PHOTO | TROY HULL

U.S. Rep. Alma Adams of Charlotte, The Post’s Newsmaker of the Year, believes the power of women in politics will continue to grow on the local and national level as attitudes change. “If you look at the upbringing, at least during my era,” she said, “there was women's work and there was a man's work. Now, it's anybody who wants to do it and invest the time and work.”

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Historically black colleges have always been part of U.S. Rep. Alma Adams’ professional, personal and academic life.

The Post's Newsmaker of the Year has been a congressional crusader for the nation’s 106 HBCUs as well with the launch of the bipartisan HBCU Caucus and co-sponsor of the FUTURE Act, a $255 million appropriations bill that funds black colleges and minority-serving institutions. Education, however, isn’t the only issue on Adams’ agenda.

In an interview with The Post at her Charlotte congressional office, Adams discussed the ascension of women in American politics, working-class economics, remapping the 12th Congressional District and why she’s committed to campaigning for a third full term in Charlotte instead of Greensboro, where she graduated college (North Carolina A&T State University), worked (Bennett College) and won election to city council, school board and the General Assembly. Responses are edited for brevity and clarity.

The Post: Did you consider President Trump signing the FUTURE Act into law Trump last week a win for HBCUs?

Alma Adams: When our chancellors and presidents were invited to come up there (to meet with Trump in 2017), they really didn't get anything out of it. What he got was the photo op. And it’s kind of misleading folks, even on this particular FUTURE Act …you know you can hear him: ‘Oh I did more (for HBCUs),’ and he likes to compare himself with (former) President Obama and he wants to do it better, or at least he wants people to think he did better, so I'm sure we'll hear that.

We've been working on this issue for a long time, and that was one of my goals, in terms of going to the Congress was because I know the pain that our schools and our students have. And I know what our schools do for it can do for them because of what they did for me. But I just feel really good about that, 319 to 96, that was the vote. And I’m real proud of that.

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The Post: Can federal politicians still accomplish anything given the nation’s hyperpartisan tone?

Alma Adams: What the public sees a lot is things that we don't agree on and they don't oftentimes have an opportunity to see what we do get done. And I think that's you know that’s really painful because we are there to work on behalf of the public and get things done. We’ve gotten a lot done but you know when you don’t control both chambers, you can get something so we've got 275 bills that we sent to the Senate, including the last one, the last week that we that we named for Elijah Cummings the Lower Prescription Drug Prices Now Act that was the bill, how H.R. 3.

The Post: In addition to your work with HBCUs and advocating for them, looking at this year, which is on the way, what other issues stand out?

Alma Adams: The burials the African American burial cemetery project that we're doing we're getting with. It’s unbelievable that press across this country have contacted us about that bill. The African American burial grounds. Matter of fact, just last week I spoke to the press in Miami, Florida because they had a situation where a cemetery in African American Cemetery, a public housing community was built over that cemetery they didn't know it was cemetery there. So that was the crux for this bill, so that we could identify where the cemeteries are, they are sacred ground and yet you have a lot of building and people don't know that there are many of them have grown up they have they have no headstones, no markers. This bill would set up a network, a database that would help us to identify across this country, where they are and provide some funding their intentional grants that would help people if they want to restore them.

The Congressional Bipartisan HBCU Congress has done a number of things and we're getting ready in March to do STEAM day on the Hill. We will bring corporate folks in our HBCU presidents and students, so we can create those partnerships, we have put together the HBCU Partnership Challenge, challenging our businesses and tech companies to diversify their workforce to work with HBCUs when you hear diversity and inclusion so much these days.

You hear people saying, ‘We really we do need to diversify, we like to have more diversity, but we don't know,’ but the pipeline is really our HBCUs. I think we have about 30 corporations that have partnership with us, including in North Carolina Blue Cross Blue Shield. They finally came on as well, so I’m excited about what has happened and the things that we are looking forward to doing in the future.

