In 1967, Mayor Richard Gordon Hatcher became the first elected African American mayor of a major US city. A civil rights luminary, he served as advisor to Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Jimmy Carter on issues of civil rights and urban policy, convened the 1972 National Black Political Convention in Gary, served as the Vice Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and chaired Rev. Jesse Jackson's 1984 and 1988 presidential campaigns. His fight for civil and economic rights reached beyond the United States as he served as the inaugural Chairman of the Board of TransAfrica, an organization that fought to end apartheid in South Africa and free Nelson Mandela from prison. Nationally deemed the "Dean of Black Politics," by the time he left City Hall more than 300 African American mayors held office in cities across the country, something attributed to his trailblazing vision and leadership. He served the city of Gary for 20 years.