On April 29, 1983, Harold Washington was inaugurated as the 51st mayor of Chicago, becoming the city's first Black mayor and unseating Jane Byrne, its first woman to hold the office.
A year earlier, Rev Clay Evans & Rev Jesse L. Jackson Sr. (a political powerhouse and activist at that time) officiated the wedding of Joe Gardner — an elected official and civil rights activist— and Mary Gardner, an interim school board member. Joe later joined Washington’s administration as Commissioner of Neighborhoods and went on to serve as a commissioner for Chicago’s Water Reclamation District from 1988 until his passing in 1996. A year before his death from colon cancer, Joe ran for mayor in 1995 but lost to Richard M. Daley.
“I thought we were a good couple,” Mary said. “Joe supported everything I did, and I supported everything he did. We worked on projects together all the time.”
During the same years her husband was making his mark in Chicago politics, Mary served member chair of Cook County Democratic Women (CCDW) and later served as Membership Chair for Chicago Women Take Action (CWTA). She was also secretary of Chicago Urban Professionals and a member of the National Forum of Black Public Administration and Women of the 7th State Representative District. In 2020, after the botched police raid on the home of Anjanette Young, Mary was appointed to the City of Chicago Women’s Advisory Council. She was appointed by Mayor Brandon Johnson to the city's Board of Education. A longtime collaborator with Rainbow PUSH, she credits the organization for introducing her to Joe.
A Legacy of Activism in Black Chicago
When Mary and Joe met, the city — and the nation — was in the midst of a political and social transformation. It was a time of both progress and persistent racial inequality. While the Civil Rights Act of 1964 granted Black Americans essential rights, systemic racism remained deeply entrenched, especially in cities like Chicago, where many Black families had migrated from the South between 1916 and 1920 in search of better opportunities.
By the 1940s, the Black population in Chicago had surged, fueling the growth of Black churches, businesses, and community organizations. But progress came with struggle. After the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968, riots erupted across the city, causing an estimated $50 million in damage.
In the fall of that same year, the Black Panther Party established itself on Chicago’s West Side, further igniting a movement for Black empowerment.
“Black folks were angry and had lost hope after King was killed,” Mary recalled.
So, when Harold Washington emerged as a mayoral candidate in the early 1980s, Black Chicagoans saw a chance for change.
“Harold Washington was considered the Great Black Hope,” said Crystal.
Born in 1983, just a month after Mayor Washington took office, Crystal grew up immersed in politics.
“My dad was an elected official, and my mom worked in county government,” she said. “They were both community political organizers.”
From an early age, Crystal was exposed to Chicago’s political scene, often accompanying her father to events. She was just four years old when she met Harold Washington and only 12 when her father ran for mayor.
“The political space was his lane,” she said of Joe. “He came from nothing and worked his way through the Catholic school system. My dad was probably one of the only Black athletes and students at Brother Rice in the ’50s and ’60s.”
Activism was a way of life in the Gardner household. Crystal and her two older sisters helped organize bulk mail for campaigns and attended meetings with Black leaders. Though she initially resisted following in her parents’ footsteps, activism eventually became part of her identity.
“Seeing how my parents fought as activists, I honestly wasn’t interested in this work,” she admitted. “But I couldn’t fight it. It’s a part of who I am.”
Carrying the Torch Forward
Today, both Mary and Crystal remain deeply involved in activism on Chicago’s West Side.
“These past five years have been such an amazing and empowering journey,” Crystal said. “From organizing my workplace in North Lawndale at UCAN Residential to becoming a union organizer to then becoming the lead organizer for the museum workers at the Art Institute. This Black girl from the West Side did that.”
Despite generations of political corruption and economic hardship in Chicago, the Gardner legacy of activism continues — one fight at a time.