Mayor of L.A. cites need for diversity

He cited the election of President-elect Barack Obama as the latest and clearest example of a country moving toward racial equality.

“We showed we were capable of becoming a more perfect union — one where the Constitution that once defined Obama as three-fifths of a man now allowed him to capture three-fifths of the electorate,” Villaraigosa said.

“On Tuesday, the American people chose hope over cynicism,” he added.

The selection of Villaraigosa, the first Latino mayor of Los Angeles since 1872, as a speaker at the symposium was part of its mission to “explore what it means to be a leader of color in these exciting times,” according to SAOC’s website.

After praising America’s newly elected president, Villaraigosa shared his personal story, which began in East Los Angeles and culminated in the mayorship of America’s second most populous city.

Outlining the challenges he faced growing up, including temporarily dropping out of high school, Villaraigosa explained how he overcame the setbacks of poverty and graduated from UCLA and the People’s College of Law.

Though he said that his path was a difficult one, Villaraigosa noted that the work of minority leaders before him helped pave the way.

“I’m here on the shoulders of others, here on shoulders of Martin Luther King, Jr., Cesar Chavez, Rosa Parks,” he said. “I got here after dropping out of high school because someone looked back to pass the torch.”

“Every day of my life, I remind myself that I didn’t make that journey alone,” Villaraigosa said.

Some of his inspiration came from home, he said.

The mayor said that his mother helped inspire him to work in public service. While raising four children alone and working two jobs, “she taught us about leading by example, working hard and about the obligation we all share to create a better world,” Villaraigosa said.

Though no question-and-answer session was planned for the event, Villaraigosa proposed an impromptu question period to the audience, noting that college students ask intelligent questions.

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Villaraigosa, who campaigned first for Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and then for Obama during the 2008 election season, was asked how his travels on the campaign trail made him a better mayor.

“It matters to Angelinos who is in the White House,” he said, explaining that by helping achieve a Democratic presidential victory, he was serving the citizens of Los Angeles.

Villaraigosa noted that the Bush administration “has been completely absent” in responding to the needs of large cities like the one he represents, noting that 85 percent of wealth is created in the cities, which do not get the equivalent in government spending.

He explained that he traveled outside the city because he believed it “was time for a change.”

Villaraigosa, first elected to the California State Assembly in 1994, later became its speaker. After losing an election for the mayorship of Los Angeles in 2001, he ran for and won a seat in the city council in 2003. After two years representing the 14th district, Villaraigosa was elected mayor in 2005.

Villaraigosa’s initiatives as mayor have included addressing traffic congestion and potholes, expanding affordable housing and boosting Los Angeles’ sustainability efforts. He has also taken charge of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority to increase the use of public transportation and has sought to fight crime and gang violence by increasing the police force and creating an Office of Gang Reduction and Youth Development.

His term as mayor has not been without controversy. In 2007, Villaraigosa admitted to romantic involvement with a television reporter, the second of two extramarital affairs during his career in public service. Villaraigosa was also criticized for proposing that the mayor should have legal authority over the Los Angeles Unified School District.

Wilson School dean Anne-Marie Slaughter ’80, who introduced Villaraigosa, outlined the goal of the symposium.

“It is about empowering people so they are connected to others and use those connections to make a difference,” she said. The symposium’s puropose is to bring together students and alumni of the Wilson School to promote racial diversity and build relationships.

The mayor also thanked the University for encouraging diversity and reminded students that it is their responsibility to create a better world.

The torch is “firmly in [students’] hands,” he said.