Donald MacKay Fraser (February 20, 1924 – June 2, 2019) was an American politician from Minnesota who served as U.S. Representative from

Minnesota's 5th congressional district Minnesota's 5th congressional district is a geographically small urban and suburban congressional district in Minnesota. It covers eastern Hennepin County, including the entire city of Minneapolis, along with parts of Anoka and Ramsey counti ...

from 1963 to 1979 and as mayor of

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origin ...

from 1980 to 1994.

Early life

Fraser was born in

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over t ...

, to Everett and Lois (McKay) Fraser, immigrants from

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

. His father studied law at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

, began teaching at

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , presi ...

and became dean of the

University of Minnesota Law School The University of Minnesota Law School is the law school of the University of Minnesota, located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The school confers four law degrees: a Juris Doctor (J.D.), a Master of Laws (LL.M.), a Master of Science in Patent L ...

in 1920. Fraser graduated from University High School in 1941 and that year, he entered the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

. During college, he was a member of the varsity swimming team. Having joined the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

ROTC The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC ( or )) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. Overview While ROTC graduate officers serve in al ...

, he was placed on active duty in July 1942 and continued his naval studies on campus until February 1944, when he was commissioned an officer and sent to the Pacific Theater during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Fraser worked as a

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, Marine radar, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor v ...

officer into the peacetime that followed, ending in 1946. In June 1946 Fraser returned to Minneapolis to study law at the

. Fraser served as a member of the ''

Minnesota Law Review The ''Minnesota Law Review'' is a student-run law review published by students at University of Minnesota Law School. The journal is published six times a year in November, December, February, April, May, and June. It was established by Henry J. Fl ...

'' and wrote a law review article on the illegality of racial covenants for land, a position supported by the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

in 1948. Fraser earned his law degree and was admitted to the bar, the same year. He joined the politically active firm of Larson, Loevinger, Lindquist, Freeman, and Fraser. Fraser engaged in general law practice and served as municipal attorney for the suburban community of

Brooklyn Center, Minnesota Brooklyn Center is a first-ring suburban city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. In 1911, the area became a village formed from parts of Brooklyn Township and Crystal Lake Township. I ...

. He married Arvonne Skelton in 1950 and the following year, they had the first of their six children: Thomas, Mary, John, Lois, Anne, and Jean.

Political career

1973 Congressional Pictorial Donald Fraser

In 1954, Fraser was elected to the

Minnesota Senate The Minnesota Senate is the upper house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 67 members, half as many as the Minnesota House of Representatives, it is the largest upper house of any U.S. state legislature. Floor sessions are h ...

and served for eight years. In 1962, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Minnesota's Fifth District. He served there in the 88th through the 95th Congresses, from January 3, 1963 until January 3, 1979. Fraser is now best known for his work as the chair of the International Organizations and Movements subcommittee, a post he used to hold hearings on human rights violations in U.S. allies. As the historian

Barbara Keys Barbara J. Keys is a historian of U.S. and international history and Professor of History at Durham University. She was born in Albany, New York, and grew up in San Francisco. She served as the 2019 President of the Society for Historians of Amer ...

has shown, from 1973 to 1976, Fraser was a key leader in Congress in drafting legislation to reduce U.S. aid to countries whose governments engaged in a pattern of "gross violations of human rights." His efforts laid the foundations for much of

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

's human rights agenda and transformed the way the U.S. Department of State operates, mandating that it write annual country reports on human rights and ensuring that diplomatic posts take note of human rights issues. He gave up his seat to run for the U.S. Senate. He narrowly lost the 1978 Senate primary election to

Bob Short Robert Earl Short (July 20, 1917 – November 20, 1982) was an American businessman, sport teams owner, and politician. Background Short graduated from the College of Saint Thomas (now the University of St. Thomas) in Saint Paul, Minnesota, b ...

, who then lost in the general election to

David Durenberger David Ferdinand Durenberger (born August 19, 1934) is a retired American politician and attorney. Durenberger represented Minnesota in the United States Senate as a Republican from 1978 to 1995. He left the Republican Party in 2005 and has becom ...

. Fraser served as president of

Americans for Democratic Action Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) is a liberal American political organization advocating progressive policies. ADA views itself as supporting social and economic justice through lobbying, grassroots organizing, research, and supporting pr ...

from 1974 to 1976. He was elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of Minneapolis in 1979, taking office on January 2, 1980. His first mayoral term was two years; he was re-elected to three four-year terms. He was the oldest, longest-lived and longest-serving mayor in Minneapolis history.Tony L. Hill
"Minneapolis Mayoral Superlatives,"
accessed June 5, 2019 He left office on January 3, 1994, and was succeeded by the city's first female and first

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

mayor,

Sharon Sayles Belton Sharon Sayles Belton (born May 13, 1951) is an American community leader, politician and activist. She is Vice President of Community Relations and Government Affairs for Thomson Reuters Legal business. She served as mayor of Minneapolis, Minnes ...

. Fraser died on June 2, 2019, at age 95.

Papers

His papers are available for research. The collection is particularly strong in its documentation of international relations, Democratic Party policy and reform, human rights issues, environmental conservation, and women's issues, in the 1960s and 1970s.

Endorsement of United Nations Parliamentary Assembly (UNPA)

On April 23, 2014, Fraser endorsed the proposal for the

United Nations Parliamentary Assembly A United Nations Parliamentary Assembly (UNPA) is a proposed addition to the United Nations System that would allow for greater participation and voice for members of parliament. The idea was raised at the founding of the League of Nations in ...

. He is one of only six people who served in Congress to do so.UNPA website. http://en.unpacampaign.org/supporters/overview/?mapcountry=US&mapgroup=cur Retrieved 28 August 2017

References

External links

Minnesota Legislators Past and Present
* * Kerr, Euan
"Fraser remembered as 'quiet giant' of Minnesota politics"
''

Minnesota Public Radio News KNOW-FM (91.1 FM band, FM) is the Flagship (broadcasting), flagship radio station of Minnesota Public Radio's news and information network, primarily broadcasting a talk radio format to the Minneapolis-St. Paul market. The frequency was the orig ...