Nikuyah Walker facts for kids

Nikuyah Walker is a politician who served as the mayor of Charlottesville, Virginia, from 2018 to 2022. A mayor is the leader of a city's government. Walker made history when she became the first African American woman to be elected mayor of Charlottesville.

Early Life and Education

Nikuyah Walker was born and grew up in the city of Charlottesville. She attended local schools and graduated from Charlottesville High School in 1998.

After high school, she went to college at Virginia Commonwealth University. She studied political science, which is the study of government and how it works. She earned her bachelor's degree in 2004. Walker is also a mother to three children.

Political Career

Running for City Council

In 2017, Walker decided to run for a seat on the Charlottesville City Council. A city council is a group of people elected to make laws and decisions for a city. Her campaign became more well-known after a large and controversial protest called the Unite the Right rally took place in the city.

Walker spoke up and asked the city's leaders, including the mayor at the time, Michael Signer, to explain why the event was allowed to happen. She wanted the city government to address the serious problems the rally brought to light. Her strong voice on these issues helped her and another candidate, Heather Hill, get elected to the city council.

Becoming Mayor of Charlottesville

After being elected to the council, Nikuyah Walker was chosen by the other council members to be the mayor. She was the first Independent candidate to be elected to the council in over 70 years. An independent politician is someone who does not belong to a major political party, like the Democrats or Republicans.

As mayor, one of Walker's main goals was to create more affordable housing. This means she wanted to make sure there were homes and apartments available for people who did not have a lot of money.

During her time as mayor, Walker also took part in a special event at The National Memorial for Peace and Justice. The event was held to remember John Henry James, an African American man who was killed in a hateful act of violence near Charlottesville in 1898.

In 2021, Walker faced criticism for a social media post. In the post, she used very strong and controversial words to describe the problems she saw in Charlottesville. This led to a public debate about her leadership style.