Bland was born in
Kansas City, Missouri. She was educated at
Ottawa University,
Penn Valley Community College, and Pioneer College. She had four children.
Political career Bland served as a
democratic politician in the Missouri legislature for nearly three decades. She served as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives from the 43rd district from 1981 to 1998 and the Missouri Senate from the 9th district from 1998 to 2005. Throughout her time in office her goals were to help to improve
social and
economic justice for
people of color, especially women and children. Bland dedicated herself to improving the holistic health of her community, especially for its citizens of color and underserved populations. By 1987, she became the Chair of the Health and Public Safety Committee, Chair of Health and Mental Health Appropriation, and sat on the committees for Secondary and Higher Education and on Ways and Means Committee. While serving in these capacities, Bland was directly responsible for the establishment of the Minority Health Issues Task Force and later the Missouri Office of Minority Health. These efforts were instrumental in addressing issues such as
infant mortality, mental health challenges, and other
health disparities in underserved communities. During her career Bland participated in a number of additional committees, boards, and commissions including the
U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and the
National Black Caucus of State Legislators Executive Board. She was also the former president of
Freedom Inc., an influential black political organization in Kansas City. She was active in the
Missouri Legislative Black Caucus throughout her career and instrumental in holding an annual
Martin Luther King Jr. celebration at the state capitol. Bland announced her retirement in 2004 and served out the end of her term as State Senator until January 2005. ==References==