Sylvester "Sly" James, Jr. (born December 9, 1951) is an American politician who served as the 54th

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, 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 responsibilitie ...

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

from 2011 to 2019. James has lived in Kansas City's Union Hill neighborhood. As mayor, he was known for wearing bow ties.

Early life, education, and career

James grew up on the East side of Kansas City, at 44th Street and Montgall Avenue. He graduated from Bishop Hogan High School in 1969. There, he was the lead singer of the Amelia Earhart Memorial Flying Band (later renamed Manchester Trafficway) from 1965 to 1970. The band was the opening act for

Jefferson Airplane Jefferson Airplane was an American Rock music, rock band formed in San Francisco, California, in 1965. One of the pioneering bands of psychedelic rock, the group defined the San Francisco Sound and was the first from the San Francisco Bay Area, ...

when it performed in Kansas City. In 1971 James joined the Marines and served as a military policeman in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, and the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

; he was honorably discharged in 1975. He received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in English from Rockhurst College in 1980, graduating ''

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

''. In college, he joined the

Tau Kappa Epsilon Tau Kappa Epsilon (), commonly known as or Teke, is a social college fraternities and sororities, fraternity founded on January 10, 1899, at Illinois Wesleyan University. The organization has chapters throughout the United States and Canada, maki ...

fraternity. Thereafter, he attended law school at the Syracuse University College of Law from 1980 to 1981, but then transferred to the

University of Minnesota Law School The University of Minnesota Law School is the law school of the University of Minnesota, a public university 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 Pa ...

, where he received a

juris doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

degree in 1983, again graduating ''cum laude''. After law school, James returned to Kansas City and joined the law firm of Blackwell Sanders Matheny Weary & Lombardi as an associate; in 1990, he became the firm's first

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

partner. In 1993, he and Nancy Kenner left to form their own firm, Kenner & James, P.C., specializing in

personal injury Personal injury is a legal term for an Injury (law), injury to the body, mind, or emotions, as opposed to an injury to property. In common law, common law jurisdictions the term is most commonly used to refer to a type of tort lawsuit in which the ...

medical malpractice Medical malpractice is a legal cause of action that occurs when a medical or health care professional, through a negligent act or omission, deviates from standards in their profession, thereby causing injury or death to a patient. The negligen ...

, and

nursing home A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of older people, senior citizens, or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as care homes, skilled nursing facilities (SNF), or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms ...

negligence Negligence ( Lat. ''negligentia'') is a failure to exercise appropriate care expected to be exercised in similar circumstances. Within the scope of tort law, negligence pertains to harm caused by the violation of a duty of care through a neg ...

. In 2002 he left to start the Sly James Firm, where he continued to specialize in personal injury and other civil litigation, as well as

mediation Mediation is a structured, voluntary process for resolving disputes, facilitated by a neutral third party known as the mediator. It is a structured, interactive process where an independent third party, the mediator, assists disputing parties ...

. Between 1992 and 2002, he served as a member, secretary, and later the president of the Missouri Board of Law of Examiners. In 2003 he served as president of the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association. In 2012 ''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly news magazine based in New York City. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely distributed during the 20th century and has had many notable editors-in-chief. It is currently co-owned by Dev P ...

'' / ''

The Daily Beast ''The Daily Beast'' is an American news website focused on politics, media, and pop culture. Founded in 2008, the website is owned by IAC Inc. It has been characterized as a "high-end tabloid" by Noah Shachtman, the site's editor-in-chief ...

'' included James in its list of most innovative mayors for his work in turning Kansas City into the " Silicon Prairie," spurring its entrepreneurial development and for partnering with

Google Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...

to bring their ultra-high speed broadband network to the city.

2011 mayoral election

In 2010, despite having held no previous public elected office, James announced his candidacy for mayor of Kansas City in the city's 2011 non-partisan election. In February 2011, he finished first in the primary with 27% of the vote; Kansas City attorney and Platte County resident Mike Burke finished second with 26%, and incumbent mayor Mark Funkhouser finished third, with 21%. The race for the general runoff election on March 22, 2011, between James and Burke was described as low-key and cordial. Whereas James had been endorsed by the ''

Kansas City Star ''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and a ...

