Andrew Young facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Andrew Young
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Young in 2024
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| 53rd Mayor of Atlanta | |
| In office January 4, 1982 – January 2, 1990 |
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| Preceded by | Maynard Jackson |
| Succeeded by | Maynard Jackson |
| 14th United States Ambassador to the United Nations | |
| In office January 30, 1977 – September 23, 1979 |
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| President | Jimmy Carter |
| Preceded by | William Scranton |
| Succeeded by | Donald McHenry |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's 5th district |
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| In office January 3, 1973 – January 29, 1977 |
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| Preceded by | Fletcher Thompson |
| Succeeded by | Wyche Fowler |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Andrew Jackson Young Jr.
March 12, 1932 New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouses |
Jean Childs
(m. 1954; Carolyn McClain
(m. 1996) |
| Children | 4 |
| Education | Howard University (BS) Hartford Seminary (BDiv) |
Andrew Jackson Young Jr. (born March 12, 1932) is an American leader. He has been a politician, a diplomat, and an activist. Young started his career as a pastor. He became an important leader in the civil rights movement. He worked closely with Martin Luther King Jr.
Later, Young entered politics. He served as a U.S. Congressman for Georgia. He was also the United States Ambassador to the United Nations. After that, he became the 53rd Mayor of Atlanta. He was the first African American from Georgia elected to Congress since the Reconstruction era. He was also one of the first two African Americans from the former Confederacy elected to Congress since Reconstruction, along with Barbara Jordan. After leaving public office, Young has worked with many groups. These groups focus on public policy and helping people.
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Early Life and Education
Andrew Young was born in New Orleans on March 12, 1932. His mother, Daisy Young, was a teacher. His father, Andrew Jackson Young, was a dentist. Young's father hired a boxer to teach Andrew and his brother how to defend themselves.
Young remembered the challenges of segregation in New Orleans. Even though his family was well-off, they faced unfair rules. His parents tried to make up for segregation by providing for their children.
Young studied at Dillard University for one year. He then graduated from Howard University. In 1955, he earned a divinity degree from Hartford Seminary in Hartford, Connecticut. He is also a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
Early Career and Civil Rights Work
Young became a pastor in Marion, Alabama. There, he met Jean Childs, who became his wife. He became very interested in Mahatma Gandhi's idea of nonviolent resistance. This idea uses peaceful ways to bring about social change.
Young encouraged African Americans in Alabama to register to vote. Sometimes, he received threats for this work. During this time, he became a close friend and helper to Martin Luther King Jr.. In 1955, he became a pastor at Bethany Congregational Church in Thomasville, Georgia.
In 1957, Young and Jean moved to New York City. He took a job with the Youth Division of the National Council of Churches. He also appeared on a TV show called Look Up and Live. This show was on CBS every Sunday morning.
Young also served as a pastor at the Evergreen Congregational Church in Beachton, Georgia, from 1957 to 1959.
Joining the Civil Rights Movement
In 1960, Young joined the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). He moved to Atlanta, Georgia, in 1961. He worked to help Black citizens register to vote.
Young played a key role in the 1963 events in Birmingham, Alabama. He helped talk between the white and Black communities. This happened while protests were going on.
In 1964, Young became the executive director of the SCLC. He was a close friend and helper to Martin Luther King Jr. He helped plan and negotiate during major Civil Rights Campaigns. These included Birmingham (1963), St. Augustine (1964), Selma (1965), and Atlanta (1966).
He was put in jail for taking part in civil rights protests. This happened in Selma, Alabama, and St. Augustine, Florida. The movement led to Congress passing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Young was with King in Memphis, Tennessee, when King was assassinated in 1968.
Serving in Congress
In 1970, Andrew Young ran for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. He ran as a Democrat for Georgia's 5th District. He did not win that election.
He ran again in 1972 and won. He was re-elected in 1974 and 1976. During his time in Congress, he was part of the Congressional Black Caucus. He discussed foreign relations, like stopping support for Portugal's colonies in Africa. Young also served on important committees. These included the Rules Committee and the Banking and Urban Development Committee.
Young was against the Vietnam War. He helped create the U.S. Institute for Peace. He also helped establish the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area. He worked to get federal money for MARTA and Atlanta's highways.
United States Ambassador to the United Nations
In 1977, President Jimmy Carter chose Young to be the United States Ambassador to the United Nations. Young was the first African American to hold this important position. Wyche Fowler, an Atlanta city councilman, took Young's place in Congress.
Young faced some challenges as Ambassador. In 1978, he made a comment about "political prisoners" in the U.S. This caused some debate.
In 1979, Young helped find a solution in Rhodesia. He worked with Robert Mugabe and Joshua Nkomo. They were leaders in the Rhodesian Bush War. This helped Mugabe become Prime Minister of the new country, Republic of Zimbabwe.
