Julian Carey Dixon

Congressman Julian Dixon represented California in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1979 until his death on December 8, 2000 (96th-106th Congresses). Before his election to the House, Dixon was a lawyer and California State assemblyman. In Congress, Dixon served on committees related to defense, congressional ethics, and federal funding. He chaired several committees, including the House Ethics Committee and the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. As chair of the House Ethics Committee, he led the investigation of House Speaker Jim Wright in 1989. While serving on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations, he authored the first sanctions legislation against South Africa. In 1980, Dixon became the first African American to win a subcommittee chairmanship on the Appropriations panel, taking over as head of the District of Columbia Subcommittee. Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, Dixon sought to bring the District of Columbia’s budget under control while appropriating federal dollars for essential programs. Dixon served in the U.S. Army, attaining the rank of sergeant. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Los Angeles State College and a law degree from Southwestern University School of Law.