Political and community leaders across Massachusetts spoke out in tribute to the former US Congress Barney Frank, who represented Massachusetts’s Fourth District from 1981 to 2013. Frank, who’d recently began hospice care at his home in Ogunquit, Maine, died yesterday, May 20.
Reports Mass.Live.com:
The former Massachusetts congressman served more than 30 years on Capitol Hill, emerging as an icon to progressives. He was the first member of Congress to voluntarily come out as gay
Frank was a “trailblazer, someone who never hesitated to stand up for what he believed in or speak his mind,” U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, D-6th District, said. “Our commonwealth and our country were better because of his service.”
“I was grateful for the chance to know him over the years,” the Salem lawmaker continued. “We should honor Barney by continuing to fight for more affordable housing and consumer protections.”
Frank represented Massachusetts’ 4th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1981 to 2013. Known for his sharp wit and straightforward, combative approach, Frank was particularly focused on LGBTQ rights and financial regulation in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis.
U.S. Rep. Jake Auchincloss, D-4th District, who now holds Frank’s seat, called his predecessor a “larger than life character.”“A mentor and a friend, he made me a better lawmaker,” Auchincloss posted to X on Wednesday. “And he made me laug. My staff and I, representing the district he faithfully served for three decades, will always treasure his stories, his encouragement and his advice.”
Frank was the first member of Congress to enter a same-sex marriage while in office, POLITICO reported.
In a 2020 interview, Frank outlined several initiatives through which he pursued LGBTQ rights, including his work with American activist Steve Endean and the Human Rights Campaign, the HIV/AIDS crisis, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), the issuance and repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009.
Gov. Maura Healey, the state’s first openly lesbian governor, called Frank “one of a kind — a giant in public life who helped change Massachusetts and America for the better.”
“In Congress, Barney fought tirelessly for working people, civil rights, and LGBTQ+ equality,” Healey said. “He was brilliant, fearless, quick-witted, and never afraid to say exactly what was on his mind. (First Lady Joanna Lydgate) and I are keeping his family and all who loved him in our thoughts.
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., called Frank the “gravelly-voiced, smart-as-a-whip congressman who fought hard to get the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over the finish line,” U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said. “His one-liners were wicked and wickedly funny. Barney delivered for working people, and the world is a poorer place without him.”
U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-7th District, who, like Frank once did, serves on the House Financial Services Committee, paid warm tribute on X.
“Thank you for your relentless advocacy for consumers. Thank you for showing up as your full self—and creating permission for others to do the same,“ the Boston Democrat wrote. ”May you rest in peace and power.”
Frank was “fierce as he was smart,” U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan, D-3rd District, said in a social media post.
“He fought for his constituents, for our Commonwealth, and for a brighter future for our country.”
— Read the complete MassLive story here.
