Former slave Joseph Hayne Rainey entered the Capitol building as the first African American member of the U.S House of Representatives in December 1870. His great-granddaughter can only wonder what that was like for him. “He was the only one, the only Black man,” Lorna Rainey told VOA. She was just three years old when family members began sharing stories about Joseph Rainey’s place in history. “You know, there was something inside of him that said, ‘I’m not going to quit, and once I get to Washington, just watch what I’m going to do,’” she said. Bobby Donaldson said, “Joseph Rainey is someone who can be described as the founding father of our nation.” Donaldson is a history professor at the University of South Carolina. “He…helped to envision a nation following emancipation during this…era called Reconstruction,” Donaldson told VOA. The Reconstruction Era is the ten year period after the American Civil War. The United States struggled to reunite the North and the South and to establish the legal rights of African Americans during that time.
Title: The First Black US Congressman
Content: <div id='article-page'><div id='article-content' data-media-url='//news-app-staging.s3.amazonaws.com' data-base-url='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/A.wav' data-capture-url='//staging.analytics.lingraphica.com/events/capture_news' data-article-title='The First Black US Congressman' data-article-id='5455'><script src='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/javascripts/getscripts.js'></script><link rel='stylesheet' href='//news-app-staging.herokuapp.com/stylesheets/article.css' type='text/css' /><div class='article'><p><span data-start-time='0' data-end-time='18083'>Former slave Joseph Hayne Rainey entered the Capitol building as the first African American member of the U.S House of Representatives in December 1870.</span> <span data-start-time='18083' data-end-time='24854'>His great-granddaughter can only wonder what that was like for him.</span> <span data-start-time='24854' data-end-time='32333'> “He was the only one, the only Black man,” Lorna Rainey told VOA.</span> <span data-start-time='32333' data-end-time='42438'>She was just three years old when family members began sharing stories about Joseph Rainey’s place in history.</span> <span data-start-time='42438' data-end-time='55125'>“You know, there was something inside of him that said, ‘I’m not going to quit, and once I get to Washington, just watch what I’m going to do,’” she said.</span> <span data-start-time='55125' data-end-time='64646'>Bobby Donaldson said, “Joseph Rainey is someone who can be described as the founding father of our nation.”</span> <span data-start-time='64646' data-end-time='71208'>Donaldson is a history professor at the University of South Carolina.</span> <span data-start-time='71208' data-end-time='83375'> “He…helped to envision a nation following emancipation during this…era called Reconstruction,” Donaldson told VOA.</span> <span data-start-time='83375' data-end-time='90583'>The Reconstruction Era is the ten year period after the American Civil War.</span> <span data-start-time='90583' data-end-time='102083'> The United States struggled to reunite the North and the South and to establish the legal rights of African Americans during that time.</span> </p></div><div class='control-buttons-sticky' style='display:none;'><div class='control-buttons'><button title='Back' class='back' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Play' class='play' disabled='disabled'></button><button title='Pause' class='pause' style='display:none;'></button><button title='Forward' class='forward' disabled='disabled'></button><button class='finished-reading' style='display:none;'>Done</button></div></div></div><div id='article-media'><div id='media-image'><img src='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/A.jpg'/></div></div><div id='question-content' style='display:none;'><div class='vocabulary_question question-container' data-question-id=16935 data-hint-location='83375' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/what_was_the_reconstruction_era.wav'>What was the Reconstruction Era?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='the ten year period after the Civil War'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/the_ten_year_period_after_the_civil_war.wav'><span>the ten year period after the Civil War</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/the_rebuilding_of_new_orleans_after_hurricane_katrina.wav'><span>the rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/an_amendment_to_the_us_constitution.wav'><span>an amendment to the U.S. Constitution</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/the_five_year_period_after_the_spanish_american_war.wav'><span>the five year period after the Spanish American War</span></div></div></div><div class='multiple_choice_question question-container' data-question-id=16936 data-hint-location='55125' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/how_can_joseph_rainey_be_described.wav'>How can Joseph Rainey be described?</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='as a founding father of our nation'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/as_an_influential_educator.wav'><span>as an influential educator</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/as_an_activist.wav'><span>as an activist</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/as_a_founding_father_of_our_nation.wav'><span>as a founding father of our nation</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/as_a_student.wav'><span>as a student</span></div></div></div><div class='sentence_completion_question question-container' data-question-id=16937 data-hint-location='0' style='display:none;'><div class='question' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/joseph_hayne_rainey_was_the_first_african_american_member_of__blank_.wav'>Joseph Hayne Rainey was the first African American member of <span class='blank'>the U.S House of Representatives</span>.</div><div class='choices' data-correct-choice='the U.S House of Representatives'><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/the_supreme_court.wav'><span>the Supreme Court</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/the_us_house_of_representatives.wav'><span>the U.S House of Representatives</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/nasa.wav'><span>NASA</span></div><div class='choice' data-sound-name='https://news-app-production.s3.amazonaws.com/articles/4931/the_library_of_congress.wav'><span>the Library of Congress</span></div></div></div><div class='question-buttons'><button class='skip-button'></button><button class='hint-button'></button><button class='speak-button'></button></div></div></div>
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