A teacher and then attorney, Ferraro worked in the Queens, New York District Attorney's office, where she started the Special Victims Bureau. Ferraro ran successfully for Congress from New York City's 9th District in 1978. There, she was a women's and human rights advocate, working for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, sponsoring the Women's Economic Equity Act ending pension discrimination against women, and seeking greater job training and opportunities for displaced homemakers.
Ferraro quickly rose from Queens District Attorney's Office to her neighborhood's House representative and, in 1984, gained fame as Democratic presidential candidate Walter Mondale's running mate. In her acceptance speech, she spoke of the realization of the American dream:
"Tonight, the daughter of an immigrant from Italy has been chosen to run for vice president in the new land my father came to love..."
Geraldine Ferraro, was the first major Italian American and first female candidate to be featured in a prominent political ticket, Vice President of the United States. Although the VP ticket lost, Ferraro's candidacy forever reshaped the American political and social landscape. She was also one of New York's most powerful congresswomen.
On Saturday, March 26 at age 75, Geraldine Ferraro, this great Italian American passed away after years of battling cancer.