Lucien Edward Blackwell (August 1, 1931 – January 24, 2003) was an American boxer, longshoreman, and politician. He served as a Democratic member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

from 1973 to 1975,

Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council, the legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consists of ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large. The council president is elected by the members from among their number. Each ...

from 1975 to 1991, and the

United States House of Representatives 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from 1991 to 1995.

Early life

Blackwell was born in Whitsett,

Fayette County, Pennsylvania Fayette County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in southwestern Pennsylvania, adjacent to Maryland and West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 128,804. Its county seat is Uniontown. The county w ...

on August 1, 1931. After attending

West Philadelphia High School West Philadelphia High School is a secondary school located in the West Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the intersection of 49th Street and Chestnut Street. History The original West Philadelphia High School (WPHS) building ...

, he took a job as a dockworker and briefly pursued a career as a boxer. In 1953, he was drafted into the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

and served in the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. Blackwell was a

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

champion during his years in the Army. After his service ended, he returned to the docks as a longshoreman. In 1973, he became the president of the

International Longshoremen's Association The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) is a North American labor union representing longshore workers along the East Coast of the United States and Canada, the Gulf Coast, the Great Lakes, Puerto Rico, and inland waterways. The ILA h ...

, Local 1332.

Pennsylvania politics

Blackwell's professional political career began with election to the

where he served from 1973 to 1975.

Philadelphia City Council

"Lucien the Solution" was best known as a vibrant member of the

from 1975 to 1991. While serving on the Council, Blackwell served several terms as Chairman of the Finance Committee, where he led the charge to divest

pension A pension (, from Latin ''pensiō'', "payment") is a fund into which a sum of money is added during an employee's employment years and from which payments are drawn to support the person's retirement from work in the form of periodic payments ...

funds from businesses doing business in South Africa. Blackwell also sponsored the Philadelphia's first law to create opportunities for minorities and women to compete to obtain city contracts. Blackwell was also heavily involved in legislation to create the

Pennsylvania Convention Center The Pennsylvania Convention Center is a multi-use public facility in the Market East section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, designed to accommodate conventions, exhibitions, conferences and other events. The "L"-shaped complex occupies four city ...

and in passing the law that broke Philadelphia's long-standing building height limit, allowing for the construction of Philadelphia's

One Liberty Place Liberty Place is a skyscraper complex in Philadelphia. The complex is composed of a 61-story, skyscraper called One Liberty Place, a 58-story, skyscraper called Two Liberty Place, a two-story shopping mall called the Shops at Liberty Place, a ...

. Blackwell was perhaps best known for his fiery oratory on the Council floor and for serving as a mentor to the former Philadelphia Mayor (and Council President) John Street. During his City Council tenure, Blackwell was an unsuccessful candidate for mayor of Philadelphia in both 1979 and 1991.

United States House of Representatives

Blackwell 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 ...

to the One Hundred Second Congress by special election to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Representative Bill Gray, and reelected to the succeeding Congress. In Congress, Blackwell was a member of the

United States House Committee on the Budget The United States House Committee on the Budget, commonly known as the House Budget Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. Its responsibilities include legislative oversight of the federal budget process, ...

and a reliable advocate for President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

's economic policies. Blackwell was ultimately an unsuccessful candidate for renomination to the One Hundred Fourth Congress in

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...

, losing the primary to

Chaka Fattah Chaka Fattah (born Arthur Davenport; November 21, 1956) is an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the U.S. House for from 1995 to 2016. The district included portions of North Philadelphia, South Philadelphia, and West P ...

, and served as lobbyist following his tenure in Congress.

Death and legacy

On January 24, 2003, Blackwell died at the age of 71. A mural reading "Thank you, Mr. Blackwell", can be seen at 42nd Street and Haverford Avenue in West Philadelphia. Blackwell's widow,

Jannie Blackwell Jannie L. Blackwell is the Vice Chair of the Philadelphia Democratic Party and a former member of the Philadelphia City Council. She represented the Third District, which covers much of West Philadelphia and Southwest Philadelphia, including Un ...

, was formerly a member of the

, also representing the Third District, and his son,

Thomas Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

, was a former member of the

References

External links

Retrieved on 2008-07-20 *
The Political Graveyard
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Blackwell, Lucien E. 1931 births 2003 deaths Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives African-American state legislators in Pennsylvania United States Army personnel of the Korean War Philadelphia City Council members African-American members of the United States House of Representatives International Longshoremen's Association people American trade union leaders African-American United States Army personnel Military personnel from Philadelphia Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania United States Army soldiers 20th-century American politicians 20th-century African-American politicians African-American men in politics 21st-century African-American people African Americans in the Korean War