Marion Barry
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| Marion Shepilov Barry, Jr. | |
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| In office January 2, 1979 – January 2, 1991 January 2, 1995 – January 2, 1999 |
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| Preceded by | Walter Washington (1979) Sharon Pratt Kelly (1995) |
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| Succeeded by | Sharon Pratt Kelly (1991) Anthony A. Williams (1999) |
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| Born | March 6, 1936 Itta Bena, Mississippi |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Profession | Investment banking consultant |
| Religion | Baptist |
Marion Shepilov Barry, Jr. (born March 6, 1936) served as the second elected mayor of the District of Columbia from 1979 to 1991, and again as the fourth mayor from 1995 to 1999. Called "easily one of the most colorful public officals in United States history" by Rotten.com [1], Barry is also one of the most infamous. He was the target of a high-profile 1990 arrest on drug charges, which precluded him from seeking reelection that year. After he was convicted of the charges, Barry served 6 months in prison, but was elected to the D.C. council in 1992 and ultimately to the mayoralty in 1994, serving a second term from 1995 to 1999. Today, Barry serves on the Council of the District of Columbia, representing Ward Eight, which comprises Anacostia and Congress Heights. Further service includes three years probation for misdemeanor charges of failing to pay federal and local taxes, and continuing to receive drug counseling after testing positive for cocaine and marijuana in October 2005.[1]
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[edit] Early life and activism
Barry was born in Itta Bena, Mississippi, but grew up in Memphis, is an Eagle Scout, and graduated from LeMoyne College (now LeMoyne-Owen College) in 1958. Barry also graduated with a Masters of organic chemistry from Fisk University in 1960.
Afterwards he joined the American civil rights movement during a movement to eliminate racial segregation of bus passengers, and was elected the first chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). He abandoned his doctoral chemistry studies at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee for his new duties. During his time leading SNCC, Barry heavily lobbied against racial segregation and discrimination.
Barry is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, Inc., a prominent black fraternity.
[edit] Washington, D.C. political career
In 1965, Barry moved to Washington, D.C. to open a local chapter of SNCC where he was heavily involved in coordinating peaceful street demonstrations. He served on the first city school board to implement school board elections, in 1971, and served as Board president during his tenure. He was elected a member of Washington's first elected city council in 1974, and while serving as a council member, he became chair of the Committee on Finance and Revenue.
While serving on the D.C. city council, Barry was shot on March 9, 1977, by radical Hanafi Muslim terrorists when they overran District Building. Barry was shot near his heart during the two-day 1977 Hanafi Muslim Siege in which hostages were held by the terrorists and which was finally defused by the FBI and Muslim ambassadors.
In 1978, Barry was elected mayor of Washington, D.C. He was only the second person elected to this position. Barry was elected to three consecutive terms as mayor and held the position for over a decade until his arrest on drug charges in 1990.
After being released from prison, Barry was successful in his 1992 bid for a city council seat, running under the slogan "He May Not Be Perfect, But He's Perfect for D.C." In 1994, Barry was elected to his fourth and final term as mayor, serving until January 1999.
From 1995 to 2001, the federally imposed Control Board deprived Barry and his successor as mayor of power to allocate and manage funds for city projects. The mayor was also involved in further scandals, eventually leading to his decision not to run for a fifth term in office. He was succeeded by Anthony A. Williams, the former Chief Financial Officer of the Control Board. After leaving office, Barry performed consulting work for an investment banking firm.
On June 12, 2004 Barry announced that he was running in the Democratic primary for the Ward 8 council seat, a position he held before becoming mayor. Barry defeated the incumbent councilmember, Sandy Allen, on September 14, 2004, by a margin of at least 60–25%, setting him up to win the Ward 8 council seat in the November general election by a margin of 96–4%.
Barry's rule as the mayor is subject of much controversy. On the one hand, he did place emphasis on helping the "down and out" in the District, who had been previously neglected by government leaders. On the other hand, his administrations were marked with corruption, croneyism, and inefficiency.
Barry still holds great political influence in D.C. apart from his direct role in government; his support for candidates commands a large portion of the vote. In the 2006 mayoral election, Barry endorsed Adrian Fenty despite Linda Cropp hiring many members of Barry's old political machine in an effort to garner his support.
[edit] Legal problems
[edit] 1990 trial
On January 18, 1990, Barry was arrested with a former girlfriend, Hazel "Rasheeda" Moore, in a sting operation at the Vista Hotel by the FBI and D.C. Police for crack cocaine use and possession. The incident – played over and over on television – produced what is perhaps the most memorable quote of Barry's long career: "Goddamn setup . . . I'll be goddamn . bitch set me up." This quote refers to Rasheeda Moore.
Barry was charged with three counts of felony perjury, 10 counts of misdemeanor drug possession, and one misdemeanor count of conspiracy to possess cocaine; however, in October 1990, he was convicted on only one charge: a single previous misdemeanor count of possessing cocaine which occurred during November of 1989. He was acquitted on one possession charge and a mistrial was declared on the 12 remaining charges.
