Barbara-Rose Collins (née Richardson; April 13, 1939 – November 4, 2021) was an American politician from the U.S. state of Michigan and the first black woman from Michigan to be elected to Congress. Life and career Collins was born as Barbara-Rose Richardson in Detroit, Michigan, the daughter of Lou Versa (Jones) and Lamar Nathaniel Richardson, a Ford Motor Co. employee. She is an alumnus of Cass Technical High School in Detroit, Michigan. She attended Cass Technical High School in 1957. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Anthropology from Wayne State University. In 1960, Barbara-Rose Collins became divorced and a single mom. Barbara-Rose Collins worked multiple jobs and had public assistance until beginning a position as a Business Manager at Wayne State University. She worked as a Business Manager for the Physics department at Wayne State University for 9 years. After hearing a speech by Black activist Stokely Carmichael at Detroit's Shrine of the Black Madonna Church in the late 1960s, Barbara-Rose Collins became inspired by the speech to pursue a career in activism to uplift communities. Later, she was supported by the pastor of the Shrine Church to pursue a career in state legislature. She ran for a seat in 1974. During her early campaign days in 1974, Barbara-Rose Collins changed her name from Barbara Rose to Barbara-Rose making her first and middle name hyphenated. She did so to distinguish herself from other candidates. This change made her known as the congresswoman Barbara-Rose Collins from then on forward. Collins was a member of the Detroit Public School Board from 1971 to 1973, the Michigan House of Representatives for the 21st district from 1975 to 1981, and the Detroit City Council from 1982 to 1991. During her time on the Detroit Public School Board, she earned recognition for her "school safety and academic achievement." In 1988, she lost a primary election to the incumbent U.S. representative for what was then Michigan's 13th congressional district, George W. Crockett, Jr. When he retired, she won the seat, taking 34 percent of the vote in a crowded eight-way Democratic primary. This was tantamount to election in this heavily Democratic, black-majority district. She won handily in November and was reelected three more times, each time garnering over 80 percent of the vote. Her district was renumbered as the 15th district after the 1990 census. Collins was a sponsor of several