California names building after pioneer March Fong Eu

March Fong Eu took a sledgehammer to a toilet on the steps of the California State Capitol in 1969, when she was fighting to ban pay toilets for women in public buildings.

Now the trailblazing politician, who broke various gender and racial glass ceilings and shattered election history in California, has become the first Asian-American woman to have a state office building named after her.

On Monday, the California Secretary of State/State Archives Building Complex in Sacramento was renamed the March Fong Eu Secretary of State Building.

Eu was the first Asian American in the country to serve in a state legislature. A Democrat, she was in the California Assembly for four terms, from 1966 to 1974.

When she was elected in 1974 to become California's secretary of state, a position she held for five terms until 1994, Eu became the first person of Chinese ancestry to be elected to statewide office in the United States.

She died at age 95 on Dec 21, 2017.

"Last year, I was honored to join the family and friends of Secretary March Fong Eu in Oakland to remember her extraordinary life. It is an honor again to gather here to solidify her permanent placement in California history. The decision to name this building in honor of the person who ensured its design, construction and completion was an easy decision to make," said California Secretary of State Alex Padilla in a statement to China Daily.

Caren Daniels Lagomarsino, who worked as the spokesperson for Eu for almost 20 years, called the renaming of the building after Eu "a proud historical moment".

When asked how Eu would have felt knowing the Secretary of State building is named after her, Lagomarsino said that "she would be honored; she would be flattered; she would probably be surprised".

"I think there were times when she did not believe that she really had the impact. Looking back from that, I think she probably didn't recognize what a legacy she had left for future generations."

Eu was born on March 29, 1922, in the back of a hand-laundry operated by her parents in Oakdale, California.

After graduating from the University of California at Berkeley, she earned a master's degree in education from Mills College and a doctorate in education from Stanford University.

As California's secretary of state, Eu worked on a number of measures to improve the election process, including voter registration by mail, at-large absentee balloting and the inclusion of candidate statements in ballot pamphlets.

Eu continues to be an inspiration and voice for many current politicians.

When the California State Assembly adjourned the Feb 20, 2018 floor session in memory of Eu, Assembly member Ed Chau, who represents District 49, said Eu broke many social and gender barriers.

"March earned a reputation through her fight against civil injustice and discrimination. Despite being one of the few minority women in the Legislature, where she often faced prejudice and sexism, she spoke out against the unfair treatment of women and to advocate for reproductive and equal rights," he said.

It was Padilla's idea to name the building after Eu. During a January 2018 memorial service honoring her in Oakland, Padilla said Eu encouraged him, the son of Mexican immigrants, to become secretary of state.

Suyin Stein, Eu's daughter, said in a statement, "We are grateful that my mother's legacy will endure and her reputation for paving the way for greater women and minority participation, and integrity and openness in government, continues.  May she inspire generations to pursue their dreams with determination."