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EspañolWILLIE BROWN (POLITICIAN)
(Redirected from Willie Lewis Brown, Jr.)
'Willie Lewis Brown, Jr.' (born March 20, 1934) is an American political figure who served over 30 years in the California State Assembly, after which he became the first and only African-American mayor of San Francisco. Brown is a member of the Democratic Party.
Brown was born in Mineola, a small segregated town in east Texas marked by racial tensions, to Minnie Collins Boyd and Lewis Brown. His first job was as a shoeshine boy. He later worked as a janitor, fry cook, and field hand.[1] He graduated from Mineola Colored high School, an all-Black school he later described as substandard, and left for San Francisco in 1951.
Brown earned a bachelor's degree in political science from San Francisco State University in 1955[2] and a J.D. from Hastings College of the Law in 1958. Brown is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African-Americans.
In September, 1958, Brown married Blanche Vitero, with whom he had three children, Susan, Robin, and Michael. The couple separated in approximately 1976 but remain married. In succeeding years Brown has been romantically linked to a number of locally prominent women, including San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris. He has a daughter, Sydney Brown, by political fund raiser Carolyn Carpeneti.[3]
Brown's first job after college was as a criminal defense lawyer, representing pimps, prostitutes, and other clients that more prominent attorneys would not take. One early case was to defend Mario Savio on his first civil disobedience arrest. He quickly became involved in the civil rights movement, leading a well-orchestrated sit-in to protest housing discrimination after a local real estate office refused to work with him because of his race. He narrowly lost an election to the California State Assembly in 1962 before winning a second election in 1964.
Brown had a keen sense of personal style from the beginning that he later parlayed into a political advantage. Even in high school he was fastidious about his appearance.[4] In office he became famous for Italian suits, sports cars, nightclubbing, and a collection of dressy hats.[5] As Mayor he was often portrayed mockingly but affectionately by political cartoonists and columnists as a vain emperor, presiding in a robe and crown over the inconsequential kingdom of San Francisco.[6] He enjoyed the attention this brought to his personal life, disarming friends and critics with a charm and humor that directed attention away from the serious policy agendas he was pursuing.[7]
Brown was elected to the California State Assembly from 1964-1995; he was Speaker of the Assembly from 1981-1995. In 1995 the Democrats lost control of the Assembly to Republicans led by Jim Brulte, but he soon regained control by making a deal with Republican defectors Doris Allen and Brian Setencich, both of whom were elected Speaker by the Democratic minority.[8] During their tenures, Brown was the de facto Speaker. Brown's long service in the Assembly and political connections, his strong negotiation skills, and the Assembly's tenure system for leadership appointments, combined to give Brown nearly complete control over the California Legislature by the time he became Assembly Speaker.
Brown was extremely popular in his home of San Francisco, though less so in the rest of the state.[9] Nevertheless, he wielded great control over statewide legislative affairs and political appointments, making it difficult for his conservative opponents to assail his power. Partially to remove Brown from his leadership position, a state constitutional amendment initiative was proposed and passed by the electorate in 1990, imposing term limits on state legislators.[10] Brown became the focus of the initiative. He challenged the law but it was upheld by the courts.[11] After term limits forced Brown out of office, the Assembly re-structured its rules to give most of the powers formerly held by the Speaker to a leadership committee made up of senior members of both major parties.
In 1995, Brown left the State Assembly to run for Mayor of San Francisco, easily defeating incumbent Frank Jordan. Brown served as San Francisco mayor from January 8 1996 until January 8 2004. His tenure as Mayor is marked by a significant increase in real estate development, public works, city beautification, and other large-scale city projects. He presided over the "dot com" era at a time when San Francisco's economy was rapidly expanding, and is associated with the successes and excesses of the times. Largely as a reaction against Brown, San Franciscans approved "district elections" to choose its Board of Supervisors by neighborhood rather than in an at-large vote. A newly emboldened Board began to oppose Brown's agenda and roll back some of his initiatives, in particular office and housing development. Brown was restricted by term limits from running for mayor and was succeeded by a political protege, fellow Democrat Gavin Newsom. After being "termed out" of the Mayor's Office Brown officially retired from politics, although he is often associated with California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger,[12][13]and participates in fundraising and advising other politicians.[14]
Allegations of political patronage followed Brown from the State Legislature through his tenure as San Francisco mayor. Examples include former Republican assembly members Paul Horcher and Brian Setencich, who supported Brown's retention of the speakership in 1995. Both were hired as special assistants at San Francisco City Hall after losing their assembly seats because of their support of Brown. Former San Francisco Supervisor Bill Maher was also hired as a special assistant after campaigning for Brown in his first mayoral race.[15] As San Francisco mayor Brown was criticized for aggregating power, for putting the interests of business interests over those of the city, and for supporting pro-development policies that were perceived to lead to gentrification of once working class neighborhoods.
