Erma Henderson

Erma Lois Henderson ( McQueen; August 20, 1917 – December 14, 2009) was an American politician and civil rights activist. She was the first African American woman elected to the Detroit City Council, and was the first African American elected president of the city council.

Henderson was a civil rights leader who fought for racial and gender equality. She founded a statewide coalition against redlining in 1975, which helped state legislation banning the practice pass in 1977.

Early life and education Erma Henderson was born on August 20, 1917, in Pensacola, Florida. Her mother, Rose McQueen, separated from her husband. Henderson would state in her memoir that she had no memories of her father. In 1918, Henderson and her family moved to Detroit, Michigan, as part of the Great Migration.

Henderson grew up in Black Bottom. She attended Eastern High School.

Career Henderson engaged with politics from an early age. At 17, she founded a women's auxiliary to a Republican Party club. Later, she would ally more with the Democratic Party.

In 1945, Henderson was campaign manager for Charles A. Hill's unsuccessful run for the Detroit City Council. She also served as the campaign manager for William Patrick in 1957. The successful campaign saw Patrick become the first African American member of the Detroit City Council in the 20th-century.

In July 1971, councilman Robert Tindal died, creating a vacancy on the Detroit City Council. Henderson filed her candidacy for the resultant special election on March 23, 1972. Henderson saw endorsements from organizations such as the Detroit Free Press, The Detroit News, the Michigan Chronicle, the United Auto Workers, and the AFL-CIO, as well as five incumbent city council members. Henderson defeated Kelley in the general by 7,409 out of a total of 333,787 votes cast. She was sworn in on November 27. She was the first African American woman elected to the Detroit City Council. She was the first African American to serve as president of the city council.

In 1973, Henderson founded the Women’s Conference of Concerns. It was an annual conference focused on political empowerment and community improvement. At its peak, the organization represented 250,000 women. Governor William Milliken signed the bill into law on November 7, 1977.

In 1989, Henderson ran for mayor of Detroit. She was defeated in the primary election by incumbent Mayor Coleman Young, who was seeking his fifth term in office. She served as delegation leader to the United Nations Decade for Women Conference in Nairobi, Kenya in 1985.

In 1990, Henderson was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame.

She had two children, a daughter and a son. By 1972, she had one grandchild. She was a member of the Divine Temple of Mental Science Church. She was a member of the Daughters of Elks. She was cremated and interred in a public mausoleum in Elmwood Cemetery.

In Detroit, a school, park, marina, and the city hall's auditorium are named for Henderson.