Celeste Morris: Merging Grass Roots Politics and Public Affairs to Higher Heights

By Fern Gillespie
The 2024 Democratic National Convention was the third time that veteran political, public affairs and business consultant Celeste Morris had attended the presidential convention. The Brooklyn resident was at the conventions for Obama and Biden.. However, the DNC nomination of Vice President Kamala Harris for President of the United States was a different experience. For the first time, she felt “joy” attending the convention.

“At the convention, I had never seen this type of energy. This type of joy,” Morris, the founder of MorrisAllsop Public Affairs, told Our Time Press. “I just felt that this was a year that I should go to the convention. I’m a senior citizen now and it will be four years till the next one. I was so delighted that Kamala was going to be the nominee.”

Morris has been at the forefront of lobbying for Black women to attain political power for decades. As a board member, treasurer and founding member of Higher Heights for America, she’s part of the national organization’s mission to support Black women who are running for federal, citywide and statewide offices. Higher Heights has supported Harris since her California Attorney General campaign.

During the convention, Morris joined Glynda C. Carr, Higher Heights President and CEO, on the Maryland U.S. Senate campaign for Angela D. Alsobrooks, the first woman to be County Executive for Prince Georges County in Maryland. “I spend time in Baltimore supporting her campaign,” said Morris. “If we can have her win a seat in the U.S. Senate, it will be the icing on the cake.”

When Kamala Harris left the U.S. Senate to become Vice President, there was a void in having a Black woman in the Senate. In 2024, there are 25 women in a pool of 100 Senators. Now, only one Black woman is in the U.S. Senate, Laphonza Romanique Butler, former head of Emily‘s List. When Senator Dianne Feinstein died, she was appointed interim California Senator until January 2025 by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

“I met former Senator Carol Moseley Braun at an event for Angela Alsobrooks. She was warm and welcoming,” said Morris. “Through our history, on what we have been through economically and socially in this country, to have a body like the US Senate and to not have the voice of Black women is a travesty.”

Since the 1980s, Morris’ extensive career and experience have garnered a reputation as a leader in government, politics and business for her work with non-profit organizations, minority and women-owned enterprises, progressive political candidates, and elected officials.
Morris, who holds a bachelor’s from Brooklyn College, began her career in politics as a concerned young mother. Mentored by Al Vann, she developed skills in political campaigning to help get parents elected to Brooklyn’s school boards.

This commitment led her to win the election of Brooklyn’s Area Policy Board 8. “I see a lot of women get into politics because of issues that that they become aware of when their children are in school or need healthcare or have special needs,” she said. “People see the importance of being in politics.”

From 1985 to 2000, Morris was acclaimed for creating the innovative Big Black Book, the first directory of Black-owned businesses in New York. The economic impact of the Big Black Book earned her a prestigious Revson Fellowship at Columbia University.

This expertise in Black business development led to careers as Director for Minority and Women-owned Business Programs for New York City (NYC) and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, NY State Council of Black Elected Democrats, NYC Transit Authority, and Chairperson Emeritus of the Board of Brooklyn Legal Services. She has used these experiences to translate into social justice programs and political campaigns that impact Black and grassroots communities.

Morris’ work as Chief of Staff in the NY State Senate inspired her Advocacy Academy Project. “We train grassroots leaders how to advocate for their good causes,” she explained. “When I worked in Albany, I saw all kinds of lobbyists for corporations and big nonprofits. But the community voices weren’t being heard because they didn’t know how to do the work like the paid lobbyists and the advocates from the bigger nonprofits. At Advocacy Academy, they are learning the skills of having their voices heard.” On Zoom, the popular program has attendees nationwide.

For the New York City School Construction Authority, she’s involved with the mentor program and teaches marketing and public policy. “In this part of my career, I don’t want to do any more of that day-to-day campaign work that I’ve done for years,” she said. “I like the part where I’m able to pass all my knowledge, information, and skills with the training.”

The 2024 Democratic National Convention continues to inspire Morris. “I never thought that we would have two Black presidents in our lifetime,” she said. “I know Kamala is going to win and we will have the first woman president. It’s significant that it will be a Black woman; because we have been holding up this country’s democracy.”