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The Life of Ron Brown born August 1, 1941 in Washington, DC (Raised in New…

- - - - Ron Brown was known to sell autographs of famous celebrities when he was a young boy. He was even in early Pepsi advertisement!
- - - - In 1962, Brown graduated from Middlebury, married Alma Arrington, and became an officer in the U.S. Army where he commanded units stationed in the U.S., Germany and South Korea until 1967.
        
        In the 1970s, Ron Brown held influential positions in the National Urban League in New York.
        
        While working for the the Urban League he also took night classes and completed a law degree from St. John's University.
- - - - Brown was recruited from that position to become the first African American partner at the renowned Washington law firm Patton, Boggs & Blow, where he became a highly influential, successful, and sought after lobbyist and counselor at law.
        
        He continued to be active in Democratic Party politics, playing a strategic role in Rev. Jesse Jackson’s 1988 presidential campaign.
        
        In 1982, Brown was named deputy chairman of the Democratic National Committee. That same year, he began lobbying the U.S. government on behalf of the brutal dictator Jean-Claude ("Baby Doc") Duvalier regime which was then in power in Haiti. Brown refused to drop the Duvaliers despite being criticized for representing such unsavory clients.
- - - - Bringing his trademark activist style to the Department of Commerce, Ron Brown was a tireless advocate for American business both at home and overseas. The Secretary circled the globe, spreading good will with his characteristic enthusiasm and cultivating opportunities and markets for American products.
        
        On April 3, 1996, while on a trade mission, the Air Force 737 carrying Brown and 34 other people crashed in Croatia, killing everyone onboard. Speculations as to the circumstances surrounding the plane crash that caused Brown's death include many government cover-up and conspiracy theories.
        
        Ron Brown was honored by President Bill Clinton with the Presidential Citizens Medal in 2001. A host of other institutions and programs were established in his honor, including among others, the Ronald H. Brown American Innovator Award sponsored by the U.S. Department of Commerce, The Ronald H. Brown Center for Civil Rights and Economic Development at St. John's University School of Law, the Ron Brown Business Economic Summit sponsored by the California Black Chamber of Commerce and the Ron Brown College Prepratory High School in Washington, DC.