The Nation.



Mayor Jerry Brown, Take II

By Marc Cooper

This article appeared in the March 18, 2002 edition of The Nation.

February 28, 2002

Oakland

As I get into Mayor Jerry Brown's city-owned black Town Car, he scrambles to move a folded red and black flag on the front seat out of my way. "You know what this is?" he asks as he puts it in the back seat.

"It looks like an original flag from Castro's July 26 movement," I answer.

"You got it," says the Mayor. "It was given to me by Che Guevara's widow one night after I spent eight hours talking to Castro. I'm taking it home from my office to keep it in a safe place." Brown's focus seems to drift inward for a moment. "That was a long time ago," he says quietly as he starts the car and drives out of the City Hall parking lot toward downtown.

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About Marc Cooper

Marc Cooper is a Nation contributing editor and a contibutor to The Notion. He is a visiting professor of journalism and associate director of the Institute for Justice and Journalism at the USC Annenberg School for Communication.

His books include Pinochet and Me: A Chilean Anti-Memoir and Roll Over Che Guevara: Travels of a Radical Reporter. His work has been recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists, PEN America and the California Associated Press TV and Radio Association.

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