Is Christopher Barry a Chip Off the Old Block?

In January 1990, then Washington, DC Mayor Marion Barry made national headlines after he was arrested on charges of possession of cocaine at the downtown Vista International Hotel, following a lengthy undercover investigation by the FBI and DC police.

In an unfortunate example of like father like son, on May 28, 2011, police arrested Christopher Barry, the son of the former mayor on felony drug dealing charges after police found PCP and marijuana in his apartment. This has some people wondering if Christopher is following in his infamous father’s footsteps or just tagging too closely behind.

Regardless of how people feel about him now, the former mayor was not always a rejected member of the Hall of Shame.  In his Hey-day, Marion Barry was held in high esteem by numerous residents of the Nation’s Capitol; once nicknamed Chocolate City.     

Barry arrived in the District of Columbia in 1965. Continuing his civil rights activism, he committed himself to gaining equality for the city’s poor black population. He became head of the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).  Just months after his arrival he organized a successful boycott of the DC Transit system to protest an increase in bus fares. In 1966, Barry organized the Free DC movement to gain Home Rule for DC. The city previously did not have an elected mayor and city council and was governed by a Board of Commissioners.  In 1967, Barry organized Pride Inc, to help poor black men find work. His election to the school board in 1972 began his ascent up DC’s political ladder and in 1979, he was sworn in for his first of four terms as mayor.

During his early years as the District’s leader Barry started a summer job program for youth, encouraged real-estate development, and strongly supported minority set-aside contracting opportunities. Three out of four of his mayoral runs received endorsement from The Washington Post. But that was before his descent into political corruption and a sobering starring role in his own version of sex, drugs and video tape.  When arrested at the Vista hotel, an enraged Barry muttered “The bitch set me up.” in reference to the woman who lured him to the hotel for the FBI sting.

Barry’s wife Effi went to great lengths to shield their then 10 year old son from the negative fallout surrounding his father. Many Washingtonians greatly admired the former first lady of DC who endured shame and humiliation as she initially stood by her man through his scandalous trials before later divorcing him and moving out of the area. Effi died in September 2007 of acute myeloid leukemia. The former mayor serves on the city council.

Some people believe that criminal behavior is learned within a family and has a tendency to run therein. In April 1979, S.G. Osborn and D.J. West published a study comparing the conviction records of fathers and sons. The study revealed that 40% of the sons of fathers with criminal convictions were themselves convicted of crimes, suggesting genetic influence. The same study showed that 13 percent of the sons of non-criminal fathers had criminal convictions.  Although an interesting report, obviously the Osborn and West study is not concrete evidence of the inheritance of acquired criminal tendencies. However, there are undoubtedly some who adamantly support the theory that “The branch does not fall far from the tree.”  

Christopher, grew up in the shadow of a man whose good name and worthy deeds were forever diminished by his criminal conviction. Now in his early thirties Christopher generally avoids the public eye and had been low-key prior to his arrest. He was released shortly after his arrest and is currently awaiting his court date.

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