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Clare Higgins (politician)

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Clare Higgins
Mayor of Northampton, Massachusetts
In office
January 1, 2000 – September 9, 2011
Preceded byMary Ford
Succeeded byDavid Narkewicz
Member of Northampton City Council
At-large
In office
January 1, 1993 – December 31, 1999
Personal details
BornPittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationUniversity Without Walls (University of Massachusetts Amherst)

Mary Clare Higgins is an American politician who was a six-term mayor of Northampton, Massachusetts, from 2000 to 2011. A Democrat, she was the second woman to hold the position. Higgins became the executive director of Community Action Pioneer Valley in September 2011.

Education and background

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Higgins was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, one of seven siblings. As a adolescent, she moved with her family to Brooklyn, New York, where her father was active in politics.[1][2][3] She earned her bachelor's degree in 2003 through the University Without Walls (University of Massachusetts Amherst).[4][5] Higgins worked in early childhood education.[6]

Career

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Higgins became involved in politics in the early 1990s, when she became a commissioner on the board of the Northampton Housing Authority.[2] During the same period, the city drew national media attention for its percentage of lesbians among the population.[7]

Higgins was elected as an at-large City Councilor in 1993 and held the office until 1999; she served as president of the council for the last two years.[8][9]

Higgins was elected to her first term as mayor in November 1999,[10] assuming office in January 2000.[11][9] She was the city's first openly lesbian mayor.[12] Higgins resigned in September 2011 to become executive director of Community Action Pioneer Valley.[13][14][3]

During her tenure, she was able to secure affordable housing for residents who were at risk of losing their homes due to condo conversion.[2][15] The city's capital improvement fund for infrastructure was greatly expanded and used for a new water filtration plant, a senior center, a new police station, and new public works facility.[13]

She is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition,[16] an organization formed in 2006 and co-chaired by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston mayor Thomas Menino.

Higgins was recognized for her contributions by U.S. House of Representatives in 2012.[1] She campaigned for Barack Obama during 2012 as part of the bus tour "Mayors for Obama".[17][18] She became a monthly columnist for the Daily Hampshire Gazette.[19]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Neal, Hon. Richard E. (February 1, 2012). "In Celebration of Mary Clare Higgins" (PDF). Congressional Record – Extension of Remarks. p. E104. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c Contrada, Fred (September 8, 2011). "Northampton Mayor Mary Clare Higgins set to leave office after near-record tenure". MassLive.com. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Beetle, Janice (March 6, 2012). "International Women's Day Clare Higgins: 'Community in the best sense'". The Republican. MassLive.
  4. ^ "Our Mayors". Savoir Flair Magazine. Vol. 1, no. 1. 2007. pp. 24–27. Retrieved September 15, 2022 – via Issuu.
  5. ^ "Highlights from the 50th Anniversary Celebration". University of Massachusetts Amherst. April 22, 2022. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
  6. ^ O'Connor, Karen (August 18, 2010). Gender and Women's Leadership: A Reference Handbook. SAGE Publications. ISBN 9781412960830 – via Google Books.
  7. ^ Jochem, Greta (May 3, 2019). "The legend of 'Lesbianville': Looking back at a city nickname and claim to fame". Daily Hampshire Gazette. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  8. ^ Laughlin, Kathleen A.; Castledine, Jacqueline (December 6, 2012). Breaking the Wave: Women, Their Organizations, and Feminism, 1945–1985. Routledge. ISBN 9781136909221 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ a b Contrada, Fred Contrada (April 20, 2011). "Friends and foes credit departing Northampton Mayor Mary Clare Higgins with a job well done". MassLive.com.
  10. ^ Contrada, Fred (December 23, 2015). "Forum brings together all living Northampton mayors". MassLive.com. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  11. ^ Ghaziani, Amin (August 10, 2014). There Goes the Gayborhood?. Princeton University Press. ISBN 9781400850174 – via Google Books.
  12. ^ Advocate Staff (October 15, 2008). "Mary Clare Higgins". Valley Advocate. Retrieved September 12, 2022.
  13. ^ a b Contrada, Fred Contrada (April 13, 2011). "Mary Clare Higgins to resign as mayor of Northampton; City Council President David Narkewicz to become acting mayor". MassLive.com.
  14. ^ Feyre, Ryan (December 15, 2021). "Narkewicz looks back on decade as mayor of Northampton". Reminder Publications.
  15. ^ United States Congress House Committee on Financial Services (September 11, 2007). Household Incomes and Housing Costs: A New Squeeze for American Families : Hearing Before the Committee on Financial Services, U.S. House of Representatives, One Hundred Tenth Congress, First Session, April 4, 2007. Vol. 4. U.S. Government Printing Office. ISBN 9780160791857 – via Google Books.
  16. ^ "Coalition Members". Mayors Against Illegal Guns. Archived from the original on March 27, 2008. Retrieved on June 18, 2007
  17. ^ Rink, Matthew (October 22, 2012). "Mayors fire up Obama faithful". The Independent.
  18. ^ Holan, Mark (October 21, 2012). "Parma hosts 'Mayors for Obama' bus tour, vote initiative". cleveland.com.
  19. ^ "Columnist Clare Higgins: Reflections on the Obama presidency". Daily Hampshire Gazette. December 30, 2016.
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