106:. She campaigned for Mayor James Tate and was awarded a job as deputy commissioner in the Department of Records in 1967. In March 1969, Watson was appointed the fourth administrator of the Model Cities Program in Philadelphia. As an administrator, she clashed with the Area Wide Council (AWC), a group of 500 North Philadelphia leaders who sought to establish democratic control over the program. Because her appointment coincided with the election of Richard Nixon, who drastically altered federal antipoverty programs, she was able to consign the AWC to an advisory role and strengthen top-down control over the program. Under her leadership, the program was heavily criticized for its inefficiency. By 1973, $ 700,000 to rehab 19 homes and had lent only $ 20,000 of the $ 6 million available for economic development. According to the
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114:, who subcontracted the work and approved payments for work ahead of its completion, which violated city regulations. Watson's mismanagement of the Model Cities program led HUD to threaten to withdraw all funding from Philadelphia unless significant changes were made. As a result, mayor Frank Rizzo ordered the
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said that Rizzo chose to appoint her to such a high position because his political career was in jeopardy and he was increasingly unpopular, particularly with
Philadelphia's Black community. Watson faced another scandal in 1979 when a former aide was convicted of perjury for saying that she had not
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admonished Watson for her conduct as a Model Cities administrator, investigations found that she had done nothing illegal and she retained her position. In
February 1974, she was appointed deputy mayor by becoming the highest ranking African American in the Rizzo administration and the first woman
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94:, hoping that he would attend her hearing and draw attention to the case, but he was unable to do so. She appealed her firing to the Supreme Court and was awarded her job back along with $ 17,000 in back pay in 1961.
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74:. The AFT began investigating the leadership of its New York and Philadelphia locals in 1939, and it expelled the Philadelphia chapter from the national union in 1941 over the
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told workers in a publicly funded anti-poverty program to do work on Watson's home. Watson, though associated with the scandal, was never accused of any wrongdoing.
110:, the program mismanaged $ 21 million of its $ 80 million in funding. In 1973, she faced an investigation for awarding a printing contract to her business partner
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and questioned over her affiliation with the
Communist Party. Watson refused to answer questions about her political affiliations on the basis on the
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at a time when many
Philadelphia teachers were involved in organizing the city's first labor union in the profession – Local 192 of the
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fundraiser for
African American women in 1994, and died on 31 May 1994 at Chestnut Hill Hospital at the age of 84.
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Watson was born in South
Carolina on 8 November 1909. Her father was a carpenter. Watson's family moved to
42:-affiliated teachers' union and later won her job back through a Supreme Court challenge. In 1969, mayor
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Watson left public office along with Mayor Rizzo in 1981. She made a rare public appearance at a
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204:"Schooled: Philly schools once fired dozens of alleged Communists. Does it matter today?"
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Watson was head of the "Housewives for
Johnson" organization in Philadelphia during the
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sympathies of its membership. On 17 February 1954, Watson was called before the
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when she was young. Watson taught at Martha
Washington Elementary School in
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to reorganize the program, and it was ultimately discontinued in 1974.
30:(1909-1994) was a Philadelphia teacher and city official. During the
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Congressional Record: Proceedings and
Debates of the ... Congress
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170:"Goldie Watson, 84, Philadelphia Official - NYTimes.com"
54:, becoming the first Black woman to hold that post.
437:20th-century African-American women politicians
368:"Letter from W.E.B. DuBois to Goldie E. Watson"
116:Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation
46:appointed her the fourth administrator of the
16:American teacher and city official (1909–1994)
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108:Department of Housing and Urban Development
355:. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1954.
86:, rather than the more commonly invoked
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131:deputy mayor in Philadelphia history.
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281:"3 Teachers Here Cited in Contempt"
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366:DuBois, W.E.B. (27 April 1964).
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58:Early life and teaching career
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38:over her association with a
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386:"Goldie Watson Obit Page 1"
308:"Goldie Watson Obit Page 2"
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287:. 4 March 1954. p. 1.
104:1964 presidential election
98:Model Cities administrator
390:The Philadelphia Inquirer
312:The Philadelphia Inquirer
285:The Philadelphia Inquirer
333:"Un-American Activities"
314:. 1994-06-03. p. 16
392:. 1994-06-03. p. 1
133:Philadelphia Daily News
34:, she was fired by the
442:Victims of McCarthyism
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23:Goldie Watson in 1948
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144:Later life and death
48:Model Cities Program
174:The New York Times
90:. Watson wrote to
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264:. Retrieved
261:AncientFaces
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182:. Retrieved
178:the original
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150:Clinton-Gore
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122:Deputy Mayor
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27:
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422:1994 deaths
417:1910 births
137:Chuck Stone
128:Frank Rizzo
52:Frank Rizzo
411:Categories
396:2024-09-17
337:CQ Almanac
318:2024-08-14
266:2024-08-14
242:2024-07-27
213:2024-07-27
184:2024-07-14
156:References
135:columnist
68:Mill Creek
44:James Tate
76:communist
32:red scare
339:. 1955.
126:Though
372:Credo
208:WHYY
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