Compton's Mayor Is Turning Tragedy Into Triumph

She went on to earn multiple degrees in urban planning and economic development, a bachelor’s and a master’s on a full undergraduate scholarship at the University of Southern California. Then, after a ten-year stint in urban planning and economic development in some of L.A.’s surrounding communities—including a prestigious post on the Pasadena Planning Commission—she decided to focus on Compton, a city badly in need of urban planning and economic development.

Though the city has a reputation for crime and shout-outs in gangster rap songs, Brown is intent on turning things around. In June, she told a Los Angeles news anchor: “I really see Compton as a place with a lot of opportunity. It has a rich history, a strong community that has a strong sense of pride. And I believe that over the years, the perpetuation of gangster rap has really put a negative image on the city of Compton… So I look forward to addressing that image, changing it and making it more accurate.” These words would be inspiring coming from anyone — but considering she’s talking about the town in which her grandmother was brutally murdered? Wow. (The case remains unsolved, but Brown hopes for answers someday: “I know it would make my mother happy.”)

Just a few months into her term, she’s declared Compton to be the new Brooklyn, saying, “My neighborhood is very mixed and hip—we’re ready to have a renaissance.” This kind of positive and determined outlook is typical, apparently. As Amy Ephron writes for Vogue:

Her mother says she’s always been that way and predicted she would grow up to be a CEO or something. “I’ve always been calm,” Brown explains, “and I’m very good in a crisis.”

There’s much more from the Vogue interview here, including an adorable anecdote about how she met her (very handsome) husband, and more about Brown’s vision for her city here.

[Vogue, Los Angeles Magazine]