Alyce Griffin Clarke (born July 3, 1939) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

politician. 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 (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

, she is a former member of the

Mississippi House of Representatives The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the U.S. state of Mississippi. According to the state constitution of 1890, it is to comprise no more than 122 members elected for ...

from the 69th district, being first elected in 1984 and serving until 2024. She was the first black woman elected to the

Mississippi Legislature The Mississippi Legislature is the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The bicameral Legislature is composed of the Lower house, lower Mississippi House of Representatives, with 122 members, and ...

Early life

Clarke was born on July 3, 1939, in

Yazoo City, Mississippi Yazoo City is the county seat of Yazoo County, Mississippi, Yazoo County, Mississippi, United States. It was named after the Yazoo River, which, in turn was named by the French explorer Robert La Salle in 1682 as "Rivière des Yazous" in referen ...

. She received a bachelor's degree from

Alcorn State University Alcorn State University (Alcorn State, ASU or Alcorn) is a public historically black land-grant university adjacent to Lorman, Mississippi. It was founded in 1871 and was the first black land grant college established in the United States. ...

and a master's degree from

Tuskegee Institute Tuskegee University (Tuskegee or TU; formerly known as the Tuskegee Institute) is a Private university, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Tuskegee, Alabama, United States. It was f ...

. She also attended

Jackson State University Jackson State University (Jackson State or JSU) is a Public university, public Historically Black colleges and universities, historically black research university in Jackson, Mississippi. It is a member of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and ...

and

Mississippi College Mississippi College (MC) is a private university affiliated with the Mississippi Baptist Convention and located in Clinton, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1826, MC is the second oldest Baptists, Baptist-affiliated college or university in ...

. Prior running for office, Clarke worked in education, teaching

home economics Home economics, also called domestic science or family and consumer sciences (often shortened to FCS or FACS), is a subject concerning human development, personal and family finances, consumer issues, housing and interior design, nutrition and f ...

. She also worked as a nutritionist at a community health center in

Hinds County Hinds County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. With its county seats (Raymond, Mississippi, Raymond and the state's capital, Jackson, Mississippi, Jackson), Hinds is the most populous county in Missis ...

.The Political Lives of Mississippi Women, in Black and White
by Ellen Ann Fentress; at Bitter Southerner; retrieved November 1, 2018 She married L.W. Clarke Jr and they had one child, Demarquis Johntrell.

Political career

Clarke was first elected to the

for the 69th district in 1984. She was the first black woman elected to the

. She worked on bringing the federal Women, Infants and Children food program to the state, setting up drug courts and organizing school breakfasts. In the 1990s, she founded a short-lived "biracial, bipartisan" Women's Caucus in the Mississippi House. She retired at the

2023 Mississippi elections The 2023 Mississippi elections took place on November 7, 2023, with the primary on August 8 and any required runoffs on August 29. All executive offices in the state up for election, as well as all 52 seats of the Mississippi State Senate, all 1 ...

in November.

Personal life

In 1981, she was diagnosed with

multiple sclerosis Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease resulting in damage to myelinthe insulating covers of nerve cellsin the brain and spinal cord. As a demyelinating disease, MS disrupts the nervous system's ability to Action potential, transmit ...

Legacy

In 2024, she became the first woman and the first black person to have their portrait on display in the

Mississippi State Capitol The Mississippi State Capitol or the “New Capitol,” has been the seat of the state’s government since it succeeded the old Mississippi State House in 1903. Located in the centrally-located state capital / capital city of Jackson, in H ...

. Her portrait is an oil painting, and is in the room of the Capitol where the House Education Committee meets.

References

1939 births Living people Democratic Party members of the Mississippi House of Representatives People from Yazoo City, Mississippi People with multiple sclerosis Women state legislators in Mississippi African-American state legislators in Mississippi 20th-century American women politicians 21st-century members of the Mississippi Legislature 21st-century American women politicians 20th-century African-American politicians 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century American educators 21st-century American educators Educators with disabilities American politicians with disabilities 20th-century members of the Mississippi Legislature {{Mississippi-politician-stub