Author: Gary Rivlin
Title: Fire on the Prairie : Chicago’s Harold Washington and the Politics of Race
Publication Info: New York : H. Holt, 1992.
Summary/Review:
Harold Washington, the first Black mayor of Chicago, is center to this narrative of big city politics in the 1970s and 1980s. Rivlin establishes the background by detailing the rise of machine politics under long-time mayor Richard J. Daley. The Chicago machine makes what I know of similar operations in Boston and New York look like amateur hour, and machine politics persisted in Chicago under Daley decades after it died out in other cities.
While Daley was responsible for perpetuating the segregation and inequality of Black Chicagoans, he was also wise enough to bring leaders from Black wards into his machine, thus making it difficult for a reform candidate to gain support among Black voters. In 1979, Daley protege Jane Byrne ran an anti-machine campaign for mayor and upon election turned her back on reformers and the Black community. This set the stage for Harold Washington to make his historic run in 1983.
Rivlin details the ins and outs of the Democratic primary among Washington, Byrne, and the young Richard M. Daley, running for the first time to follow in his father’s footsteps. After Washington squeaks out a primary victory, the Democrats failed to support his campaign in the general election, with many white voters rallying to lift up the previously moribund campaign of Washington’s Republican opponent. With a massive turnout of Black voters and the help of Latin and some progressive white voters, Washington once again eked out a victory.
Jesse Jackson is an interesting figure in all of this as the most prominent African American leader in Chicago. He proves to actually be somewhat unpopular among Black Chicagoans both for his shameless self-promotion (several times he tries to get himself into a prominent spot to be seen on tv with Washington during the campaign) and his lack of knowledge of local concerns. Jackson actually performs poorly in the 1984 Democratic primary in Chicago compared to other Black Democratic cities.
The celebration of Washington’s victory was short as a block of 29 city councilor’s organized to oppose his every proposal. The Council Wars dominate much of Washington’s first term. Many of the strategies used to disrupt Washington’s agenda are very similar to what Republicans would later do to Barack Obama. The Black community is also frustrated by Washington’s commitment to reaching out to white Chicagoans and being “fairer than fair” rather helping them take the share of the spoils they’d been so long denied.
Nevertheless, Washington is able to make some progress and win a second term in 1987. Sadly the momentum and the council majority were cut short by Washington’s sudden death in November 1987.
I was a bit disappointed that this book largely focuses on the political horse race. I would’ve liked to learn more about Washington, his accomplishments, and legacy in Chicago. Nevertheless, this is a compelling narrative of city politics and the racial conflicts of Chicago.
Recommended books: The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson, The Third Coast: When Chicago Built the American Dream by Thomas Dyja, and Eyes on the Prize by Juan Williams
Rating: ***1/2
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