Young's time as Ambassador ended on August 14, 1979. President Carter asked him to resign. Young later said that it was hard to do what he thought was best for the country while following all the rules of diplomacy.
Mayor of Atlanta
In 1981, many people, including Coretta Scott King, asked Young to run for mayor of Atlanta. He won the election with 55% of the votes. He took over from Maynard Jackson.
As mayor, Young brought in $70 billion in new private investments to Atlanta. He continued programs that helped businesses owned by minorities and women get city contracts. The Mayor's Task Force on Education created the Dream Jamboree College Fair. This fair tripled the college scholarships given to Atlanta public school graduates.
In 1985, he helped renovate the Atlanta Zoo. It was then renamed Zoo Atlanta. Young was re-elected as mayor in 1985 with over 80% of the votes. Atlanta hosted the 1988 Democratic National Convention while Young was mayor. He could not run for a third term because of term limits. He once said he was "glad to be mayor of this city, where once the mayor had me thrown in jail."
A 1993 survey of experts ranked Young as the fifteenth-best American big-city mayor between 1820 and 1993. He was also ranked the fifth-best big-city mayor after 1960.
After Being Mayor
After leaving the mayor's office in 1990, Young ran for governor of Georgia. He did not win this election.
Young has continued to be active in public service. He has been a director for the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy. He also chairs the board for the Global Initiative for the Advancement of Nutritional Therapy.
In 1990, Young was part of the committee that helped Atlanta win the bid for the 1996 Summer Olympic Games. He served as co-chair for the Games. From 2000 to 2001, Young was president of the National Council of Churches.
In 2003, Young started the Andrew Young Foundation. This group supports education, health, leadership, and human rights. It works in the United States, Africa, and the Caribbean.
From February to August 2006, Young was a spokesperson for Working Families for Walmart. This group supported the retail chain Walmart.
In 2007, a documentary film called Rwanda Rising was released. It was about Rwanda's progress after the 1994 Rwandan genocide. Young narrated the film. An edited version of Rwanda Rising became the first episode of Andrew Young Presents, a TV series.
Young appeared on The Colbert Report in 2008. He talked about the election of Barack Obama as president.
On January 19, 2015, Young gave a speech at Vanderbilt University for Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Day. He shared stories from his time in Selma and with King. He also gave advice to young leaders.
On May 13, 2019, Young gave the main speech at Emory University's graduation ceremony. On May 29, 2020, Young spoke about protests in Atlanta. He said that violence and looting hurt the cause.
Young is co-chairman of Rodney Cook Sr. Park in Atlanta. This park focuses on civil rights.
In 2023, Young started the "Andrew Young HBCU Scholarship Program." This scholarship helps students who show leadership potential. It supports those who want to promote peace and human rights.
On January 9, 2025, Young gave a speech at the state funeral service for Jimmy Carter at Washington National Cathedral.
Personal Life
Andrew Young has four children with his first wife, Jean Childs Young. She passed away in 1994 from liver cancer. He married Carolyn McClain in 1996. His daughter Lisa died on March 14, 2025, from cancer.
In September 1999, Young was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He had successful surgery in January 2000.
Books by Andrew Young
- An Easy Burden: The Civil Rights Movement and the Transformation of America. (January 1998)
- A Way Out of No Way. (June 1996)
- Walk in My Shoes: Conversations between a Civil Rights Legend and his Godson on the Journey Ahead with Kabir Sehgal. (May 2010)
Awards and Honors
- Presidential Medal of Freedom
- France's Légion d'honneur
- The NAACP Spingarn Medal
- More than 45 honorary degrees from universities like Dartmouth, Yale, and Notre Dame.
- 1983 Golden Plate Award from the American Academy of Achievement
- 1995 Eagle Award from the United States Sports Academy. This is the Academy's highest honor.
- Honorary Co-Chair of the World Justice Project
- 2011 Lifetime Achievement Emmy Award, for his work on Look Up and Live.
- 2012 Georgia Trustee. This award honors people whose service reflects the ideals of Georgia's founders.
- 2018 Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage.
- 2023 induction into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame.
Places Named After Andrew Young
- In 1999, Georgia State University in Atlanta renamed its public policy school the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies.
- International Boulevard, near Centennial Olympic Park, was renamed Andrew Young International Boulevard. This honors his role in bringing the 1996 Summer Olympics to Atlanta.
- The Andrew Young Center for International Affairs at Morehouse College was named after him.
- The Andrew and Walter Young YMCA in Southwest Atlanta is named after Young and his younger brother.
- A Delta Air Lines Boeing 767-300ER airplane carries Young's name. This recognizes his civil rights achievements.
- On March 11, 2021, Delta Air Lines renamed a building at their headquarters the "Ambassador Andrew J. Young International Building."
- The Andrew Young Crossing is located in St. Augustine, Florida.
See also
In Spanish: Andrew Young para niños
- List of African-American United States representatives
- List of civil rights leaders
- Timeline of Atlanta, 1980s
