ATLANTA — Atlanta City Councilmember Antonio Brown represents district three, which includes English Avenue and Vine City.
For an 11Alive exclusive, Brown met with us in his district to talk about the mayoral campaign he would officially announce, just hours later during a news conference.
"This community reminds me of the environment and conditions I grew up in," Brown said while walking down Proctor Street alongside several vacant homes.
"When I look around this community and see these dilapidated properties, it reminds me of the poverty that I experienced most of my childhood," he said.
Brown was born in New York, raised in Houston, and moved to Atlanta eight years ago.
"My parents were in and out of prison, I dropped out of high school at 15, never went to college, but I always had faith and determination and I was able to will that faith and determination to overcome the adversities I faced in my life," Brown said.
Now, Brown wants to help Atlantans avoid the hurdles he needed to overcome. It is neighborhoods, like the ones along Proctor Street, that he wants to change.
He said similar neighborhoods have been forgotten over the decades and show the need for the city to focus on housing, employment, and crime.
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"I want to ensure every Atlantan has access to a job. I want to make sure they have access to reliable transportation. I want to make sure they have an opportunity to thrive in Atlanta. Right now Atlanta is only working for a select few."
As he formally announced his candidacy Friday afternoon, Brown took a moment to address the baggage he brings to the mayoral race, after being indicted last year in federal court for alleged financial crimes pre-dating his time in politics.
"I am absolutely innocent," Brown said without hesitation during his news conference Friday.
"The reality is this I wouldn't be running for mayor of this city if I felt like I wouldn't be vindicated from these charges," Brown told 11Alive. "We need a mayor that is going to operate with honesty, integrity and put the people of this great city first."
Brown joins fellow council members Felicia Moore and Andre Dickens in the race. Attorney Sharon Gay, an aide to former Mayor Bill Campbell has also announced her candidacy.
Elected to the city council in 2019 to fill the late Ivory Lee Young's seat, Brown has served less than a full term and before serving on the council was unknown politically in Atlanta.
"No justice! No peace!" he shouted while addressing a crowd during the summer of 2020 at a racial justice protest.
During protests and events over the past year, Brown has been making a name for himself in communities around Atlanta and at times has appeared more as an activist than a traditional council member, pushing for equity and police reform.
In a recent poll, 69 percent of likely voters said they couldn't identify Brown, a reflection of his short political career.
"That was expected coming into this. Because I've been so focused on district three. You have to understand, look around this district. This district has been left behind for over 40 years."
Brown said during his campaign, he plans to spend considerable time outside his district though, meeting Atlanta residents from across the city as part of his campaign.
Despite his short time in politics, Brown told 11Alive he focuses on his council work around the clock, and has passed dozens of pieces of legislation to address his key issues of housing, employment, crime, and police reform.
"Experience is relative because you can be on council for a long period of time and accomplish nothing. So it is not necessarily about how long you've been on council but it is about the work," Brown said. "It is about your commitment to our community to our residents and I believe it is also about vision."
With Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announcing she won't seek a second term, there will be no incumbent on the ballot in November. The race could be similar to 2017 when there was also no incumbent for voters to consider and 12 candidates ran.
The field became so crowded the majority of the candidates failed to earn more than 10 percent of the votes cast. Bottoms then won the race in a runoff by less than 1,000 votes.
No matter how crowded the field becomes this go around, Brown said it won't impact the race he runs.
"The reality is, what I'm running on, the issues I'm fighting for every day as a council member and now as a candidate to be the 61st mayor of Atlanta they aren't changing because someone else is getting in the race," he said.