On July 10, the area entered the history books when the mercury climbed to a blistering 134 degrees Fahrenheit (57 degrees Celsius) at Furnace Creek, California, breaking the record for the highest temperature ever recorded.
Carl Stokes, the first black mayor of a major American city: Black History Month. View full sizePlain Dealer file photoCarl Stokes, shown in 1968 in downtown Cleveland, focused many of his efforts as mayor on improving city services and helping Cleveland's poorest residents.
Regardless of the outcome, both agree that it will be up to black Atlantans to demand that the new mayor addresses their needs. Hobson believes black Atlantans would benefit from a return to the leadership exercised by some previous black mayors, especially Maynard Jackson, the city's first black mayor.