Brown is also criticized for favoritism to Ms. Carpeneti. In 1998 Brown arranged for Carpeneti to obtain a rent-free office in the city-owned Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Between then and 2003, a period that spans the birth of their daughter, Carpeneti was paid at least US$2.33 million by nonprofit groups and political committees controlled by then Mayor Brown and his friends.
In his characteristic style, Brown deflected most of the criticism without ever denying it. In a single interview with political scandal columnists, for example, Brown portrayed having a child with a political operative, outside of a committed relationship with the mother, while himself married, as a demonstration of his virility, parenting skills, support for women to choose keeping a child over abortion, and goodwill from his estranged wife.[16]
Brown's flamboyant style made him so well-known as the consummate politician that when an actor playing a party politician in 1990's ''The Godfather Part III'' didn't understand director Francis Ford Coppola's instruction to model his character after Brown, Coppola fired the actor and hired Brown himself to play the role. Brown later appeared in 2000s ''Just One Night'' as a judge. He has also played himself in two Disney films, ''George of the Jungle'' and ''The Princess Diaries'', and the 2003 Universal release "Hulk" as mayor of San Francisco. He appeared as himself, alongside Geraldo Rivera, in an episode of "Nash Bridges".
From January 2006 through September 2006, Brown co-hosted a morning radio show with comedian Will Durst on a local San Francisco Air America Radio affiliate. He also makes a weekly podcast. The show was canceled in late September, 2006.
★ "It was a horror chamber. It got to be a little bit better when…I could work in the fields and make a couple of dollars a day. At 12 years of age, I could actually make six bucks a week shining shoes. Using those dollars, to buy the things that ordinary kids had, relieved the misery a bit, but only a tiny bit."[17]
★ "It takes greater skills to listen than it does to speak."
★ Being a hedonist is not a disability in San Francisco That’s what the city is all about. You can get loaded every single night of the week, and as long as you show up crisp and ready for work each morning, that’s what people care about.” (said in February, 2007, of mayor Gavin Newsom)[18]
★ The Speaker's Electoral Connection: Willie Brown and the California Assembly, , Richard A., Clucas, University of California Press, 1994,
★ Willie L. Brown, Jr: Daring Black Leader, , Robert Lee, Green, Franklin Publishers, 1974,
★ Willie Brown: The Early Years, , James, Richardson, Alicia Patterson Foundation, 1993,
1. Running the Show: Mayor Willie Brown's Life Of Public Service Gregory Lewis
2. SFSU Public Affairs Press Relaease, May 28, 2001, "San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown challenges SFSU Class of 2001", accessed July 4, 2007
3. Love and Money, Mayor's fund-raiser got millions Lance Williams; Patrick Hoge
4. Willie Brown: A Biography, , James, Richardson, University of California Press, 1997,
5. Willie Brown: The Early Years, , James D., Richardson, The AFP Reporter, 1993
6. ''Farley'' Phil Frank
7. 25 ways to suck up to Willie Brown Rob Morse
8. Keeping the grip on power Daniel Weintraub
9. Running the show: Mayor Willie Brown's life of public service
10. Is black politics dead in California?
11. State Legislative Term Limits
12. Why Arnold invited Willie Brown
13. California Governor says build the fence
14. California Democratic Party Lines Up Behind pro-Bush anti-Labor Schwarzenegger
15. Mayor's patronage army, Brown fattens payroll with loyalists, colleagues, friends Lance Williams; Chuck Finnie
16. Da Mayor, 66, Says He'll Be a Dad Again Phillip Matier, Andrew Ross
17. Willie Brown Interview
18. The Mayor and the Mistress in Fog City
★ Willie Brown podcast
★
★
★ Anti-Willie website
★ Sf Chronicle, Biographer captures mayor in print SF Chronicle, Mayor's patronage army
'Willie Lewis Brown, Jr.' (born March 20, 1934) is an American political figure who served over 30 years in the California State Assembly, after which he became the first and only African-American mayor of San Francisco. Brown is a member of the Democratic Party.
| Contents |
| Biography |
| Political career |
| Criticisms |
| Brown in the media |
| Quotes |
| Bibliography |
| References |
| External links |
Biography
Brown was born in Mineola, a small segregated town in east Texas marked by racial tensions, to Minnie Collins Boyd and Lewis Brown. His first job was as a shoeshine boy. He later worked as a janitor, fry cook, and field hand.[1] He graduated from Mineola Colored high School, an all-Black school he later described as substandard, and left for San Francisco in 1951.
