Walter Blackman (born 1965/1966) is an American politician serving as a member of the Arizona House of Representatives from the 6th district. He is the first Black Republican elected to the Arizona State Legislature. Blackman served 21 years in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

, earning a

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

for combat action as a

tank commander A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engi ...

in Iraq.

Early life and education

Blackman was born on an Army base in

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, where his father served as an officer in the

United States Air Force Security Forces The United States Air Force Security Forces (SF) are the ground combat force and military police service of the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force. USAF Security Forces (SF) were formerly known as Military Police (MP), Air Police (AP), and Se ...

. He was raised in

Wiesbaden, Germany Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

Career

Blackman served in the

for 21 years as a front line

, and a sexual harassment and assault prevention Senior Program Manager specialist. He earned a

for combat action in Iraq, and a

Meritorious Service Medal A Meritorious Service Medal is an award presented to denote acts of meritorious service, and sometimes gallantry, that are worthy of recognition. Notable medals with similar names include: * Meritorious Civilian Service Award *Meritorious Service Me ...

. From 2016 to 2018, he was the founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer of WB Inclusion and Diversity Consulting Firm, LLC in

Snowflake, Arizona Snowflake is a town in Navajo County, Arizona, United States. It was founded in 1878 by Erastus Snow and William Jordan Flake, Mormon pioneers It has frequently been noted on lists of unusual place names. According to 2010 Census, the popula ...

."State Financial Disclosure Statement,"
March 16, 2020.

Political career

Blackman was elected in 2018 to succeed term-limited Arizona State Representative Brenda Barton as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

member of the Arizona House of Representatives representing

district 6 District Six is a place in Cape Town, South Africa. District Six may also refer to: :Government divisions * District 6, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam * District 6 (New York City Council), in the United States * VI District, Turku, in Finland * Distri ...

. He is the first Black Republican elected to the Arizona Legislature. He supports

criminal justice reform Criminal justice reform addresses structural issues in criminal justice systems such as racial profiling, police brutality, overcriminalization, mass incarceration, and recidivism. Criminal justice reform can take place at any point where the cr ...

. He is chair of the Ad Hoc Committee on Earned Release Credits for Prisoners, Vice Chair of the Judiciary Committee, Vice Chair of the State and International Affairs Committee, and a Member of the Education Commission of the States, Government Committee, and Regulatory Affairs Committee. In February 2020, the Arizona House unanimously approved a bill he proposed that would give all non-violent offense state prisoners time off their sentences if they work in prison, or take drug treatment or major self-improvement courses in prison. Commenting on the

murder of George Floyd On , George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was murdered in the U.S. city of Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white police officer. Floyd had been arrested on suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill. Chauvin knelt on Floyd's ...

and also highlighting Floyd's criminal record, Blackman said on Facebook: "I DO NOT support George Floyd and I refuse to see him as a martyr. But I hope his family receives justice." Blackman also called the

Black Lives Matter Black Lives Matter (abbreviated BLM) is a decentralized political and social movement that seeks to highlight racism, discrimination, and racial inequality experienced by black people. Its primary concerns are incidents of police br ...

movement a "terrorist organization", likened it to the Ku Klux Klan and questioned whether police brutality existed. In reaction, the Arizona branches of the American Friends Service Committee and the

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...

of Arizona said they would no longer work with him. Following the 2020 United States presidential election, Blackman supported the "

Stop the Steal After Joe Biden won the 2020 United States presidential election, then-incumbent Donald Trump pursued an unprecedented effort to overturn the election, with support and assistance from his campaign, proxies, political allies, and many of h ...

" movement which falsely claimed that

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

won the election nationally and in Arizona. In 2022, Blackman said he and his family were the victims of a racist smear campaign driven by the far-right website '' The Gateway Pundit'' over his refusal to support overturning the 2020 presidential election. He said that after he gave an interview in which he argued that it would be unconstitutional for state legislators to "decertify" the results of the 2020 presidential election, his daughter received a text message calling him a

racial epithet The following is a list of ethnic slurs or ethnophaulisms or ethnic epithets that are, or have been, used as insinuations or allegations about members of a given ethnicity or racial group or to refer to them in a derogatory, pejorative, or oth ...

and a "RINO" ( Republican in Name Only).

2022 U.S. House campaign

In March 2021, Blackman announced his candidacy for Arizona's 2nd congressional district in the 2022 elections. In a September 2021 speech, Blackman said, "The Proud Boys came to one of my events and that was one of the proudest moments of my life." When asked to comment on his remarks, Blackman condemned the Proud Boys, a far-right group that engages in political violence, saying, "At the time of the rally, wasn't familiar with the totality and breadth of the Proud Boys conduct, which I unequivocally condemn." In a seven-way Republican primary race, Blackman finished second to winner

Eli Crane Elijah James Crane (born January 3, 1980) is an American politician and businessman serving as the U.S. representative from Arizona's 2nd congressional district since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, Crane served in the United States ...

Personal life

Blackman and his wife have five children. His wife works at the Northern Arizona Council of Government.

References

External links

Walter Blackman at Arizona State Legislature
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackman, Walter 1960s births 21st-century American politicians African-American state legislators in Arizona Black conservatism in the United States Candidates in the 2022 United States House of Representatives elections Critics of Black Lives Matter Living people Republican Party members of the Arizona House of Representatives People from Snowflake, Arizona United States Army officers United States Army personnel of the Iraq War