Hilda Solis was born in Los Angeles in 1957 to Raul, a union steward who immigrated to the US from Mexico and Juana, an assembly line worker who was originally from Nicaragua. She graduated with a Bachelor’s from California State Polytechnic, Pomona in 1979 and a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Southern California in 1981. She worked in President Carter’s administration in the Office of Hispanic Affairs and later went on to work as an analyst in the Office of Management and Budget in the Civil Rights Division. In 1992 she was elected to the California State Legislature as the first woman to represent the San Gabriel Valley. In 1994 she was elected to the upper house of the legislature, the state senate and became the first Latina and youngest state senator. She was a pioneer for environmental justice during her tenure in the State Senate and won the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for her work. She continued her environmental work when she was elected to represent California’s 32nd district in the U.S Congress in 2000 and co-authored the Green Jobs Act. In 2009 President Barack Obama appointed her to serve in his cabinet as the Secretary of Labor. She was the first Latina to serve on the United States Cabinet. She resigned in 2013 and went on to be elected as the Los Angeles County Supervisor for District 1 and was re-elected in 2018.
The_Californian_Fri__Dec_19__2008_-1| Title | “Obama fills out labor, trade lineup” |
|---|---|
| Date | December 19, 2008 |
| Source | The Californian |
The_Los_Angeles_Times_Sat__Sep_3__2011_
| Title | “Patt Morrison Asks Hilda Solis” |
|---|---|
| Date | September 03, 2011 |
| Source | The Los Angeles Times |
Sources:
“Hilda Solis tapped for secretary of labor,” Visalia Times-Delta, December 19, 2008.
http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/ca32_solis/morenews4/cajournal.html