About
Sonya Marie Harper

Representative Sonya M. Harper serves the residents of Illinois’ 6th House District on Chicago’s South Side. A lifelong journalist, community organizer, and advocate for equitable economic development, Harper has dedicated her career to strengthening neighborhoods, expanding opportunity, and ensuring government works for communities that have historically been left out of decision-making.

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Representative Harper currently serves as Chair of the Agriculture & Conservation Committee in the Illinois House of Representatives, becoming the first person of color and the first Black woman in United States history to chair a state House agriculture committee. In this role, she has worked to expand the state’s understanding of agriculture to include urban farming, local food systems, and equitable access to land and resources.

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Under her leadership, Illinois has adopted policies recognizing urban agriculture, strengthening support for socially disadvantaged farmers, and building infrastructure to expand local healthy food systems. Harper authored the Illinois Farmer Equity Act, established the Agriculture Disparity Study, and helped create the Agriculture Equity Commission to address historic barriers faced by farmers of color.

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Representative Harper also played a key role in shaping Illinois’ approach to cannabis legalization. She authored the social equity provisions of the Cannabis Regulation and Taxation Act to ensure that communities most harmed by the war on drugs are included in the economic opportunities created by legalization and that cannabis tax revenue is reinvested into vulnerable communities. Her work helped establish the Cannabis Equity Illinois Coalition and positioned Illinois as a national example of equity-centered legalization.

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As Joint Caucus Chair of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus during the historic 102nd General Assembly, Harper helped lead the passage and implementation of a four-pillar legislative agenda designed to address systemic racism in Illinois. She also helped guide a historic $2.5 billion investment in programs serving vulnerable communities across the state.

Representative Harper is also the legislative sponsor who created the African Descent-Citizens Reparations Commission (ADCRC). She currently serves as a Commissioner working to examine the harms of slavery and systemic discrimination and to develop policy recommendations addressing economic disparities affecting Black Illinoisans.

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Her legislative work has also focused on expanding access to healthy food and improving public health. Harper passed legislation requiring Illinois schools to test drinking water for lead, protecting the right of residents to grow food on their own property through the Right to Garden Act, and strengthening programs that allow SNAP recipients to access hot meals and double-value incentives at farmers markets.

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Before joining the General Assembly, Harper spent more than a decade working in television news as a producer, writer, and reporter for NBC, FOX, and CBS affiliates throughout the Midwest. She began her journalism career as a legislative reporter covering the Missouri State Capitol.

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After returning home to Chicago, Harper founded Sharper PR Communications, a communications and community organizing firm, and later founded Grow Greater Englewood, a nonprofit organization focused on urban agriculture, food access, and economic development in Chicago’s Englewood community. She also served as Director of Outreach at Growing Home, Chicago’s first USDA-certified organic urban farm.

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Harper has been deeply involved in community leadership throughout her career. She co-founded the Wood Street Meet & Greet Community Garden, served on the leadership team of the Resident Association of Greater Englewood (R.A.G.E.), and helped organize the annual Greater Englewood Unity Day neighborhood clean-up. She also created Growing Citizen Leaders, a community organizing program for teens in Greater Englewood.

 

Representative Harper serves in several national leadership roles, including Chair of the Agriculture & Conservation Committee for the National Black Caucus of State Legislators, Vice President of the National Organization of Black Elected Legislative Women, Illinois State Director for Women In Government, and a member of the Executive Board of the National Conference of State Legislatures.

 

She is a Bowhay Institute Fellow, Henry Toll Fellow with the Council of State Governments, Edgar Fellow, and a State Legislative Leadership Foundation Emerging Leaders Fellow.

 

Representative Harper lives in Chicago’s West Englewood neighborhood with

her daughter and is a member of The Faith Community of Saint Sabina Church.