Harold Washington

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Mayor of the City of Chicago
Harold Lee Washington
42nd Mayor of Chicago
In office
1983 – 1987
Preceded by	Jane Byrne
Succeeded by	David Orr
Born	April 15, 1922 Chicago, Illinois
Died	November 25, 1987 Chicago, Illinois
Residence	Chicago, Illinois
Political party	Democrat
Religion	Catholic
Spouse	Nancy Dorothy Finch

Harold Lee Washington (April 15, 1922 – November 25, 1987) was a lawyer, legislator and the first African American Mayor of Chicago, serving from 1983 until his death in 1987.

[edit] Background and early career

After graduating from DuSable High School, Washington studied at Roosevelt College (now Roosevelt University), graduating in 1949 with a B.A. degree. He then studied at Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago, graduating in 1952. In 1965, he was elected as a Democratic representative to the Illinois state legislature, becoming a State Senator in 1976. In 1980, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.

[edit] Mayor of Chicago (1983–1987)

In the 1983 Democratic mayoral primary, community organizers registered more than 100,000 new African American voters, while the white vote was split between the incumbent mayor Jane Byrne and the other challenger, Richard M. Daley, son of the late Mayor Richard J. Daley. Washington won with 37% of the vote, vs. 33% for Byrne and 30% for Daley.

Although winning the Democratic primary is normally tantamount to election in heavily-Democratic Chicago, after his primary victory Washington found that his Republican opponent, Bernard Epton, earlier considered a nominal stand in, was supported by many white Democrats and ward organizations, including the chairman of the Cook County Democratic Party, Alderman Edward "Fast Eddie" Vrdolyak. Epton's campaign referred to, among other things, Harold Washington's conviction for failure to file income tax returns. However, Washington appealed to his constituency in his mayoral political campaign and stressed such things as reforming the Chicago patronage system and a need for a jobs program in a tight economy. In the spring of 1983, Washington defeated Epton by less than 4% of the vote to become mayor of Chicago.

Washington's first term in office was characterized by ugly, racially polarized battles dubbed "Council Wars," referring to the then-recent Star Wars films. A 29-21 City Council majority refused to enact Washington's reform legislation and prevented him from appointing reform nominees to boards and commissions.

The twenty-nine, also known as the Vrdolyak Twenty-nine, was led by "the Eddies:" Alderman Ed Vrdolyak, Finance Chair Edward Burke and Parks Commissioner Edmund Kelly. The Eddies were supported by State's Attorney Richard M. Daley, U.S. Congressman William Lipinski, U.S. Congressman Dan Rostenkowski, and other powerful white Democrats.

Washington ruled by veto. The twenty-nine could not get the thirtieth vote they needed to override Washington's veto; African American, Latino and white liberal aldermen supported Washington despite pressure from the Eddies. Meanwhile, in the courts, Washington kept the pressure on to reverse the redistricting of City Council wards that white Democrats had pushed through during the Byrne years. Finally, when special elections were ordered in 1986, victorious Washington-backed candidates gave him the 25-25 split he needed. His vote as chair of City Council enabled him to break the deadlock and enact his programs.

Washington was reelected in the spring of 1987. During his short second term, the Eddies fell from power: Vrdolyak became a Republican, Kelly was removed from his powerful parks post, and Burke lost his power as finance chair.

On November 25, 1987, Washington died of a heart attack in his office.

Washington was buried in Oak Woods Cemetery on the South Side of Chicago. In later years, various city facilities and institutions would be renamed after the late mayor to commemorate his legacy. The new building housing the main branch of the Chicago Public Library, located at 400 South State Street, was named the Harold Washington Library Center (the former main library becoming the Chicago cultural center). According to the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau website, this is the world's largest public library.[1] The former Loop College in downtown Chicago was renamed Harold Washington College. In addition to the downtown facilities, the 40,000 square-foot Harold Washington Cultural Center was opened to the public in August, 2004, in the historic South Side neighborhood of Bronzeville, at 4701 S. King Drive.

During his tenure, Washington lived at the Hampton House apartments in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago. After his death, the park across from his residence was renamed Washington Park. During his residence there, he carefully protected a colony of feral Monk Parakeets living in this park across from his apartment building residence and many locals took to calling the birds "Harold's Parakeets" [2].

Despite the bickering in City Council, Washington seemed to relish his role as Chicago's ambassador to the world. He once said to a group of supporters, "In the old days, when you told people in other countries that you were from Chicago, they would say, 'Boom-boom! Rat-a-tat-tat!' Nowadays, they say [crowd joins with him], 'How's Harold?'!"