Clemons hopes to parlay personal skills developed over his 54 years growing up in Bridgeport into promoting the caucus' legislative agenda.

And after four years in the House of Representatives, Clemons, D-Bridgeport, a tall, beefy man whose size belies his past as a 210-pound wide receiver, says he knows the kind of teamwork needed for the caucus to succeed.

"We're not limited to these, but certainly we're working for universal health care, to help fill the educational achievement gap among minority kids, improve economic development and employment opportunities for minorities, focusing on contract compliance," Clemons said Friday.

"We're trying to bridge the divide," he said of the gaps between the suburbs and the cities. "We have to be diplomatic and at the same time stand together and enhance the quality of life for our communities and the entire citizenry of the state of Connecticut."

Known by nearly everyone in Bridgeport and the Capitol as "Don," Clemons, who won a special 2003 election, is getting around better these days.

Now that back surgery is in the past, Clemons, a father of three grown children and the grandfather of five, was more mobile as he worked the House chamber this week in a double-breasted suit. "Don possesses a number of qualities that make him a great choice to lead our Black and Latino Caucus," Speaker of the House James A. Amann, D-Milford, said Friday.

Clemons is vice chairman of the Insurance and Real Estate Committee and serves on the Appropriations and Public Safety committees.

"He's experienced, a great listener and has an ability to bring people together," said Amann, who this year promoted Clemons to assistant majority leader. "The last few years, everything accumulated to test my faith and belief," said Clemons, a member of the Mt. Aery Baptist Church who underwent back surgery in New Haven in 2005 around the same time his wife died and shortly after the death of his mother.

The Rev. Anthony L. Bennett, pastor of Mt. Aery, said Friday that Clemons is active in the church community — and has a great singing voice.

"He is definitely a person of tenacity," Bennett said of Clemons' difficult 2005.

"He has had to move with a grace and determination amid all the personal losses as well as public challenges," Bennett said. "Being an urban legislator is challenging enough, and he's risen to the occasion on more than one occasion."

An athlete who was one of the few blacks at Notre Dame High School, Clemons recalled the levels of racism in the suburban school — but being a sports star helped.

Clemons was offered a contract to sign with the Atlanta Braves in 1972. As a member of the New York Jets reserve "taxi" squad in 1975 and attending a free-agent camp with the Washington Redskins in 1976, Clemons never played in the NFL, but he did perform for the old minor league Bridgeport Jets, which he joined in 1974.

"They used to call me 'Clem 210,' " Clemons said of his playing weight.

His mother's family, the Clarks, moved to Bridgeport in the early 1890s and his uncle, George Clark, took the city's first civil service exam in 1936.

"He came out No. 1, but the chief of police said that under no terms would he give a nightstick and a gun to a colored man," Clemons said. Clark became the city's first black firefighter in 1938, working 30 years.

Back in Bridgeport after being cut by the Redskins, Clemons was told by Clark to take the Fire Department exam. In 1975, he was one of only two blacks to take the test. The test set off a multiyear legal odyssey as a racial discrimination case went to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ordered back pay and benefits. In 1983, Clemons became a founding member of the Firebird Society of minority firefighters.

After 24 years, he retired from the department in 1999 with the rank of provisional lieutenant, then joined the Bridgeport City Council in 2000.

"I've always had to deal with racism and adversity," said Clemons, whose father, Charles D. Clemons, is 88. "You learn to deal with people and I've learned to understand that racism doesn't come in a color, it comes in people, and ultimately you have to deal with people on a case-by-case basis to reach a consensus and maintain respect."

One of his personal goals is to make the Black and Hispanic Caucus more visible throughout the state.

"I felt that our mission is to promote and assist minorities and raise awareness and become more actively involved in the political process," Clemons said. "We're working for the good of all the citizens of Connecticut."