Washington County Judge Traci McDonald Kemp honors MLK

By Matt Petras
For the Mon Valley Independent
Washington County Court of Common Pleas Judge Traci McDonald Kemp, the county’s first black woman elected to county-wide office, gave a Martin Luther King Jr. Day speech yesterday at the Donora Public Library.
McDonald Kemp spoke as a part of the library’s Distinguished Speakers Series. She took office in the common pleas court last August and previously worked in the county district attorney’s office for more than a decade. She graduated from Washington High School, received a bachelor’s degree in communication and business from Clarion University and studied law at The University of Pittsburgh.
Dozens gathered downstairs in the library to hear McDonald Kemp speak. She used her speech to connect her life to the work of King.
“A civil rights leader whose movements and speeches and words changed a nation,” McDonald Kemp said. “A person who, through the movements that he had, was able to bring us to a situation where a person like me could be a judge in Washington County.” McDonald Kemp talked about growing up in a house between Sixth Ward, a poor, primarily-black neighborhood, and East Washington, a wealthy, primarily-white neighborhood. She said this remains a standout part of her background.
“I could walk in minutes to a pool that didn’t allow people of color to join as members. That was during my lifetime,” McDonald Kemp said.

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