Chicago is a fractured community-divided by not only north and south, the Cubs or the White Sox-race, class, ethnicity as well as political interests has plagued the city for decades. While the second city continues to suffer from perils of injustice, segregation and the divisive issues above-my city is the birthplace of African American political leadership. Chicago is the home of Harold Washington one man who left a legacy that changed the face of American politics. He was the first, and still is the only, African American mayor of the city of Chicago. During his short, yet impactful campaign and tenure, Washington won against democratic incumbent Jane Byrne and Richard Daley Jr.; he challenged the "windy city" political machine; a characteristic of Chicago that today still applies.
A Natural Born Leader: Washington's Younger Years.
On April 15, 1922, Reverend Roy Washington, a lawyer and AME minister and his wife, well known singer Bertha Washington, birthed Harold Washington. They lived on Chicago's south side in what was then known as the Low End; now called Bronzeville, which is the community where my family currently lives. The neighborhood was the center of black culture in the early 20th century, the birthplace of jazz-a community where numerous infamous leaders, artists, activists and athletes were raised and or lived including: musician Louis Armstrong, boxer Joe Louis, poet Gwendolyn Brooks, and first African American female pilot, Bessie Coleman to name a few. As a young teenager, Washington was keenly aware of the tremendous divide in social, economic and education between his peers and his middle-class family. Yet, he was sensitive and truly cared about helping people. Harold attended DuSable High School, a racially segregated school where he achieved athletically and academically. He was a track hurdler and made it all the way to state and placed first with no training.
{Doren, 58} Early in the American Civil War Whitman learned that his brother, George, was wounded and in a hospital in Washington, D.C. ... He stayed in Washington as a government clerk and also served as a hospital volunteer. ...