Phoenix civil rights icon Calvin Goode dead at 93: ‘He changed his city’
'His kindness and generosity were legendary.'
Former Phoenix city councilman and civil rights activist Calvin C. Goode passed away this week at the age of 93.
Goode died Wednesday from a non-COVID related illness, his family confirmed.
“Calvin C. Goode passed at 3:25 p.m. on Dec. 23, 2020, at Banner University Medical Center from a non-COVID related illness. Memorial services are pending. The family requests privacy during this time,” the family said in a statement, per azcentral.com.
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Goode was the second Black American to serve as Phoenix’s city councilman, for a record 22 consecutive years.
The Oklahoma native was initially denied the high school experience in Arizona due to his race. He earned a Master’s degree from Arizona State University and worked 30 years for the Phoenix Union High School District. He also owned his own tax-accounting business.
Goode was dubbed the “conscience” of the Phoenix City Council because his efforts addressed disadvantaged youth, empowering minority-owned businesses, fighting discrimination and improving impoverished areas of the community.
He retired in 1994 and went on to serve on the Phoenix Elementary School Board for six years.
Following news of his death, several peers, colleagues and Phoenix city politicians paid tribute to Goode on social media.
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“His kindness and generosity were legendary, as was his commitment to Phoenix, his brothers and sisters in the African American community, and to education,” Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego said in a statement shared on tweet.
“Mr. Goode was a soft-spoken man, but lion-hearted — an unshakeable force for progress, equality and civil rights,” Arizona House Democratic Leader Reginald Bolding said. “Over the span of six decades, he changed his city and our community for the better in countless, immeasurable ways.”
“During his 22 years on the Phoenix City Council and beyond, Goode was an advocate for youth, minorities and the entire community. His many contributions have made Phoenix better. He will be greatly missed and remembered,” Councilwoman Debra Stark said in a statement.
Councilwoman Thelda Williams noted that Goode “championed many programs that still touch the lives of Phoenicians today.”
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