Brown earned a bachelor's degree in political science from San Francisco State University in 1955[2] and a J.D. from Hastings College of the Law in 1958. Brown is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African-Americans.
In September, 1958, Brown married Blanche Vitero, with whom he had three children, Susan, Robin, and Michael. The couple separated in approximately 1976 but remain married. In succeeding years Brown has been romantically linked to a number of locally prominent women, including San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris. He has a daughter, Sydney Brown, by political fund raiser Carolyn Carpeneti.[3]
Brown's first job after college was as a criminal defense lawyer, representing pimps, prostitutes, and other clients that more prominent attorneys would not take. One early case was to defend Mario Savio on his first civil disobedience arrest. He quickly became involved in the civil rights movement, leading a well-orchestrated sit-in to protest housing discrimination after a local real estate office refused to work with him because of his race. He narrowly lost an election to the California State Assembly in 1962 before winning a second election in 1964.
Brown had a keen sense of personal style from the beginning that he later parlayed into a political advantage. Even in high school he was fastidious about his appearance.[4] In office he became famous for Italian suits, sports cars, nightclubbing, and a collection of dressy hats.[5] As Mayor he was often portrayed mockingly but affectionately by political cartoonists and columnists as a vain emperor, presiding in a robe and crown over the inconsequential kingdom of San Francisco.[6] He enjoyed the attention this brought to his personal life, disarming friends and critics with a charm and humor that directed attention away from the serious policy agendas he was pursuing.[7]
Political career
Brown was elected to the California State Assembly from 1964-1995; he was Speaker of the Assembly from 1981-1995. In 1995 the Democrats lost control of the Assembly to Republicans led by Jim Brulte, but he soon regained control by making a deal with Republican defectors Doris Allen and Brian Setencich, both of whom were elected Speaker by the Democratic minority.[8] During their tenures, Brown was the de facto Speaker. Brown's long service in the Assembly and political connections, his strong negotiation skills, and the Assembly's tenure system for leadership appointments, combined to give Brown nearly complete control over the California Legislature by the time he became Assembly Speaker.
Brown was extremely popular in his home of San Francisco, though less so in the rest of the state.[9] Nevertheless, he wielded great control over statewide legislative affairs and political appointments, making it difficult for his conservative opponents to assail his power. Partially to remove Brown from his leadership position, a state constitutional amendment initiative was proposed and passed by the electorate in 1990, imposing term limits on state legislators.[10] Brown became the focus of the initiative. He challenged the law but it was upheld by the courts.[11] After term limits forced Brown out of office, the Assembly re-structured its rules to give most of the powers formerly held by the Speaker to a leadership committee made up of senior members of both major parties.
In 1995, Brown left the State Assembly to run for Mayor of San Francisco, easily defeating incumbent Frank Jordan. Brown served as San Francisco mayor from January 8 1996 until January 8 2004. His tenure as Mayor is marked by a significant increase in real estate development, public works, city beautification, and other large-scale city projects. He presided over the "dot com" era at a time when San Francisco's economy was rapidly expanding, and is associated with the successes and excesses of the times. Largely as a reaction against Brown, San Franciscans approved "district elections" to choose its Board of Supervisors by neighborhood rather than in an at-large vote. A newly emboldened Board began to oppose Brown's agenda and roll back some of his initiatives, in particular office and housing development. Brown was restricted by term limits from running for mayor and was succeeded by a political protege, fellow Democrat Gavin Newsom. After being "termed out" of the Mayor's Office Brown officially retired from politics, although he is often associated with California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger,[12][13]and participates in fundraising and advising other politicians.[14]
Criticisms
Allegations of political patronage followed Brown from the State Legislature through his tenure as San Francisco mayor. Examples include former Republican assembly members Paul Horcher and Brian Setencich, who supported Brown's retention of the speakership in 1995. Both were hired as special assistants at San Francisco City Hall after losing their assembly seats because of their support of Brown. Former San Francisco Supervisor Bill Maher was also hired as a special assistant after campaigning for Brown in his first mayoral race.[15] As San Francisco mayor Brown was criticized for aggregating power, for putting the interests of business interests over those of the city, and for supporting pro-development policies that were perceived to lead to gentrification of once working class neighborhoods.
