What is Andrew Young famous for?

Answer 1

Andrew Yong's political career was forged in the heat of the Civil Rights Movement. Educated at Dillard and Howard Universities and at Hartford Theological Seminary, he became a congregational minister and worked for a time organizing youth work for the National Council of Churches. He joined the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1960 and became its executive director 1964 - 70. His close association with Martin Luther King and his own charismatic personality made him one of the key leaders of the black community in the south.

In 1972 Young was elected to Congress, the first black Congressman from Georgia in 100 years. In 1977, his fellow Georgian Jimmy Carter appointed Young as ambassador to the United Nations. In that capacity Young excited controversy because of his support for Third World countries and he was forced to resign in 1979 following publicity given to a series of secret meetings with the Palestine Liberation Organization. He was elected as mayor of Atlanta in 1981 and served the full two terms allowed by the constitution.

Young's political stance was moderate and he was successful at building cross-community coalitions in Atlanta. In Democratic national politics, he translated that approach into support for mainstream liberalism. In 1984 he supported Walter Mondale rather than the more radical black candidate Jesse Jackson for the presidential nomination.