theGrio’s 100: Svante Myrick, running a city in his 20’s
theGRIO's 100 - The 25-year-old Myrick is the youngest-ever mayor of Ithica, New York, as well as the first African-American in the post...
Who is Svante Myrick?
The 25-year-old Myrick is the youngest-ever mayor of Ithaca, New York, as well as the first African-American in the post.
Why is he on theGrio’s 100?
Myrick has had an amazing rise. A native of nearly Earville, he attended Cornell University in Ithaca. He was first elected as an alderman there while still in college and then won the mayor’s race in the town of 30,000 in 2011.
“When somebody questions your age, it’s not that they’re wondering if you’ve had enough birthdays to do the job. They’re wondering if you’re dedicated enough, they wonder if you know enough about the city. They wonder if you have the experience it takes to get things done and if you show them those things, then the age is just a number,” Myrick said in an interview with NBC News last year.
More recently, the Democrat was praised for not only giving up his car to walk to work but turning his mayoral parking space into a small “park” with benches.
“I’ve begun to turn the mayor’s parking space into a park space. Feel free to stop by and hang out!” he wrote on his Facebook page.
What’s next for Myrick?
He is now not talking about his political future, but back when he was in high school, he left a note for one of his teachers saying, “P.S. In 2040, when I’m president, I’ll keep you in mind for secretary of education.”
Follow Svante Myrick on Twitter @SvanteMyrick
