Vel Phillips - Wikipedia
Velvalea Hortense Rodgers "Vel" Phillips (February 18, 1923 – April 17, 2018) was an American attorney, politician, jurist, and Civil Rights activist, who served as an alderperson and judge in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and as Secretary of State of Wisconsin (1978-1982), often as the first woman and/or African-American in her position. She was the first African American woman to graduate from the ...