The Post: Why the advocacy when it comes to HBCUs?

Alma Adams: I am what I am today. Because an HBCU made an investment in me, because of my mother and because of the good Lord giving me a sense of self. I’m the poor black girl that walked the streets of Newark, New Jersey, whose mom did domestic work. She did not have the opportunity to finish high school she didn’t go to an HBCU or any CU for that matter.

But she was smart enough to know that education would be my pathway. And she always said to me, ‘you're going to college,’ I didn't want to challenge my mother, because you know she’s ‘girl, I’ll slap you down.’ My mother was old school, so you know it didn't matter how old you were, but she would constantly tell me ‘you’re going to college.’ I'm first generation, the first person to attend college in my family.

Had it not been for an HBCU that saw something in me that molded and shaped me into what they knew I could become, that's why I advocate. Knowing the critical situations that many of them are first generation, trying to help them make a way to meet opportunity head on that's really what we need our kids at school, we just need an opportunity to get an opportunity. You’re going to see success come out of that.

The Post: What other issues drive you?
Alma Adams: We’re doing so much more with less. Never got we've never received equity in terms of funding, give you an example of the kinds of things that happen to people don't even think about. I sit on the Higher Education Committee. I also sit I sit on Education and Labor –  that's my major committee. And on the labor side I chair workforce protection, so you know I have a real interest in making sure that workers are cared for and that they are able to earn what they need to earn.

…Why? Because my mother never made a minimum wage. She never had, we never had, health care. My sister, her doctor was in the emergency room. I got up three, four o'clock in the morning with my mother to go with her to the emergency room. The things that I worked for on behalf of people are things that I have experienced myself. I think that there’s such a lack of sensitivity on the part of our elected members of Congress.

They can write a check to send their kids to school. They don't have to worry about whether or not they have food in the refrigerator. They don't have to scrimp and save and they don't have to worry about, well, do I get my prescriptions filled today, or do I buy some groceries this week. And if I get my prescriptions filled, can I take them as prescribed, or am I gonna have to divide them up and so forth.

The Post: You’ve been in the House of Representatives five years now. The recent court rulings that taste the shape of all the districts again. Early on, you made it known that whatever the 12th looks like, you will continue to represent Charlotte, as opposed to potentially going back to Guilford County. Why did you make that statement?

Alma Adams: Well first of all, Charlotte over these past five years has made a commitment to me. And I just believe that I wanted to show this community just as I did early on by moving here and I didn't have to move here you know the law says you must live in the state or your district not in your district. But I wanted to dispel all of the rumors. But even though I wasn't from here, didn't grow up in Charlotte, I wanted this community to know that I was committed to serving them.

I still have a base in Greensboro and that's fine and the people still support me and would have supported me if I were going back. But I felt like I needed to not only fulfill my obligation of service, I was just brought up to have a sense of integrity about what you do, and I have grown to love this community. I'm still struggling with the traffic, like everybody else, but the people have been so warm to me. We got past that hurdle. And I just feel a lot of love and support here. And this is where I'm hanging my hat.

The Post: The other thing in these five years, is the growth in terms of women who are going into politics on the local and national level. And it looks like Democrats are making a bigger jump at it than Republicans, especially in Congress. Are you are you surprised by that growth in terms of the impact women are having, not only as office holders, but in actually deciding elections?

Alma Adams: Women have always been smart. I think it was (former British Prime Minister) Margaret Thatcher who said in politics if you want something said, you ask a man but if you want something done you ask a woman. We are doers, we multitask all of our lives, taking care of our families, and really investing more in other folks than we have in ourselves. And when you look at the laws that are being made, every single law impacts women and families.

Everything that we do, whether it's about education or health care, it's going to impact us. For a long time, I don't think women really thought so much about that we left the work up to the men. If you look at the upbringing, at least during my era, there was women's work and there was a man's work. Now, it's anybody who wants to do it and invest the time and work.

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