'', Burke had been endorsed by former mayors Charles B. Wheeler, Richard L. Berkley, and Kay Barnes. Ultimately, with only 21 percent of the city's registered voters voting, James defeated Burke by 54 percent to 46 percent. James celebrated his victory at the American Jazz Museum in Kansas City's 18th and Vine District. James became the second

mayor in Kansas City's history, after Emanuel Cleaver.

2011 Plaza shooting incident

On August 13, 2011, James and entourage were touring the

Country Club Plaza The Country Club Plaza (often called The Plaza) is a privately owned regional shopping center in the Country Club District of Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas City, Missouri. Opened in 1923, it is considered to be the first planned large outdoor su ...

to investigate a request from Highwoods Properties (which manages the buildings in the Plaza) about imposing a 9 p.m.

curfew A curfew is an order that imposes certain regulations during specified hours. Typically, curfews order all people affected by them to remain indoors during the evening and nighttime hours. Such an order is most often issued by public authorit ...

on the Plaza because of unruly teens gathering there at night. During the tour, at about 11:30 p.m., gunfire broke out near 47th Street and Wyandotte Avenue, about 50 yards from the mayor. Three people were shot—two boys, ages 13 and 16, who were shot in the legs; and a 15-year-old girl whose face was grazed by a bullet. Less than a week after the shooting, the city council, in a 13‑0 vote, approved a curfew in the city. The curfew of 9 p.m. applies from late May through September in five Kansas City entertainment areas (and 10 p.m. elsewhere) for children 15 and under, 11 p.m. for 16- and 17-year-olds. There is a 10 p.m. curfew elsewhere for children 15 and under, and 11 p.m. for those 16 and 17. Other times of the year will have an 11 p.m. curfew on weeknights and midnight on weekends for everyone under age 18.

2015 mayoral election

James ran for re-election in the city's 2015 mayoral election. He won with 87.3% of the vote.

2016 White House visit

On January 21, 2016, James made an appearance during the White House daily briefing. Josh Earnest, the

White House Press Secretary The White House press secretary is a senior White House official whose primary responsibility is to act as spokesperson for the executive branch of the United States federal government, especially with regard to the president, senior aides and ...

at the time, is a native of Kansas City. Although he is a non-partisan mayor, during his speaking time, James said that "Kansas City has done quite well under this administration". James also complimented Barack Obama's role in preserving race relations within Kansas City. Kansas City's role in startups, such as

Google Fiber Google Fiber, Inc., sometimes stylized as GFiber, is a fiber broadband Internet service operated by Alphabet Inc. servicing a growing number of households in cities in 19 states across the United States. In mid-2016, Google Fiber was estimated ...

, was boasted, along with the 2015 World Series victory of the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...

2018 city response to charity meals for the homeless

On November 4, 2018, Kansas City health officials seized chili,

sandwiches A sandwich is a dish typically consisting variously of meat, cheese, sauces, and vegetables used as a filling between slices of bread, or placed atop a slice of bread; or, more generally, any dish in which bread serves as a ''container'' or ...

, and

soup Soup is a primarily liquid food, generally served warm or hot – though it is sometimes served chilled – made by cooking or otherwise combining meat or vegetables with Stock (food), stock, milk, or water. According to ''The Oxford Compan ...

being distributed to

homeless Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

people by the community organization Free Hot Soup. The meals were later soaked in bleach to prevent the homeless from consuming them. James defended the practice, arguing that the city had been unable to determine whether the meals were safe to eat.

Mayoral term accomplishments

* In 2017, city voters approved an $800 million general obligation bond package for infrastructure repair investments, including streets, bridges, sidewalks, flood control, a new animal control shelter, and public building upgrades to meet ADA requirements. * In 2017, city voters approved a plan for a single airport terminal design to replace the outdated KCI airport terminals. * James said he is most proud of founding a nonprofit (Turn the Page KC) to help children improve their reading skills by the end of third grade.

References

External links

Official campaign website
* *Barbara Shelly,
Which side of Sly James will Kansas City remember: the Bow Tie or the Bully
" ''The Pitch KC'', June 3, 2019. {{DEFAULTSORT:James, Sly 1951 births African-American mayors in Missouri 21st-century mayors of places in Missouri African-American people in Missouri politics Living people Mayors of Kansas City, Missouri Missouri Democrats Rockhurst University alumni Syracuse University College of Law alumni United States Marines University of Minnesota Law School alumni American military police officers 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American politicians