career

Lesinski was born in

. At the age of eleven years, he moved with his parents to Dearborn. He attended parochial schools,

SS. Cyril and Methodius Seminary SS. Cyril and Methodius Seminary is a four-year private Polish seminary in Orchard Lake, Michigan, United States. The seminary, taking its name from Saints Cyril and Methodius, was founded in 1885 in Detroit, Michigan, to prepare candidates for ...

in Orchard Lake, and graduated from

Fordson High School Fordson High School is a secondary school located in Dearborn, Michigan, United States in Greater Detroit. It was completed in 1928 on a parcel of land which was then the village of Fordson, named for Henry Ford and his son Edsel Ford. It is a p ...

in Dearborn. At the age of eighteen years, he enlisted in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

as an apprentice seaman and served from 1933 to 1937. He was called to active duty again in February 1941, and served during World War II until October 1945. He was awarded the

Navy and Marine Corps Medal The Navy and Marine Corps Medal is the highest non-combat decoration awarded for heroism by the United States Department of the Navy to members of the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. The medal was established by an act of Congr ...

and

Purple Heart Medal The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

. He was vice president of Hamtramck Lumber Company from 1939 to 1943 and again from 1951 to 1954, as well as president of Dearborn Properties. Lesinski's father, John Lesinski Sr., died in May 1950, leaving his seat in

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

vacant. In November 1950, Lesinski Jr. was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

from Michigan's 16th congressional district to the

82nd United States Congress The 82nd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 19 ...

and to the six succeeding Congresses, serving from January 3, 1951, to January 3, 1965. He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination to the

89th Congress The 89th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1965, ...

in 1964, losing to fellow Democrat

John Dingell John David Dingell Jr. (July 8, 1926 – February 7, 2019) was an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1955 until 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he holds the record for longest ...

. Lesinski was one of the few Northern Democrats to oppose 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 ...

. Dingell was the incumbent

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Michigan's 15th congressional district Michigan's 15th congressional district is an obsolete congressional district in the state of Michigan. Historically, the district's politics have been dominated by the Dingell family since its creation after the 1930 United States census. It ...

, but portions of the 16th and the 15th districts were combined into a redrawn 16th district for the 1964 elections. He was a member of the board of commissioners of Wayne County from 1968 to 1973.

References

The Political GraveyardRemarks by John Dingell Jr. on the death of John Lesinski Jr.

Life and career

References

Further reading