Chokwe Antar Lumumba
Chokwe Antar Lumumba (born March 29, 1983) is an American attorney, activist, politician and the current Mayor of Jackson, Mississippi.[1] While running for mayor, Lumumba soundly[2] won the Democratic nomination, defeating incumbent mayor Tony Yarber and John Horhn, a state senator.[3] As Jackson is a heavily Democratic leaning city, Lumumba's primary victory was likely to make him the next mayor of Jackson.[4] Lumumba was endorsed by Our Revolution[5] and the Working Families Party,[6] and ran on a progressive platform promising to make Jackson "the most radical city on the planet." He is the son of former mayor Chokwe Lumumba, who served briefly before his death in 2014.[7] Lumumba has two children with his wife, Ebony.[8]
Chokwe Lumumba | |
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Mayor of Jackson | |
Assumed office July 3, 2017 | |
Preceded by | Tony Yarber |
Personal details | |
Born | Chokwe Antar Lumumba March 29, 1983 |
Political party | Democratic |
Relatives | Chokwe Lumumba (father) |
Education | Tuskegee University (BA) Texas Southern University (JD) |
Lumumba was a featured speaker at the 2017 People's Summit.[9]
Mayor of Jackson, Mississippi
In the summer of 2018, Lumumba attended Michael Bloomberg's "Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative." [10][11] In a press release, released by the City of Jackson, the Initiative was created by Bloomberg to train leaders to "manage the complexities of running a city, and to have opportunities to learn from one another." Four months later, in November, 2018, Bloomberg awarded the City of Jackson $1 million to create art highlighting the food insecurity crisis in Jackson.[12]
Jackson Zoo Crisis
In April, 2018, when the Jackson Zoo announced plans to consider moving from its current West Jackson location, Lumumba joined Working Together Jackson, the Zoo Area Progressive Partnership, Rosemont Missionary Baptist Church and other community groups, in an effort to prevent the zoo from moving and called the proposed plan disingenuous and disrespectful.[13] During the dispute between Zoo leadership and the Lumumba administration, the Zoo contract expired[14] and the facility was closed to the public for lack of licensing.[15]
References
- Williams, Angela (July 3, 2017). "Chokwe Antar Lumumba sworn in as Jackson mayor". WAPT. Retrieved 2018-07-06.
- "Some Mayors Defeated in Mississippi Municipal Primaries". US News and World Report. The Associated Press. 2017-05-03. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
- Nichols, John (2017-05-03). "Jackson, Mississippi, Just Nominated Radical Activist Chokwe Antar Lumumba to Be the Next Mayor". The Nation. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
- Helm, Angela Bronner (2017-05-03). "Young Pro-Black Progressive Likely To Become Next Mayor Of Jackson, Mississippi". News One. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
- Doctorow, Cory (October 4, 2017). "Sanders-backed politicians are winning battle after battle in southern local elections". Boing Boing. Retrieved November 17, 2017.
- Kelly, William III (April 27, 2017). "Working Families Party Endorses Lumumba for Mayor, Calling Him 'Inspiring'". Jackson Free Press. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- Marans, Daniel (2017-05-03). "Progressive Attorney Unseats Business-Friendly Mississippi Mayor". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
- Vicory, Justin (2018-03-21). "Is it a boy or girl? Jackson mayor's family grows by one Wednesday". The Clarion Ledger. Retrieved 2018-07-06.
- Weigel, David. "Other lessons from the People's Summit". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 14, 2017.
- "Mayor Lumumba in New York City for Leadership Training". Jackson Free Press. July 24, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
- "Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative Announces Second Class of Mayors Go Back to School". July 25, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
- "Jackson awarded $1 million from Michael Bloomberg for art project to spotlight food insecurity". November 29, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
- "Mayor Calls Zoo's Move 'Disingenuous,' 'Disrespectful' to West Jackson". April 13, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
- "Jackson Zoo contract up in about week's time". September 25, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
- "Jackson Zoo to temporarily close for renovations". September 27, 2019. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
Political offices | ||
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Preceded by Tony Yarber |
Mayor of Jackson 2017–present |
Incumbent |