Today is the second episode on our two-part series looking at Black representation on the Phoenix City Council.

Morrison F. Warren was the first Black man to ever sit on the Phoenix City Council. But he wasn't a politician. Rather Warren spent his life building bridges through education and advocating for equality. He grew up at a time when Phoenix was segregated. It was something that struck him deeply. He graduated valedictorian of his high school and attended Phoenix College before serving in the Army during World War II.

He survived and came back to Phoenix to earn his bachelor's degree from Arizona State University, then called Arizona State College. He was a star player on the football team there and even had a short stint in the NFL. Later, Warren moved on to get his master's and PhD, all in education from ASU.

In this episode, we hear from his son, Kevin Warren, and from Morrison Warren himself from an archived interview.

The audio of Morrison Warren is provided by the Arizona Historical Society. You can watch the interview with him here. The video was directed and written by Chris Wooley. The director of photography was Wayne Dickmann. The video was produced by the Historical League, and narrated by Pat McMahon. It was made possible by a financial grant from Dr. Edward B. Diethrich.

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