Politics / Labor / Military
Coleman Young
1918–1997 · labor organizer, state senator, mayor of Detroit
Detroit's first Black mayor (1974–1994), a Tuskegee Airman and fiery labor radical who reshaped the city with the Renaissance Center, the People Mover and new auto plants.
- Born
Tuscaloosa, Alabama- Died
Detroit, Michigan
aged 79- Birth name
- Coleman Alexander Young
- Also known as
- Coleman A. Young
- Detroit years
- 1923–1997
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Coleman Young came to Detroit from Alabama with his family in 1923, grew up in the Black Bottom neighborhood and graduated from Eastern High School in 1935. He worked at Ford, organized for the UAW and the post office, and in World War II served as a bombardier-navigator with the Tuskegee Airmen, joining the 1945 Freeman Field protest against segregation. Branded a leftist, he defied the House Un-American Activities Committee in a famous 1952 Detroit hearing. He helped draft Michigan's 1961–62 constitution and served in the state Senate from 1965. Elected mayor in 1973 on a pledge to end the STRESS police unit, he integrated the police force and won five terms. He built alliances with business to complete the Renaissance Center, Joe Louis Arena, the People Mover and the GM Poletown and Chrysler Jefferson North plants, while the city lost half a million residents. He died in 1997 and is buried at Elmwood.
Highlights
- Mayor of Detroit for five terms, 1974–1994; the city's first Black mayor
- Tuskegee Airman in World War II
- Defied the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1952
- NAACP Spingarn Medal (1981)
- City-County Building renamed Coleman A. Young Municipal Center (1999)
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 4
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Memorial · 1974–1994; renamed 1999
The Spirit of Detroit
The City-County Building where he governed for twenty years, renamed for him in 1999; it faces Hart Plaza and houses city and Wayne County offices.
Memorial · 2003–
Coleman A. Young International Airport (Detroit City Airport)
The city's general aviation airport on the east side, renamed after him in 2003.
Lived here · 1974–1994
Manoogian Mansion
The mayor's official riverfront residence, his home during his five terms.
Buried here · 1997
Elmwood Cemetery
He is interred in Detroit's historic Elmwood Cemetery.