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Loretta Lynch made history in April 2015 when she was sworn in as the United States Attorney General, becoming the first Black woman to do so. The North Carolina native was born May 21, 1959.

Lynch was born in the city of Greensboro, entering Harvard University after high school and earning a bachelor’s degree in 1981. She continued her studies at the institution’s law school, obtaining a juris doctor degree in 1984. Lynch joined a New York law firm out of school and six years later in 1990, she became a drug and crime prosecutor with the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

In 1999, President Bill Clinton nominated her as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York and in 2010, President Barack Obama nominated her again for the same post.

Eric Holder was the first Black U.S. Attorney General, making Lynch just the second Black person to hold the post and the second woman as well. She was succeeded by Jeff Sessions in 2017 when President Donald Trump took office.

PHOTO: AP

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