BLACK SOCIAL HISTORY
Mark Ridley-Thomas
| Mark Ridley-Thomas | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors from District 2 | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office December 1, 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Yvonne Brathwaite Burke |
| Member of the California State Senate from the 26th district | |
| In office December 4, 2006 – November 30, 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Kevin Murray |
| Succeeded by | Curren D. Price, Jr. |
| Member of the California State Assembly from the 48th district | |
| In office December 2, 2002 – November 30, 2006 | |
| Preceded by | Roderick Wright |
| Succeeded by | Mike Davis |
| Personal details | |
| Born | November 6, 1954 |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Avis Ridley-Thomas |
| Children | Sebastian and Sinclair Ridley-Thomas |
| Alma mater | Immaculate Heart College University of Southern California |
Mark Ridley-Thomas (born November 6, 1954) is a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors for District 2. He served as a California State Senator, representing the 26th district from 2006 to 2008 and was a California State Assembly man representing the 48th district from 2002 until 2006. He was Chairman of the Assembly Democratic Caucus. Before his six years in the Legislature, he was on the Los Angeles City Council from 1991 to 2002.
Personal life and education
Ridley-Thomas is a graduate of Manual Arts High School in Los Angeles and earned a baccalaureate degree in Social Relations and a master's degree in Religious Studies from Immaculate Heart College. Ridley-Thomas went on to earn a Ph.D. in Social Ethics and Policy Analysis from the University of Southern California (1989).[1]
After a brief stint as a high-school teacher, Ridley-Thomas served for a decade as executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference of Greater Los Angeles (1981–1991). During that period he also hosted a public affairs program onPacifica Radio station KPFK-FM in Los Angeles.
Family
Ridley-Thomas is married to Avis Ridley-Thomas, who was the administrator of the Dispute Resolution Center in the office of theLos Angeles City Attorney. She recently retired from The City of Los Angeles. They have twin sons, Sebastian and Sinclair, who are both graduates of Morehouse College.
Political career
City Council
Ridley-Thomas was elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 1991, representing the city's 8th Council District. During his tenure on the council, he empaneled the Eighth District Empowerment Congress, a forerunner of the modern Neighborhood Council. He was also the president pro tem of the council, serving as the acting Mayor of Los Angeles on several occasions, including when Mayor Jim Hahn traveled to Asia on a trade mission.[2]
State Assembly
Ridley-Thomas would have been forced to leave the council in 2003 because of city term limits that prevented him from running for reelection, so he chose instead to run for a seat in the California State Assembly representing California's 48th district.[3] In his 2002 election, he defeated his Republican opponent, Gerard T. Robinson, with more than 80% of the vote.[4] In the Assembly, Ridley-Thomas served as chair of the Democratic caucus and was a major proponent of efforts to encourage an NFL team to move to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, which is located in his district.[5] He also sponsored a law that aided redevelopment in Exposition Park as part of a failed effort to attract a team. In the Assembly, Ridley-Thomas, as chairman of the Select Committee on the Los Angeles County Health Care Crisis, was a leader in addressing the problems facing the hospitals and health care system of Los Angeles, sponsoring a bill that would create the Office of Inspector General in an effort to detect and prevent fraud, waste and abuse in government agencies.[6]
State Senate
In 2006, Ridley-Thomas announced that he was running for the California State Senate, vying for the 26th Senate district seat being vacated by term-limited Senator Kevin Murray. He defeated his opponent in the Democratic primary, Marvin C McCoy, with more than 87% of the vote[7] and faced no Republican opposition in the general election. In the Senate, Ridley-Thomas joined with a group of lawmakers who introduced a package of legislation designed to crack down on gang violence by allowing city and county prosecutors to employ tougher sentencing measures and increase asset forfeitures against gang members, authoring a bill which would make it easier for law enforcement officials to deal with racially motivated gang activity.[8] He was also one of the lawmakers who called for tourists to boycott the LAX Hilton because of its efforts to overturn a city ordinance that would grant a living wage to airport-area hotel workers.[9] Ridley-Thomas chaired the Committee on Business, Professions and Economic Development and its two subcommittees on Professional Sports and Entertainment, and The Economy, Workforce Preparation and Development. He also served on the Senate Appropriations; Energy, Utilities and Communications; Health; and Public Safety committees.
2008 County Supervisor Campaign[edit]
On October 25, 2007, Ridley-Thomas announced that he would be running for the Second District seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors being vacated by Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke. His most formidable opponent was former LAPD police chief Bernard C. Parks, the member of the Los Angeles City Council who replaced Ridley-Thomas when he was elected to the State Assembly.[10] Ridley-Thomas was endorsed by the Los Angeles County Democratic Party,[11] the area's labor unions (including the law enforcement unions), numerous elected officials,[12] and the national political action committee Progressive Majority. Ridley-Thomas edged out Parks in the June 3 primary by a margin of 45% to 40%, but since neither candidate received a majority of the vote, the top two candidates advanced to a runoff election in November. Ridley-Thomas had a much larger margin of victory one-on-one against Parks, scoring a 62% to 38% victory. Ridley-Thomas became the first black man ever elected to the Los Angeles County Board.[13]
Controversy
Misuse of funds
$707k Office Remodel
Ridley-Thomas has been criticized, most notably by radio talk show hosts John and Ken, for his proposal and personal defense of plans to remodel his office through the spending of $707,000 in discretionary funds. Amidst the state budget crisis in California, John and Ken criticized MRT on December 21, 2009, saying that the discretionary funds, "[are] our money and we say no."[14][15] As of March 12, 2010 the Los Angeles Times reported that Ridley-Thomas' renovation plans for his eighth-floor office were on hold.[16]
$25k "Who's Who" listing
In 2010 Ridley-Thomas spent $25,000 of taxpayers' money to place himself in the black Who's Who of Los Angeles.[17]
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