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Maynard Jackson

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Mayor

The Resume

    (March 23, 1938-June 23, 2003)
    Born in Dallas, Texas
    Birth name was Maynard Holbrook Jackson Jr.
    Mayor of Atlanta
    Served three terms as Mayor (1974–1982, 1990–1994)
    First African-American to be elected Atlanta Mayor

Why he might be annoying:

    In terms of size, let's just say he was jolly.
    He fired over 900 sanitation workers during the 1977 Atlanta sanitation strike.
    Atlanta's crime rate rose on his watch, most notably the infamous Atlanta Child Murders between 1979 and 1981.
    He sparked controversy for trying to fire the city's incumbent police chief and then appointing college friend A. Reginald Eaves to be Public Safety Commissioner, despite his complete lack of police experience.
    He fired Eaves after revelation of a police exam cheating scandal (Eaves was later convicted by a federal jury of extortion in 1988).
    He awarded supermodel Caroline Cossey honorary citizenship to Atlanta - and then rescinded the honor after learning she was transgender.
    He defended the decision, saying: 'I wouldn’t have given it to somebody whose claim to fame was being transsexual.'
    He unsuccessfully sought the post as the DNC chairman, losing to Clinton-backed Terry McAuliffe in 2001.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was a child prodigy who entered Morehouse College at age 14.
    He was the first black Mayor of a Southern city and the second longest-serving mayor of Atlanta.
    He is notable for public works projects, primarily the International terminal at the Atlanta airport (later named in his honor) and the MARTA rail system.
    As Mayor, he oversaw increasing minority business participation in the city.
    He pulled a Grover Cleveland by getting elected Mayor again after an eight year absence, succeeding Andrew Young (marking the first time a black Mayor would succeed another black Mayor).
    He successfully campaigned for Atlanta to be the host city for the 1996 Summer Olympics.
    His attempts at establishing a system of quota promotions and hiring in the police department were attacked as 'reverse discrimination' (criticisms that - really - haven't aged well).
    He died only two days apart from Lester Maddox, which many deemed symbolic.

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 16 Votes: 68.75% Annoying