Became involved in politics after school.Served as the Chief of Staff to two prominent African American elected officials from Los Angeles. I was 1st elected to the California State Assembly in 1998. In 2002 I was elected the 2nd African American to be Speaker of the House. In 2005 I was elected to the Los Angeles City Council and in 2011 was elected the 1st Black City Council President. Served unopposed until I retired in 2020.The best thing about being the 1st is knowing you will not be the last.

While pledging Alpha Phi Alpha, four or five of us went to the nurse and requested that she spray a numbing substance on our back sides because we knew we were going to be swatted that night. To this day I cry laughing when I think about this. Imagine, five pledges, naked from waist to knees, bent over while some poor woman is spraying a whole can of aerosol that did not work at all on our butts! We felt every swat! I always wondered what happened when she got home. Did she go, Hey dear, guess what I did today?, or did she just think about it and smile. 🙂