Tammy Duckworth
American politician, former U.S. Army lieutenant colonel
Tammy Duckworth is an Iraq veteran who lost both legs and partial use of her right arm in 2004. She won her Congressional seat in 2012, and her Democratic seat in the Senate began in 2017. She is also the first Asian American woman elected to Congress in Illinois, the first disabled woman to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and the first member of Congress born in Thailand. She is fluent in Thai, Indonesian, and English.
Senator Duckworth was born in Bangkok Thailand. in 1989 she graduated from the University of Hawaii with a Bachelor of Arts in political science, and later received a Master of Arts in international affairs from George Washington University. In 1992 she joined the United States Army Reserve and chose to fly helicopters, citing it as one of the few combat positions open to women at the time. Senator Duckworth was working towards her P.H.D. in political science when she was drafted in 2004 to fight in the Iraq war. in November of that year, her UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter was shot down in combat, where she sustained injuries and had to have her legs amputated. She received the Purple Heart for her injuries, and was promoted to Major.
In 2006, Senator Duckworth became the director of the Illinois Department of Veteran affairs, and held the position until 2009. While in the position, she was credited with starting a program to help veterans with PTSD and veterans with brain injuries.
Twitter: @SenDuckworth
