Joseph E. Coleman (1922-2000) was an American politician, attorney and chemist. He was a member of the Democratic Party.

Early life

Coleman was born in 1922, and grew up in

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

during a time in which the southern United States was dominated by racial segregation and the Jim Crow laws. In 1948, he became the first African-American to earn a degree from

Albright College Albright College is a private liberal arts college in Reading, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in 1856 and had an enrollment of 1,652 students as of fall 2023. History Albright College traces its founding to 1856 when "Union Sem ...

. He went on to work as a research chemist, patent attorney and author.

City council

In 1971, Coleman was elected to be president of the

Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council is the legislative body of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the United States. It is composed of 17 councilmembers: ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large from throughou ...

, representing the Eighth District.

Presidency

In June 1980, incumbent Council President George Schwartz was implicated in the Abscam scandal, and resigned. Coleman became Acting Council President, and was unanimously elected to the post when Council reconvened in October. He became the first African-American elected to the post in the city's history. As President, Coleman sought to maintain a more conciliatory atmosphere than the more combative Schwartz. Anna Verna, a close friend and colleague of Coleman's (who went on to become the City Council's first female President in 1999), characterized Coleman's leadership style as "calm". He also sought to clean up the Council's image in the wake of Abscam, while dramatically increasing the Council's oversight of Mayoral projects and plans. He saw-off a challenge to his presidency following the 1987 elections, when Joan Krajewski, also a Democrat, sought to unseat him.

Retirement

After surviving a tough re-election contest in 1987, in which the ''

Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', often referred to simply as ''The Inquirer'', is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded on June 1, 1829, ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is the third-longest continuously operating da ...

'' strongly endorsed his Republican opponent, Coleman announced that he would not seek re-election on February 14, 1991. Herbert DeBeary, a former Democratic primary opponent of Coleman's, went on to win the election to succeed him.

Personal life

Coleman was married, and had three children—a son and two daughters. In September 1997, his daughter, Stephanie Coleman Epps, was shot to death in front of her two children by a former boyfriend. Coleman, who was suffering from the effects of

diabetes Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes, is a group of common endocrine diseases characterized by sustained high blood sugar levels. Diabetes is due to either the pancreas not producing enough of the hormone insulin, or the cells of th ...

, was unable to attend the trial, though the man was convicted of the murder and sentenced to death in December of that year.

Death and honors

On December 31, 2000, Coleman died in the Mount Airy home he shared with his wife, Jessie. The Community Education Centers named its Philadelphia-area treatment center after Coleman. The Center's clients are referred through the

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

Department of Corrections, the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole, or the

Bucks County Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...

Department of Corrections. The Center, named Coleman Hall, provides an array of residential reentry treatment services designed to reduce recidivism. In 2002, the Philadelphia Free Library system's Northwest Regional Library, located in Germantown, was renamed the Joseph E. Coleman Northwest Regional Library. Albright College also created a scholarship award in Coleman's honor. The Distinguished Joseph E. Coleman Award provides financial assistance ranging from $8,000 to $12,000 to African-American students that show academic excellence as well as community and/or extracurricular involvement.

References

External links

Philadelphia Inquirer Article Collections: Joe Coleman
''archival of selected news''
Joseph E. Coleman papers finding aid
from th
African American Museum in Philadelphia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coleman, Joseph E. 1922 births 2000 deaths Presidents of the Philadelphia City Council Philadelphia City Council members Albright College alumni Pennsylvania Democrats African-American city council members in Pennsylvania 20th-century African-American politicians 20th-century Pennsylvania politicians