Andrew J. Young
is nothing less than a living legend.
An icon of the Civil Rights movement,
he worked as executive director
of SCLC, the Southern Christian
Leadership Council, where
he became a top strategist and trusted friend
to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and witnessed his assassination.
In 1972, a predominately
white district in Georgia
elected Andrew Young as
its representative to the
United States Congress,
making him the first black
man to serve the state in
Washington since the
Reconstruction era.
Andrew Young served in Congress for three
terms before being appointed United States
Ambassador to the United Nations by President
Jimmy Carter in 1977.
In that role, he became a champion of human
rights around the world, and particularly in Africa,
where he spearheaded the administration's efforts
to end apartheid.
In 1982, he was first elected Mayor of
Atlanta, and during two remarkable
terms is credited with transforming the city into an international metropolis.
It was largely because of his
international influence that Atlanta was
chosen to host the Centennial Olympic
Games in 1996, which Ambassador
Young served as co-chairman.
Since leaving public office,
Andrew Young has been
a sort of ambassador to
the world, devoting
much of his life's work to
Africa and its vast
economic potential.
Arguably, no one in
America knows the
continent and its people
so well.
You were given by God great gifts.
Many people have gifts.
The test is what you do with them and whether you care about others who deserve their chance in life, who either don't have your gifts or didn't have your opportunities."
President Bill Clinton
The Andrew J. Young Foundation was created
to help make his visions
for the planet a reality,
and he serves as
Chairman of this
non-profit organization.
Andrew Young is the author of three books, An Easy Burden, A Way Out of No Way, and The Making of Modern Atlanta.
He has produced, co-written and narrated over 30 acclaimed documentaries, including Rwanda Rising, which was chosen to open the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles in 2007.
Andrew Young is beaten while leading a non-violent march in St. Augustine, Florida, in 1964.
Sought after as an advisor to world leaders,as a speaker on the lecture circuit, and a frequent commentator on CNN and other news channels, Ambassador Young is a keen observer of politics and world events.
An ordained minister with the United Church of Christ for over six decades, he continues to preach and considers the work of the Andrew J. Young Foundation an extension of his ministry and of the Civil Rights movement itself.
THE LIFE & TIMES OF ANDREW YOUNG
LEGACY
