On Nov. 4, 1952, Cora Brown became the first African-American woman to win a seat as a state senator not only in Michigan, but also in the nation. An alumna of Fisk University and Wayne State University Law School, Brown was also a social worker and a police officer before entering politics. For two terms, she fought for civil rights, switching parties from Democratic to Republican. She was appointed assistant general counsel to the U.S postmaster general where she fought the distribution of pornography. She died in 1972. Article includes a photo of Brown.