Leo Austin Brooks Sr. (born August 9, 1932) is a retired

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

who later became

city manager A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a "Mayor–council government" council–manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief execu ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Military career

Brooks was born in

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Downto ...

, on August 9, 1932. He graduated from

Virginia State University Virginia State University (VSU or Virginia State) is a public historically Black land-grant university in Ettrick, Virginia. Founded on , Virginia State developed as the United States's first fully state-supported four-year institution of high ...

in 1954 and received his commission in the Army

Quartermaster Corps Following is a list of Quartermaster Corps, military units, active and defunct, with logistics duties: * Egyptian Army Quartermaster Corps - see Structure of the Egyptian Army * Hellenic Army Quartermaster Corps (''Σώμα Φροντιστών ...

as a Distinguished Graduate of the Reserve Officer Training Corps. In his early assignments, Brooks served as a platoon leader with the 2nd Infantry Division in

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

and commanded two companies. He also served in the office of the Army's Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics, G-4, as a budget liaison to the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

. Brooks served two tours of duty in

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

, one as an advisor to the

Army of the Republic of Vietnam The Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN; ; french: Armée de la république du Viêt Nam) composed the ground forces of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces, South Vietnamese military from its inception in 1955 to the Fall of Saigon in April ...

and one as a battalion commander. He received a master's degree in financial management from

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

, and his later assignments included command of the Sacramento Army Depot,

13th Corps Support Command In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the note thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The interval can be also described as a compound sixth, spanning an octave p ...

, Army Troop Support Agency, and Defense Personnel Support Center. Brooks retired from the military in 1984. Since he retired before serving three years as a major general, he was retired as a brigadier general. Brooks' military education includes the United States Army Command and General Staff College and the

National War College The National War College (NWC) of the United States is a school in the National Defense University. It is housed in Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., the third-oldest Army post still active. History The National War Colle ...

. Brooks's awards include: the

Army Distinguished Service Medal The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. Th ...

;

Defense Superior Service Medal The Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM) is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members who perform superior meritorious service in a position of significant ...

;

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

with two oak leaf clusters;

Bronze Star Medal The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

; Meritorious Service Medal; Joint Service Commendation Medal; and Army Commendation Medal.

Later career

As Philadelphia's city manager he was involved in the 1985 raid and bombing of the communal headquarters of the black radical group, the MOVE organization. Brooks resigned from his position 10 days after the bombing; three years later, a Philadelphia

grand jury A grand jury is a jury—a group of citizens—empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a pe ...

cleared Brooks and others of all criminal liability.

Family

Brooks was married to teacher Naomi Lewis (April 14, 1934 – May 21, 2020) from 1955 until her death in 2020. They had three children, including two sons who reached the ranks of general officers in the United States Army – General (Retired)

Vincent K. Brooks Vincent Keith Brooks (born October 24, 1958) is a retired United States Army general who last commanded United States Forces Korea, United Nations Command, and ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command. He previously served as the commanding general of Uni ...

and Brigadier General (Retired) Leo A. Brooks Jr. His nephew

Mark Quander Mark Christopher Quander (born 1974) is a United States Army brigadier general who serves as the 79th Commandant of Cadets of the United States Military Academy since May 2021. He previously served as the 98th Commandant of the United States A ...

is on active duty in the rank of Brigadier General. His daughter Marquita K. Brooks is an attorney. In addition, his brother

Francis Francis may refer to: People *Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters *Francis (surname) Places * Rural M ...

was a longtime member of the Vermont House of Representatives who rose to the position of majority leader. After serving in the House, Francis Brooks served for several years as the Sergeant at Arms of the Vermont State House. In 2016, Francis Brooks was elected to the

Vermont Senate The Vermont Senate is the upper house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The senate consists of 30 members. Senate districting divides the 30 members into three single-member districts, six two-m ...

References

External links

Major General Leo A. Brooks Sr. (ret.), is the first African American Army general with two sons who have attained the rank of general.Gen. Vincent Brooks Is ‘Drafted’ Into Another Top JobArmy Salutes Its Black VeteransService is Family Tradition for Army Brig. Gen. Brooks, Spokesman for Iraqi WarBiography, Major General Leo A. Brooks Sr.
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The History Makers
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brooks, Leo A. Sr. 1932 births Living people Military personnel from Alexandria, Virginia Virginia State University alumni George Washington University School of Business alumni United States Army Command and General Staff College alumni National War College alumni African-American United States Army personnel United States Army generals United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal (US Army) Recipients of the Defense Superior Service Medal Recipients of the Legion of Merit American city managers African Americans in the Vietnam War 20th-century African-American people