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Harold Washington
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois's 1st district
In office 1981–1983
Preceded by	Bennett M. Stewart
Succeeded by	Charles A. Hayes
51st Mayor of Chicago
In office 1983–1987
Preceded by	Jane Byrne
Succeeded by	David Orr
Personal details
Born	(1922-04-15)April 15, 1922 Chicago, Illinois, United States
Died	November 25, 1987(1987-11-25) (aged 65) Chicago, Illinois, United States
Political party	Democratic
Height	250px
Spouse(s)	Nancy Dorothy Finch (July 22, 1942–February 25, 1950) Mary Ella Smith (engaged)
Residence(s)	Chicago, Illinois

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

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 was elected class president his senior year. Washington was a member of Phi Beta Sigma. 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 House of Representatives, and he became a member of the Illinois Senate in 1976. In 1980 he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for Illinois' 1st congressional district.

In 1969, the Supreme Court of the State of Illinois suspended Mr. Washington's license to practice law indefinitely. Mr. Washington successfully petitioned the Court for reinstatement after five and a half years.

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, versus 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, former state legislator 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, Washington's conviction for failure to file income tax returns. (He had paid the taxes, but had not filed a return.) However, Washington appealed to his constituency in his mayoral political campaign, and stressed such things as reforming the Chicago patronage system and the 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. Pre-election opinion polling had showed Washington with a much larger lead, making the final margin a possible example of the so-called "Bradley effect", particularly considering the racially charged nature of the campaign.

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. Other first-term items include overall city population loss, increased crime, and a massive decrease in ridership on the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA). This helped earn the city the nickname "Beirut on the Lake", and many people wondered if Chicago would ever recover or face the more permanent declines of other cities in the U.S. Midwest.

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. Congressmen Dan Rostenkowski and William Lipinski, 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 chairman of the 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.

Legacy

On November 25 1987, Washington died of a heart attack in his office at City Hall. It was rumored that doctors at the hospital to which Washington had been brought when he suffered his fatal heart attack had discovered that underneath his suit he was wearing female underwear.

Thousands of Chicagoans attended his wake in the lobby of City Hall between November 27 and November 29, 1987. On November 30th Rev. B. Herbert Martin officiated at funeral services in Christ Universal Temple at 119th Street and Ashland Avenue, Chicago.

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 . 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 as mayor, 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 Harold Washington Park. During his residence there, he carefully protected a colony of feral Monk Parakeets living in the park across from his apartment, and many locals took to calling the birds "Harold's Parakeets".

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 , 'How's Harold?'!"

"Mirth and Girth"

In 1988, a student painting of Harold Washington was torn down shortly after Washington's death by the city's aldermen based on its content. The painting, "Mirth & Girth" by David Nelson, was of Washington clad only in women's underwear holding a pencil, based on the aforementioned rumor that doctors at the hospital to which Washington had been brought when he suffered his fatal heart attack had discovered that underneath his suit he was wearing female underwear The city council discussed the matter to great length, claiming that the author was mentally unstable and the work was a "disgrace" to the city. The aldermen then met with the school's director, and with Chicago police officers present, had the painting "arrested" for its inflammatory content.

The painting was returned after a lengthy lawsuit involving the ACLU. The ACLU claimed the removal violated Nelson's First, Fourth, and Fourteenth amendment rights. Nelson received payment for damage to the painting which occurred during its confiscation.

Notes

1. "A Correction on Chicago", The New York Times, 1983-04-07. {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: date and year (link)
2. http://www.ncac.org/art-law/op-nel.cfm NELSON v. STREETER, 16 F.3d 145 (7th Cir. 1994)
3. Dubin, Steven (1992). Arresting Images, Impolitic Art and Uncivil Actions. Routledge. ISBN 0-415-90893-0.

Further reading

• Rivlin, Gary. Fire on the Prairie: Chicago’s Harold Washington and the Politics of Race. New York: H. Holt, 1992. ISBN 0805014683.

External links

• United States Congress. "Harold Washington (id: W000180)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Chicago Public Library factsheet
• Photo
• "Harold"—This American Life radio story. A political history of Washington's mayoralty.
• The Harold Washington Commemorative Year
• "The Legacy of Chicago's Harold Washington", Cheryl Corley, All Things Considered, November 23, 2007. Accessed November 23, 2007.

v t e Mayors of Chicago
Ogden Morris Raymond Loyd F. C. Sherman Raymond Garrett A. Sherman Garrett Chapin Curtiss Woodworth Curtiss Gurnee Gray Milliken Boone Dyer Wentworth Haines Wentworth Rumsey F. C. Sherman Rice Mason Medill Bond Colvin Hoyne Heath Harrison Sr. Roche Cregier Washburne Harrison Sr. Swift Hopkins Swift Harrison Jr. Dunne Busse Harrison Jr. Thompson Dever Thompson Cermak Corr Kelly Kennelly R. J. Daley Bilandic Byrne Washington Orr Sawyer R. M. Daley Emanuel Lightfoot Johnson
Elections
Acting officeholder.     Election declared null and void.

• 1922 births
• 1987 deaths
• Mayors of Chicago
• Members of the United States House of Representatives from Illinois
• African Americans in the United States Congress
• Illinois State Senators
• Members of the Illinois House of Representatives
• Illinois lawyers
• United States Army soldiers
• American military personnel of World War II
• American Roman Catholics