Home > Blog > Archives > 2006 > February > 27 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USAndrew Young to be first defense witness
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Former Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young will be the first defense witness called in the federal corruption trial of former Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell.
Young, a former U.N. ambassador, served terms as mayor from 1982 until 1990.
In an interview before Campbell’s trial began more than a month ago, Young likened the case to O.J. Simpson’s.
“This can be an O.J. Simpson trial,” Young said. “No one who’s white thinks he’s innocent. No one who’s black thinks he’s guilty.”
Young was mayor when Campbell was an ambitious young councilman.
“It’s not a personal tragedy, it’s an American tragedy,” Young said of Campbell’s struggles, including being the first to integrate public schools in Raleigh, N.C.. “His whole life, they were trying to break his spirit. He sees the trial as a continuation of what he’s gone through since first grade: Can a smart, uppity black man make it?”
Young also noted that as a politician, Campbell “had an anti-establishment attitude. … It was a fatal style. He divided the world into friends and enemies. His style was to fight enemies and help friends.”
Permalink | | Categories: Bill Campbell trial
