Marion Barry

Marion Barry - Leaders, Career and Family

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Marion Barry's Personal Details

Marion Barry is an American Democratic politician, who served as the first president of the SNCC during the Civil Rights Movement

InformationDetail
BirthdayMarch 6, 1936
NationalityAmerican
FamousDemocrats, Leaders, Political Leaders
IdeologiesDemocrats
City/StateMississippi
SpousesBlantie Evans (m. 1962–1964), Cora Masters (m. 1994–2003), Effi Slaughter (m. 1978–1993), Mary M. Treadwell (m. 1972–1977)
Known asMarion Shepilov Barry Jr.
ChildrensLalanya Masters Abner (stepdaughter), Marion Christopher Barry, Tamara Masters Wilds (stepdaughter)
Universities
  • LeMoyne College (now LeMoyne-Owen College Fisk University
Birth PlaceItta Bena, Mississippi, U.S.
Political IdeologyDemocratic
ReligionBaptist
GenderMale
FatherMarion Barry
MotherMattie Cummings
Sun SignPisces
Born inItta Bena, Mississippi, U.S.

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Marion Barry's photo

Who is Marion Barry?

At a time when African-Americans were not permitted to voice their sentiments related to racism and equality, Marion Barry became one of those foot warriors and instruments of a new revolution. Any intimation of opposition was usually met with brute force, lynching, beatings and sometimes, even cool-blooded murder. Dr. Martin Luther King and his foot soldiers, including Barry, began boldly defying dogmatists and racists around America, head on. Today, he is a successful American Democratic politician and is best known for his role in the civil rights movement. While studying for his doctorate at Tennessee University, he became a founding member of the ‘Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee’ (SNCC) and was made its national chairman and president. For his contributions towards the betterment of his people, Barry was also elected as the mayor of the District of Columbia, before he was sentenced for six months in prison after being sentenced on a drugs charge. After serving as a business organizer, to a school board associate and to mayor, for over two decades, Barry has typified all that is good and evil about urban politics in the United States of America.

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Childhood & Early Life

Marion Barry was born in Itta Bena, Mississippi, and was the third of his ten siblings. His father passed away when he was only four and only a year later, his mother moved to Memphis, Tennessee, and remarried again.

From a very young age, Barry did a number of jobs to make ends meet, including selling newspapers, picking cotton, serving as a waiter to working in a departmental store.

After he completed his high school education, he attended LeMoyne College and graduated in 1958. He earned an M.S. degree in organic chemistry from Fisk University and was also a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha federation.

After graduating from Fisk University, he joined the American civil rights movement and was elected as the president of the ‘Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee’.

During this time, he was pursuing a doctoral program in chemistry at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and was the only African-American in his batch.

In 1965, he moved to Washington D.C. and was intensely involved in coordinating the street protests during bus fare increase. Around this time, he discovered his true passion for working towards securing the rights of his fellow African-American brothers and soon enough, he began working towards their betterment.

In 1967, he quit SNCC and co-founded Pride, Inc., along with his wife, to provide job training for unemployed black people.

Career

After the 1968 Washington D.C. riots, Barry arranged for provisions for his fellow African-Americans. He also started initiating change in perception towards black people in Washington D.C. by becoming the board member of the city’s Economic Development Committee.

In 1971, he announced his candidacy for at-large member of the school board in 1971 and defeated his opponent with 58% votes. After being seated as the board member the following year, he organized the school’s finances and advocated a larger budget for higher education.

In 1974, Barry was elected to Washington’s first elected city council and while serving as the council member, he was nominated as the chairman of the District of Columbia Committee - a position he served till 1979.

He was shot on March 9, 1977 by the fundamentalists, Hanafi Muslims. After a quick recovery, he fell out of political favor in the 1978 election, but won the Democratic mayoral primary election, defeating Arthur Fletcher.

In the first four years of his tenure, he brought changes in the sanitation of the city, stabilized the city’s finances and made summer employment available for graduates. In his first term itself, the US government saw a surplus, but the unemployment and the crime sky-rocketed.

In 1982, he ran for his second term and won with over 58% of the votes cast in his favor. In this period, he assuaged the fiscal problems and brought a drastic change to curb the crime rates in the city. However, the following year, he struggled with a $110 million deficit in the city’s finances.

After being elected for a third term as the mayor in 1986, his health began deteriorating due to consumption of cocaine and alcohol. He was investigated by officers for six years on suspicion of illegal drug possession and on January 18, 1990, he was arrested in a sting operation by the FBI for the possession of ‘crack’. This was broadcasted live on television and as a result of this public humiliation, he decided not to seek re-election as mayor.

He was released from prison in 1992 and two months later, filed papers to run for the Ward 8 city council seas in that year’s election.

Barry formally announced his candidacy for mayor on May 21, 1994. He once again defeated his adversary, winning 70% of the votes and was formally re-elected as D.C.’s mayor for the fourth term from 1995 to 1999.

He declined to run for the fifth term and was eventually succeeded by city CFO, Antony A. Williams.

After he left office as the mayor, he started working as a consultant for an investment banking firm and soon announced that he will be running in the Democratic primary for the Ward 8 council seat, which he later won. After successful four year tenure, he filed for re-election once again in 2008.

Major Works

As the mayor of Washington D.C., Marion Barry canvassed dynamically to cut government waste, lessen infant mortality, provide accommodation and employment for the city’s underprivileged and also make occupation available for all African-American graduates. During his tenure as the mayor, he made sure that Washington regained its fiscal condition.

