Political career
Black was elected to Seanad Éireann in 2016 in her first political campaign as an independent candidate. She received her nomination from the Independent Broadcasters of Ireland and ran on the Industrial and Commercial Panel. She was a member of the Civil Engagement group in the 25th Seanad. During the 25th Seanad, Black was a member of the Seanad Brexit Committee and the Good Friday Implementation Committee.
In July 2017, Black co-proposed a new bill that proposed to alter the law in Ireland to enable more refugee families to be reunited. The law proposed that "family" in Irish legal terms should include the following when reunifying refugees: grandparent, parent, brother, sister, child, grandchild, ward or guardian of the refugee.
She has called for alcohol not to be sold next to nappies in supermarkets, and helped draft the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018 which introduced minimum pricing on Alcohol in Ireland.
In January 2018 Black proposed the Occupied Territories Bill, a private member's bill which she described as seeking "to prohibit the import and sales of goods, services and natural resources originating in illegal settlements in occupied territories".
In 2018, Black visited the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. As part of her visit to the West Bank, she travelled with Breaking the Silence, an organisation consisting of former members of the Israeli Defence Forces who are opposed to Israeli settlements there.
In April 2018, NBC's Vivian Salama, on behalf of the politician George Mitchell, personally presented the Arab American Institute Foundation (AAIF)'s Award for Individual Achievement to Black at the 20th annual Kahlil Gibran Spirit of Humanity Awards in Washington. Mitchell made a special video message in praise of Black. The award was in recognition of her work as founder of RISE Foundation and her "tireless efforts on behalf of those struggling with addiction and their families".
She was re-elected at the 2020 Seanad election, and at the 2025 Seanad election.
In March 2025, Black was named among the bookies' favourites as a possible candidate in the 2025 presidential election. Black said she was "open to the conversation".
