The Ken Blackwell Story

From the Enquirer

Janet Cohen Howard fondly recalls romping on the playground at South Avondale Elementary School with Ken Blackwell and his future wife, Rosa.

That was 50 years ago, but Howard still remembers being told "no one in this community would succeed.''

There was a mix of pain and victory in her voice Saturday as Howard stood up at the Renaissance Hotel here and relayed that story to fellow African-American Republicans.

Times have changed. In 1994, Howard became the first black woman elected to the Ohio Senate. Rosa Blackwell is superintendent of the Cincinnati Public Schools.

And Ken Blackwell is seeking to become Ohio's first black governor, and the second African-American ever elected to any state's top job.

The secretary of state from Cincinnati cited those historic firsts, and others, during a speech to the Ohio Black Republicans Association. "We're going to prove why Ohio is a pacesetter,'' he said.

We'll see if the rest of the media does stories like this throughout the campaign.