Walter E. Fauntroy
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Walter Edward Fauntroy (born February 6, 1933) was the second Delegate elected to the United States House of Representatives from the District of Columbia, and the first elected in the 20th century.
Fauntroy was born in Washington, DC, and studied at Virginia Union University, Richmond, Virginia and at Yale University Divinity School. He became a pastor at the New Bethel Baptist Church in Washington, DC, serving since 1959. Fauntroy was the founder and director of the Model Inner City Community Organization, a director of the Washington Bureau of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, vice chairman of the District of Columbia City Council, vice chairman of the White House Conference on Civil Rights (themed "to Fulfill These Rights"), national coordinator of the Poor People’s Campaign, chairman of the board of directors of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Social Change in Atlanta, Georgia, a member of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights and a delegate to the 1972 Democratic National Convention. At that convention, he was briefly a candidate for President of the United States. He is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. He is an uncle of author, public policy professor, and political commentator Michael Fauntroy.
Fauntroy was elected as a Democrat as Delegate to the House, serving from March 23, 1971 until January 3, 1991. During his tenure, he served on the Banking, Finance, and Urban Affairs Committee, rising to be the third ranking Democrat on the panel. Fauntroy served, for six years, as chair of the subcommittee on International Development, Finance, Trade and Monetary Policy. He was a member of the House Select Committee on Assassinations. He was also a senior member of the House Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control. Fauntroy was not a candidate for renomination in 1990, instead choosing to run for Mayor of Washington, DC. He lost in the mayorial Democratic primary.
Fauntroy was a founding member of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC). In 1977, while he was chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Brain Trust on Black Voter Participation and Network Development, Fauntroy founded the National Black Leadership Roundtable for leaders of National African American organizations. Under his leadership, the CBC offered an alternative to President Reagan's budget.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/JFKfauntroy.htm
- Lecture with Dr. Walter E. Fauntroy at NCCU
- Walter E. Fauntroy biography and video interview excerpts by The National Visionary Leadership Project
| Preceded by Vacant since 1875; position last held by Norton Chipman |
Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives from the District of Columbia 1971-1991 |
Succeeded by Eleanor Holmes Norton |
| Chairs of the Congressional Black Caucus |  |
|---|---|
| Diggs • Stokes • Rangel • Burke • Mitchell • Collins • Fauntroy • Dixon • Leland • Dymally • Dellums • Towns • Mfume • Payne • Waters • Clyburn • Johnson • Cummings • Watt • Kilpatrick |