Brown is also criticized for favoritism to Ms. Carpeneti. In 1998 Brown arranged for Carpeneti to obtain a rent-free office in the city-owned Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Between then and 2003, a period that spans the birth of their daughter, Carpeneti was paid at least US$2.33 million by nonprofit groups and political committees controlled by then Mayor Brown and his friends.
In his characteristic style, Brown deflected most of the criticism without ever denying it. In a single interview with political scandal columnists, for example, Brown portrayed having a child with a political operative, outside of a committed relationship with the mother, while himself married, as a demonstration of his virility, parenting skills, support for women to choose keeping a child over abortion, and goodwill from his estranged wife.[16]
Brown in the media
Brown's flamboyant style made him so well-known as the consummate politician that when an actor playing a party politician in 1990's ''The Godfather Part III'' didn't understand director Francis Ford Coppola's instruction to model his character after Brown, Coppola fired the actor and hired Brown himself to play the role. Brown later appeared in 2000s ''Just One Night'' as a judge. He has also played himself in two Disney films, ''George of the Jungle'' and ''The Princess Diaries'', and the 2003 Universal release "Hulk" as mayor of San Francisco. He appeared as himself, alongside Geraldo Rivera, in an episode of "Nash Bridges".
From January 2006 through September 2006, Brown co-hosted a morning radio show with comedian Will Durst on a local San Francisco Air America Radio affiliate. He also makes a weekly podcast. The show was canceled in late September, 2006.
Quotes
★ "It was a horror chamber. It got to be a little bit better when…I could work in the fields and make a couple of dollars a day. At 12 years of age, I could actually make six bucks a week shining shoes. Using those dollars, to buy the things that ordinary kids had, relieved the misery a bit, but only a tiny bit."[17]
★ "It takes greater skills to listen than it does to speak."
★ Being a hedonist is not a disability in San Francisco That’s what the city is all about. You can get loaded every single night of the week, and as long as you show up crisp and ready for work each morning, that’s what people care about.” (said in February, 2007, of mayor Gavin Newsom)[18]
Bibliography
★ The Speaker's Electoral Connection: Willie Brown and the California Assembly, , Richard A., Clucas, University of California Press, 1994,
★ Willie L. Brown, Jr: Daring Black Leader, , Robert Lee, Green, Franklin Publishers, 1974,
★ Willie Brown: The Early Years, , James, Richardson, Alicia Patterson Foundation, 1993,
References
1. Running the Show: Mayor Willie Brown's Life Of Public Service Gregory Lewis
2. SFSU Public Affairs Press Relaease, May 28, 2001, "San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown challenges SFSU Class of 2001", accessed July 4, 2007
3. Love and Money, Mayor's fund-raiser got millions Lance Williams; Patrick Hoge
4. Willie Brown: A Biography, , James, Richardson, University of California Press, 1997,
5. Willie Brown: The Early Years, , James D., Richardson, The AFP Reporter, 1993
6. ''Farley'' Phil Frank
7. 25 ways to suck up to Willie Brown Rob Morse
8. Keeping the grip on power Daniel Weintraub
9. Running the show: Mayor Willie Brown's life of public service
10. Is black politics dead in California?
11. State Legislative Term Limits
12. Why Arnold invited Willie Brown
13. California Governor says build the fence
14. California Democratic Party Lines Up Behind pro-Bush anti-Labor Schwarzenegger
15. Mayor's patronage army, Brown fattens payroll with loyalists, colleagues, friends Lance Williams; Chuck Finnie
16. Da Mayor, 66, Says He'll Be a Dad Again Phillip Matier, Andrew Ross
17. Willie Brown Interview
18. The Mayor and the Mistress in Fog City
External links
★ Willie Brown podcast
★
★
★ Anti-Willie website
★ Sf Chronicle, Biographer captures mayor in print SF Chronicle, Mayor's patronage army
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