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Carl Stokes Remembered 50 Years After Becoming America's First Big-City Black Mayor

Next year marks the 50th anniversary of Carl Stokes becoming the nation's first black mayor of a major city.
Cleveland State University
Next year marks the 50th anniversary of Carl Stokes becoming the nation's first black mayor of a major city.
Next year marks the 50th anniversary of Carl Stokes becoming the nation's first black mayor of a major city.
Credit CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY
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Cleveland State University
Carl Stokes was Cleveland's first black mayor, the nation's first black mayor of a major city, and the first black anchorman in New York City when he signed on with WNBC-TV in 1972, a year after deciding not to run for a third term as Mayor of Cleveland.

Fifty years ago this Election Day, Cleveland voters picked their first black mayor, Carl Stokes 鈥� also the first black mayor of any large American city. WKSU鈥檚 Kabir Bhatia reports on one recent panel that discussed Stokes鈥� legacy.

Cuyahoga Community College鈥檚 Mandel Humanities Center has looking back at Stokes鈥� election and impact.

Cleveland State University Urban Studies professor Ronnie Dunn was on a panel at the Friday, and says the of 1966 set the stage for Cleveland to elect a black mayor. But two years later, the dissipated much of Stokes鈥� support after three police officers were killed and he ordered white officers out of the neighborhood.

鈥淪o that kind of sets the context within these continual issues and divisions between 鈥� particularly 鈥� the African-American community and the police, which we鈥檙e wrestling with to this very day.鈥�

On its website, the says its formation was a direct result of the 1968 riots, when there was a 鈥渟hortage of necessary equipment鈥� for officers.

, co-founder of the nonpartisan African-American think tank , was also on the panel, and says Stokes鈥� legacy in housing was about more than just bricks-and-mortar.

鈥淭he biggest lesson from Carl Stokes in my estimation is courage, because it took courage for him to build those public housing units. We need courage right now in Cleveland. You think about some of the neighborhoods that are being ignored [or] disinvested. I mean, let鈥檚 talk about the southeast side of Cleveland. We need to have the same courage that Stokes had and say,  'Enough is enough. Our whole city needs to benefit; let鈥檚 invest where we know the investment is needed.鈥�

McShepard and his fellow panelists also discussed 鈥淐leveland: Now!" -- a public-private neighborhood rehabilitation effort that Stokes launched during his first year in office. The organization eventually funded four new .

After Carl Stokes left office in 1971, he signed on with WNBC-TV, making him the first black anchorman in New York City, and later returned to Cleveland to work as general counsel for the United Auto Workers and as a judge. He died of cancer in 1996.

Copyright 2021 WKSU. To see more, visit .

Kabir Bhatia joined WKSU as a Reporter/Producer and weekend host in 2010. A graduate of Hudson High School, he received his Bachelor's from Kent State University. While a Kent student, Bhatia served as a WKSU student assistant, working in the newsroom and for production.
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