Registered Nurse

In terms of early memories, can you describe what family life was like when you were in Cuba--holidays, special events, or just daily life in your neighborhood?$$In the neighborhood, we had a pretty large house. And my brothers played all kinds of instruments. And so that she [Hill's mother, Dominga Sanchez Gonzalez] could control us, I suppose, we were not allowed to go out too much. But the neighborhood could come to our house, and so, they would come and play music. At that time, there was no radio. We didn't have any radio, but they did--I had, I had plenty of music--all kinds, not just salsa, and all these other thing. But I knew [Johann Sebastian] Bach, and [Ludwig van] Beethoven, and all that, 'cause my brothers were, you know, serious musicians, and that was fun. And some days, we read poetry, and play music, and everybody play, and had a good time. And holidays are wonderful, because, you know, everybody come. If you were a friend of any of my brothers, you could come to my house, and that was fun. And there was only one family that I was allowed to go to, and they were three sisters. Since I didn't have much--I had a sister about ten years younger than I, so we were not peers, you know. And so, that she would allow me to, you know, interact with those, that family that had these three daughters. And that was fun. In fact then, we all married in the same dress (laughter).$If you could, share with me, maybe, the name of some of the associations that you belong to professionally.$$Oh, I've done so many things. I, you know, during the Civil Rights Movement, you know, I didn't have any other choice but to join. My husband, [Jesse] Hill, was chair of the All-Citizens Registration Committee, so I became a registrar, and, you know, could register people to vote. And so, we used to go to churches, and mass meetings, and places like that, and register to vote people. Then, when [HistoryMaker] Charlayne [Hunter-Gault] and Hamilton [Holmes]'s application, and all the turmoil and went through that, you know, I was there, you know, fixing foods, and just being there. You had to support your husband. Political rallies, and mass meetings, and all that. The only thing I didn't do was to--I didn't march. Only one time, and that was the demonstration on the [Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta] Civic Center [Atlanta, Georgia] at something about they tried to integrate the dentists' professional meeting that they were having there. And other than that, I would--did sit-ins, Mrs. [Otelia Hackney] Russell and I, you know, went to, used to be, store across the street from The Ritz-Carlton [Atlanta, Georgia]--I can't remember the name now, but they had a restaurant and Macy's--$$Which is--$$--but anyway, they--we just went inside in their dining room. And when we got there, they didn't serve us--they just closed. They closed the dining room, so we just got up and left. And then, there was in Lenox Square [Atlanta, Georgia], there was another restaurant, and we did that, too. And the third one was (unclear) that was in Locust Street, and that was the only one that I really got upset and frightened (laughter), because we were--it was a delicatessen. And so, we were trying to get in to order--it was sandwiches and things--and the police came. And the minute police came, I have to go--I couldn't, I just could not. Well, [Jesse] Hill and I had made the promise to each other that we would not get arrested, because--well, I'm a foreigner, you know, I could be deported. At that time, I don't think I was even a citizen. And then, too, the girls [Nancy Hill Cook and Azira Hill Kendall] were small, and we didn't have any relatives in town, so somebody had to be, you know, there to--over them. In addition to that, he was the contact person to bail out those that were arrested. So, he couldn't be arrested himself. So, that was one of the arrangements that, you know, that were made beforehand.

