Willie Lewis Brown Jr. A member of the Democratic Party , he served as mayor of San Francisco from to as the first African American to hold the office. He was elected to the California Assembly in , during which he became popular in San Francisco and became known as one of the country's most powerful state legislators. He served as the speaker of the California State Assembly from to His long tenure and powerful position were used as a focal point of the California ballot proposition limiting the terms of state legislators that passed in During the last of his three allowed post-initiative terms, Brown maintained control of the Assembly despite a slim Republican majority.
Near the end of his final term, he decided to run for mayor of San Francisco. During Brown's tenure as mayor of San Francisco, the city's budget was expanded, and real estate development, public works, city beautification, and other city projects saw a significant increase. Brown presided over the " dot-com " era at a time when San Francisco's economy was rapidly expanding. His administration included more Asian-Americans, women, Latinos, gays and African Americans than the administrations of his predecessors.
San Francisco Chronicle called Brown "one of San Francisco's most notable mayors", adding that he had "celebrity beyond the city's boundaries. He was the fourth of five children. His first job was as a shoeshine boy in a whites-only barber shop. Although Brown did not meet the qualifications for San Francisco State College , a professor at the school facilitated his admission on probation. Brown worked as a doorman, janitor and shoe salesman to pay for college. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
Brown attended University of California, Hastings College of the Law , where he also worked as a janitor. He later said that his decision to attend law school was primarily to avoid being drafted. During the late s and early s, Brown was one of a few African-Americans practicing law in San Francisco when he opened his own business.
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. Brown was one of four Black Americans in the Assembly in The other three were Mervyn M. Dymally , F. Douglas Ferrell and Byron Rumford. In the s, Brown served as chair of the Legislative Representation Committee, a powerful position that helped him climb the Assembly ranks.
