REP. FREDERICA S. WILSON (D-FL)
Frederica Smith Wilson (born Frederica Patricia Smith, November 5, 1942) is a politician who has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since 2011, representing Florida’s 24th congressional district. Located in South Florida, Wilson’s congressional district, numbered as the 17th during her first term, covers a large swath of eastern Miami-Dade County and a sliver of southern Broward County. Included within the district are most of the majority-black precincts of Miami, as well as portions of Opa-locka, North Miami, Hollywood, and Miramar. She gained national attention in early 2012 as a result of her high-profile comments on the death of Trayvon Martin.
Wilson is a member of the Democratic Party. The seat to which she was elected became available when the incumbent Kendrick Meek ran for a seat in the Senate in 2010.
Wilson is known for her large and colorful hats, of which she owns several hundred. She has gone through efforts to get Congress to lift its ban on head coverings during House sessions. That rule dates back to 1837, 80 years before the first woman took her seat in Congress.
Wilson was born Frederica Smith on November 5, 1942, in Miami, Florida, the daughter of Beulah (née Finley) and Thirlee Smith. Her maternal grandparents were Bahamian. Wilson earned her bachelor of arts degree from Fisk University in 1963, and her master of arts degree from the University of Miami in 1972.[9] She served as the principal of Skyway Elementary School in Miami. In 1992 she left her position as principal to serve on the Miami-Dade County School Board. While a member of the school board, Wilson started 5,000 Role Models of Excellence, an in-school mentoring program.