As a result of his arrest and the ensuing trial, Barry was forced to step down from his position as mayor. In the midst of his campaign for a city council seat, Barry was sentenced to a six-month federal prison term in October 1990.
[edit] 2002 Park Police drug accusations
Barry briefly used an "African" name of "Anwar Amal." He resumed using his given name shortly before his 2002 campaign for an at-large city council seat. But the bid was aborted after the U.S. Park Police alleged they had found small amounts of cocaine and marijuana in Barry's car. Barry has insisted the police planted the drugs. Barry's concern about being accused of drug crimes was so strong that in one instance, after a car of his was stolen and subsequently recovered by the police, Barry sold it without ever driving it again, claiming he feared police could have planted drugs in the car.
[edit] 2005 guilty plea
On October 28, 2005, Barry pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charges stemming from the IRS investigation. At the mandatory drug testing at that hearing, he tested positive for cocaine and marijuana. On March 9, 2006, he was sentenced to three years probation for misdemeanor charges of failing to pay federal and local taxes, and continues to receive drug counseling.[2][3]
At about the same time, Barry alleged that two teenage young men robbed him at gunpoint in his home after helping him carry his groceries home. He said that young men in Anacostia routinely helped him with his groceries out of "respect." Most local observers quickly identified this as a lie, and understand that Barry was most likely robbed by his own cocaine dealers. This belief was backed up by the fact that immediately after the robbery, Barry quickly held a press conference to announce he would not press charges against his assailants, effectively assuring them they had no reason to offer Barry up in a deal with prosecutors because there would be no charges against them.
Throughout his cocaine addiction and other legal troubles, Marion Barry has continued to serve on the D.C. City Council.
[edit] Health problems
In 1995, Barry was successfully treated for prostate cancer at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland.
[edit] Gasification machine
In 2005 Barry supported a Gasification Machine, whose inventor, Simon Romanna, said it can cheaply turn waste into efficient gas for electricity and clean water.[4][5]
[edit] Popular culture
- In Chris Rock's "Bring the Pain," he jokes about Marion's presence at the Million Man March: "Even in our finest hour, we got a crack head on the stage." He also contrasts Barry's successful mayoral candidacy after the drug bust with the likely results of being "caught smoking crack at McDonald's." Also he makes fun of Marion's crack habit in the first-ever skit of The Chris Rock Show, and, while not referring to him by name, he may have also been making fun of him in the comedy album Born Suspect.
- Barry's crack bust, trial, and subsequent re-election to the office of mayor is mentioned in the Good Charlotte song "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous," in the lyrics "and if you were caught and you were smoking crack/McDonald's wouldn't even want to take you back/you could always just run for Mayor of DC."
- In the Bloodhound Gang song "Take the Long Way Home," the following lyric is sung: "Life is like Marion Barry, It's not all that it's cracked up to be."
- In the movie High School High the students attend Marion Barry High.
- In The Simpsons episode "Raging Abe Simpson and His Grumbling Grandson in "The Curse of the Flying Hellfish"," Montgomery Burns introduces himself to an assassin over the telephone as "M.B." The assassin replies, "Ah, Marion Barry! Is it time for another shipment?"
- Washington, D.C.-based disc jockeys Don and Mike have made several jokes about Marion Barry during his term as mayor, especially regarding his legal troubles. When his term ended, Don and Mike appointed Barry "Mayor For Life" on their show. Barry continues to be featured on the show and is often impersonated by Mike O'Meara. Don will sometimes check his messages on his "blackbarry" in which Marion Barry is actually inside the "blackbarry" reading Don's messages aloud to the audience.
- The song "Epithets" by the Arlington-based duo Paul and Storm offers a sly dig at Marion Barry's 1990 arrest with a verse about an ostensibly fictional mayor who enjoys women and cocaine, falls victim to a sting operation, and curses, "Bitch set me up."
- A series of humorous quotes purporting to be from Barry is an oft-forwarded e-mail joke. Most of them are unverifiable and almost certainly false. [2]
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/09/AR2006030900848.html
- ^ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/09/AR2006030900848.html
- ^ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/10/AR2006011002018.html
- ^ "Gasification Machine Removed From Anacostia Parking Lot". www.nbc4.com.
- ^ "Energy Machine Demonstration Held Without Fireworks". www.nbc4.com.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Walter Washington |
Mayor of the District of Columbia 1979–1991 |
Succeeded by Sharon Pratt Kelly |
| Preceded by Sharon Pratt Kelly |
Mayor of the District of Columbia 1995–1999 |
Succeeded by Anthony A. Williams |
| Preceded by Sandra "Sandy" Allen |
Ward 8 Representative, Council of the District of Columbia 2005– |
Succeeded by incumbent |
Categories: 1936 births | African American politicians | African Americans' rights activists | Alpha Phi Alpha brothers | American criminals | Eagle Scouts | Living people | Mayors of Washington, D.C. | People from Mississippi | People from Memphis | People treated for drug addiction | Washington, D.C. City Council members | Fisk University alumni
