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In 2001, Suffolk University convened a meeting with members of Congressman John Joseph Moakley’s family and congressional staff to discuss the life and career of Joe Moakley, a Suffolk alumnus who served the Ninth District of Massachusetts from 1973 through 2001. At the time the university was developing an exhibit about the congressman, entitled John Joseph Moakley: In Service to His Country. The participants reminisce about Moakley’s early life including his family’s life in South Boston in the thirties, forties and fifties; Moakley’s service in the Navy during WWII; his start in politics; his career in Massachusetts legislature during the fifties and sixties; his time at Suffolk University Law School and his law practice; and his late wife Evelyn. They also discuss his congressional career including how the city of Boston changed during his career; Moakley’s role in the Boston school desegregation crisis of the seventies; his tenure on the House Rules Committee; congressional campaigns; policy campaigns central to Moakley’s career such as his work in El Salvador as chairman of a special task force investigating the murder of six Jesuit priests, his work to improve conditions in Cuba and his commitment to veterans. They end by discussing Moakley’s legacy in the state of Massachusetts including his commitment to historic preservation, economic development, transportation projects and the environment.