You were thinking, okay, I'm gonna run for this seat. And what was it that finally--well, and you had, you know--.$$Well, 1993 I decided. It was 1993.$$1993. And you had raised money. So tell us a little bit about what that campaign was like and what was different about than in 1986?$$Well, I'll say what was different about it was that there was, it was a new, brand new district and there were no incumbents. And remember Senator [Delores] Kelley that I mentioned to you, she was then delegate and she moved from Baltimore City [Maryland] into Baltimore County to run as the senator because this--the district had been redistrict. And so I then somehow in our conversation asked or whether she allowed me to be on her ticket. And, and so there were two other people on the ticket. So it's three delegates and one, and one senator. And so we formed a ticket. We each ran our own individual campaign and then we came together before the election and kind of pool our monies and pool her for her brochures and for our mailing and for all the different things that we needed to do. And we campaigned together knocking on doors and doing the different things, yes, and have lawn signs and, you know, the whole works.$$And did you run unopposed?$$Oh, no. There were about twenty-one other folks who ran, too. A lot of folks ran. But the more the merrier because then they dilute the vote and the ones who are the front, you know--. And, and it was, you know, getting out and talking to the people. And, and, and people trust nurses so it, it's kind of help--my theme was "the nurse for your political health." And so, you know, and I gave Band-Aids and all kinds of little stuff out with my names, name on it. I did, you know--and so it was, it was a, it was a good--that night we were victorious in, in November of 1994.$$And so tell us about what it was like for you when you first arrived at the State House [of Delegates] in Annapolis [Maryland].$$Oh, well, before I, I came, Senator Kelley brought me down 'cause, of course, she was a [State] Senate-elect at that point and she was a delegate. So she, she brought me down. It was after the election and after the primary, I think, after I won the primary election. And we still had the general, but I knew that once I'd won the primary I could have, I would won the general because it was a predominantly Democratic district. And so she brought me down here for something, and, and I had to come under the, under the tunnel--not under the tunnel, under the--we have a--the, the garage is underground. And so as she pulled into the underground garage and she said, "This is where we park," you know, that you will be able to park, you know, when she, when she'll be on the Senate side but she still had a place in the House. And when as I drove in her car into the, into the House, that's when it dawn on me, hey, you're gonna be a delegate. You're gonna actually represent the people of your district. And so the rest was history, of course. And come November I won. And then, believe it or not, my office there, that suite where my office was Sauerbrey--she ran for, she had run for governor, Ellen Sauerbrey. She had occupied that office. And the office that I have now Bob [Robert] Ehrlich, who is now the governor of the state of the Maryland, that was his delegate office, and he had just won the seat to [U.S.] Congress.$$So what does that mean?$$So when I came in (laughs), when I came in, I had to--I couldn't move my things in because Bob Ehrlich had all his things still in the office. So he had to come and clean his office out. That was, that was when I first time I met him when he came to clean his stuff out the office. And, and then I was able to get the office cleaned up and have them painted it and start bringing my stuff in, you know. So I was all excited. So I--by Christmas I had all my stuff in so that by time January came I was ready to sworn in.$$And what was the reaction of your children?$$Oh, my, my children were, were, were very supportive and very excited about, about it, you know. Many times they feel I don't give enough time to them, that if I did, if I just quit and stop doing the stuff, I'll have more, they'll have more time. But now they're all grown up so it really don't make a whole lot of difference now.$As a nurse what perspective do you think you bring to the [Maryland] General Assembly?$$Oh, let--as a nurse and as the first--well, back up. Beside being the first African American nurse ever to be elected to this body, there are five nurses in the, in the [Maryland] House [of Delegates], but I'm the first African American and the first Caribbean-born and, and more specifically, Jamaican, first Caribbean-born ever to be elected in the 360-year history of this General Assembly. And so for those, for, for that reason I found, I thought I had a responsibility as a member of the Maryland, of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland and as a nurse and, and, and a woman at that time still represented a large African American population, although I do have Caucasians and I do have a mixture of other folks--I don't lose sight of their health care and their needs, but I wanted to make sure that we look at this issue. And my grandfather always said it was important to be at the table. And then I just realized what he really meant about being at the table, okay. Because I know for a fact that if I wasn't at that table sitting in the Health and Government Operations and I served on the Environmental Matters Committee before, if I wasn't there, many of the issues that I'm talking to you about would never discussed--from HIV, AIDS to hepatitis C to, to substance abuse. You name the issues that I've brought before. And anytime that I thought that racism played a part and we were not getting our point out, I made sure I spoke loud enough and clear enough that I was understood. And if I had to get up on the floor of the House and fight for those issues, whether it was immigrant issues because I'm an immigrant, so I'm very touchy about issues that, that impact on immigrants as well. Because I, I, I know the history of America and I know in fact that this country is a country of immigrants. And so for which, regardless of what, which, which of those issues that comes before me, I fight. And don't take on a bill unless I feel that I can put every bit of my energy into getting it to, to passage. And the Children Health Initiative is another thing that I've been proud of. I wasn't the lead sponsor but I was one of the sponsor. I serve on the committee drafted and crafted that that provided health care to over a hundred thousand children in the state of Maryland.$$Poor children who couldn't afford--.$$(Simultaneously) Poor children that, that came in a little bit above within that poverty level. If they were low enough that they're on medical assistance, then they would have coverage. But those who fell within that gray area of poverty up to 200 percent of federal poverty would be able to get--200 and 250 percent of federal poverty.