Young, Andrew, Jr. (Andrew Jackson), 1932-

Dates

• Existence: 1932-

Biographical Statement

Andrew Young is a clergyman and civil rights activist, who has been involved with public policy issues and social change throughout his life. He served as a U.S. Congressman, United States Ambassador to the United Nations, and Mayor of Atlanta. He held positions with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the National Council of Churches, and was an aid to Martin Luther King Jr.

Andrew Jackson Young Jr. was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on March 12, 1932 to Dr. Andrew Young Sr. and Daisy F. Young. He was the first of two sons. Young was educated in New Orleans and briefly attended Dillard University there before transferring to Howard University. He graduated from Howard in 1951 and intended to follow his father into dentistry, but experienced a religious calling. He received his divinity degree from Hartford Theological Seminary in Connecticut in 1956.

Young served as a pastor in Marion, Alabama. He met his first wife, Jean Childs, while in Marion, as well as Martin Luther King Jr. After a brief time in New York City, Young returned to the South and became involved with the Civil Rights Movement, participating in some of the major civil rights events of the 1960s: the Birmingham Movement of 1963, the Selma Movement of 1965, the Poor People's Campaign of 1968, and numerous voter registration drives. He served as executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and was one of Dr. King's principal aids. Young was with Dr. King when he was assassinated in April 1968.

Young also served as a pastor in Georgia, the Associate Director of Youth Work for the National Council of Churches, and Chairman of the Atlanta Community Relations Commission. In 1972, Young was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from the 5th Congressional District of Georgia, becoming the first Black Congressman from Georgia in 101 years. He left Congress during his second term to become the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations under the administration of President Jimmy Carter. He served in this position from January 1977 to September 1979. He was the first African American to serve in this position. Young’s tenure as Ambassador was not without controversy, and he ultimately was asked to resign by Carter after meeting with representatives of the Palestinian Liberation Organization, which was in conflict with U.S. policy at the time.

In 1981, Young was elected Mayor of Atlanta and served two terms. Following an unsuccessful run for Governor of Georgia, Young has served as consultant and public policy advisor with a number of organizations. He also teaches at Georgia State University's Andrew Young School of Policy Studies. His wife, Jean, died of cancer in 1994. The couple had four children: Andrea, Lisa, Paula, and Andrew III. Young married his second wife, Carolyn McClain, in 1996. Young has authored two books: A Way Out of No Way (1994) and An Easy Burden: The Civil Rights Movement and the Transformation of America (1996).

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