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Eugene Parks was born in 1947 on the south side of Madison to Roger and Pearlean Parks, who had come to Madison from Georgia in the 1940s and became prominent figures in the city’s African American community. He graduated from La Follette High School in 1965 and attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He ran unsuccessfully as a candidate for Dane County Sheriff. Parks became the associate editor of the Madison Sun and an outspoken proponent of civil rights in Madison.
In 1969, Parks became the first Black alderperson for the Madison Common Council at the age of 22. He was the first person of color to be elected to public office in Madison and Dane County. He represented the 14th Ward in South Madison and was known as someone who challenged the system and fought for justice. In 1973, the Madison Metropolitan School District adopted an affirmative action policy, and Alderman Parks spoke extensively before the school board, arguing that minority candidates were often overlooked and unaware of job openings.
In 1974, Eugene Parks ran unsuccessfully on the Democratic ticket for Secretary of State. From 1975 to 1979, Parks worked as the staff director for State Senator Monroe Swan and as the president of the Madison chapter of the NAACP. In 1979, Parks was appointed an administrative assistant to Fire Chief Ed Durkin, and in 1985 he became the director of the City of Madison’s Affirmative Action Department.
In 1988, Parks was reprimanded and suspended for calling an MATC board member a “racist, liar and coward” at a meeting. Parks filed a racial discrimination claim and was fired. In 1989, Parks filed a circuit court action to regain his position and was given a job as a sign shop supervisor in the Traffic Engineering Department of the city. In 1995, a court of appeals ruled that Parks was illegally fired in 1988, and the city settled with him for $441,000.
In the 1990s, Eugene took over the family business of Mr. Ps restaurant, located at 1616 Beld Street, from his father. In 1996, Mr. P’s closed. In 1999 and again in 2003, he ran unsuccessfully for mayor. Eugene Parks died in 2005. In 2016, Madison 365 began an annual award in his honor: the Eugene Parks Disruption Award, for those who challenge the system and fighting for justice.
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