Personal Life & Legacy

Marion Barry married Mary Treadwell, who was the co-founder of ‘Pride, Inc.’ in 1972. They separated five years after their marriage.

He got married to Effi Slaughter in 1978 and divorced her in 1993. The couple had one son, Christopher Barry.

Trivia

In 2009, this American Democratic politician and the mayor Washington D.C., was charged with stalking.

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Marion Barry biography timelines

  • // 6th Mar 1936
    Marion Barry was born in Itta Bena, Mississippi, and was the third of his ten siblings. His father passed away when he was only four and only a year later, his mother moved to Memphis, Tennessee, and remarried again.
  • // 1958
    After he completed his high school education, he attended LeMoyne College and graduated in 1958. He earned an M.S. degree in organic chemistry from Fisk University and was also a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha federation.
  • // 1965
    In 1965, he moved to Washington D.C. and was intensely involved in coordinating the street protests during bus fare increase. Around this time, he discovered his true passion for working towards securing the rights of his fellow African-American brothers and soon enough, he began working towards their betterment.
  • // 1967
    In 1967, he quit SNCC and co-founded Pride, Inc., along with his wife, to provide job training for unemployed black people.
  • // 1968
    After the 1968 Washington D.C. riots, Barry arranged for provisions for his fellow African-Americans. He also started initiating change in perception towards black people in Washington D.C. by becoming the board member of the city’s Economic Development Committee.
  • // 1971
    In 1971, he announced his candidacy for at-large member of the school board in 1971 and defeated his opponent with 58% votes. After being seated as the board member the following year, he organized the school’s finances and advocated a larger budget for higher education.
  • // 1972 To 1977
    Marion Barry married Mary Treadwell, who was the co-founder of ‘Pride, Inc.’ in 1972. They separated five years after their marriage.
  • // 1974 To 1979
    In 1974, Barry was elected to Washington’s first elected city council and while serving as the council member, he was nominated as the chairman of the District of Columbia Committee - a position he served till 1979.
  • // 9th Mar 1977 To 1978
    He was shot on March 9, 1977 by the fundamentalists, Hanafi Muslims. After a quick recovery, he fell out of political favor in the 1978 election, but won the Democratic mayoral primary election, defeating Arthur Fletcher.
  • // 1978 To 1993
    He got married to Effi Slaughter in 1978 and divorced her in 1993. The couple had one son, Christopher Barry.
  • // 1979
    In the first four years of his tenure, he brought changes in the sanitation of the city, stabilized the city’s finances and made summer employment available for graduates. In his first term itself, the US government saw a surplus, but the unemployment and the crime sky-rocketed.
  • // 1982
    In 1982, he ran for his second term and won with over 58% of the votes cast in his favor. In this period, he assuaged the fiscal problems and brought a drastic change to curb the crime rates in the city. However, the following year, he struggled with a $110 million deficit in the city’s finances.
  • // 1986 To 18th Jan 1990
    After being elected for a third term as the mayor in 1986, his health began deteriorating due to consumption of cocaine and alcohol. He was investigated by officers for six years on suspicion of illegal drug possession and on January 18, 1990, he was arrested in a sting operation by the FBI for the possession of ‘crack’. This was broadcasted live on television and as a result of this public humiliation, he decided not to seek re-election as mayor.
  • // 1992
    He was released from prison in 1992 and two months later, filed papers to run for the Ward 8 city council seas in that year’s election.
  • // 21st May 1994 To 1999
    Barry formally announced his candidacy for mayor on May 21, 1994. He once again defeated his adversary, winning 70% of the votes and was formally re-elected as D.C.’s mayor for the fourth term from 1995 to 1999.
  • // 2008
    After he left office as the mayor, he started working as a consultant for an investment banking firm and soon announced that he will be running in the Democratic primary for the Ward 8 council seat, which he later won. After successful four year tenure, he filed for re-election once again in 2008.
  • // 2009
    In 2009, this American Democratic politician and the mayor Washington D.C., was charged with stalking.

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Marion Barry's FAQ

  • What is Marion Barry birthday?

    Marion Barry was born at 1936-03-06

  • Where is Marion Barry's birth place?

    Marion Barry was born in Itta Bena, Mississippi, U.S.

  • What is Marion Barry nationalities?

    Marion Barry's nationalities is American

  • What is Marion Barry ideologies?

    Marion Barry's ideologies is Democrats

  • Who is Marion Barry spouses?

    Marion Barry's spouses is Blantie Evans (m. 1962–1964), Cora Masters (m. 1994–2003), Effi Slaughter (m. 1978–1993), Mary M. Treadwell (m. 1972–1977)

  • Who is Marion Barry childrens?

    Marion Barry's childrens is Lalanya Masters Abner (stepdaughter), Marion Christopher Barry, Tamara Masters Wilds (stepdaughter)

  • What was Marion Barry universities?

    Marion Barry studied at LeMoyne College (now LeMoyne-Owen College Fisk University

  • What is Marion Barry's political ideology?

    Marion Barry's political ideology is Democratic

  • What is Marion Barry's religion?

    Marion Barry's religion is Baptist

  • Who is Marion Barry's father?

    Marion Barry's father is Marion Barry

  • Who is Marion Barry's mother?

    Marion Barry's mother is Mattie Cummings

  • What is Marion Barry's sun sign?

    Marion Barry is Pisces