Burden, Carter

Carter Burden (1941-1996) was a progressive New York City Councilman, publisher, and media magnate. He was the son of photographer Shirley Carter Burden. While at Harvard, he majored in English, wrote his senior thesis on Henry Miller, and graduated cum laude with a bachelor of arts degree in 1963.

Starting in 1969 he served three terms on the New York City Council. While in office, he served as chairman of the committee on health, lobbied for changes in laws about lead-based paint, fought for better health and housing of the elderly, and introduced one of the first gay rights bills in the country. The same year he won his city council seat, he became the part owner of The Village Voice . After his political career, he founded Commodore Media in 1980.

From the guide to the Carter Burden Harvard College notebooks, 1956-1960, (The New York Public Library. Manuscripts and Archives Division.)