If Democratic presidential candidate Carol Moseley Braun won the election, she would be the first black person and the first woman to become president.
Braun spoke Wednesday at AU's Washington College of Law to a crowd of more than 200 people about her background in politics, emphasizing that equality needs to be in front of the law.
"It's time to take the 'Men Only' sign off the White House door," Braun said. "We will have a woman president when a woman gets one more vote than the next guy."
Braun was invited to speak by the Black Law Students Association, a group that promotes the fuller understanding of the legal and social issues of special concern to the black community and black law students.
She is no stranger to becoming a first. She became the first black woman and first black Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate in 1992 and, thus far, the only one. She was the first black person to hold executive office in Cook County, Ill., government and the first black woman in Illinois history to serve as assistant majority leader.
"She is a good representative for the BSLA," Association President Traci Hale said. "Not only is she a minority but she is a woman ... and the school was founded by a woman, so I think that she appeals even more to the students of the school."
Braun, a Chicago native, grew up in the household of a law enforcement officer and a medical technician. Graduating from the University of Chicago School of Law, she worked as a prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney's Office, became a representative in the Illinois House and later worked in the Office of the Recorder of Deeds in Cook County. After losing reelection to the Senate, she was confirmed as Ambassador to New Zealand.
Throughout her career, Braun said she has made a number of contributions in her career. Her top priority has been education.
"Let us talk about education in terms of a public good ... and not a private good," Braun said.
Among other things to her credit, she barred Illinois from investing funds in South Africa until the apartheid system was abolished. She also legislated to restore women's pension equity and the interest deduction on college loans, and worked to preserve the one-dollar coin.
"[Women have] a long way to go ... we haven't reached equality yet," Braun said, who discussed inequality in salaries in both gender and race.
As well as reflecting on her past, students had the opportunity to ask Braun about her opinions on several platforms.
Braun believes that gay marriages should be allowed, comparing them to the biracial marriages that were once under public scrutiny. Braun is also an active supporter of D.C. statehood.
"Supporting statehood is natural," Braun said. "It's like supporting voting for women."
She also commented on the petition for birth control coverage at AU, saying that she would be honored to support the cause and sign the petition.
When students asked about changes to the Constitution, she said that public opinion is very important in court decisions.
"Climate of opinion is like any weather system," Braun said, "like hot air arises from the ground."
Braun said that American politics today use issues that act as wedges to divide people.
"In my opinion, [using these wedge issues] ... is very un-American," Braun said, explaining how the issues are emphasized in the campaign and in the public eye.
