29-05-2025
Former LA Councilman Nate Holden celebration of life ceremony takes place Thursday
A celebration of life ceremony takes place Thursday for former Los Angeles City Councilmember Nate Holden, who served on the council for 16 years, from 1987 to 2003.
Holden died on May 7 at 95 years old. "Nate Holden leaves behind a legacy of service and strength," Mayor Karen Bass said earlier in a statement. "Throughout his life, he put the South Los Angeles community front and center."
Holden's accomplishments as a councilman included a gun buyback program in cooperation with the Los Angeles Police Department. He also introduced an initiative into Los Angeles law that required all children's toy guns to be brightly colored to avoid confusion with actual weapons.
Following the 1992 Los Angeles riots, he was the driving force behind the rebuilding of the Crenshaw area.
Before serving on the Los Angeles council, Holden served four years on the California State Senate from 1974 to 1978, where he authored and co-authored more than 70 bills that became law.
Holden authored the bill establishing the Rev. Martin Luther King Junior's birthday as a state holiday, along with bills outlawing redlining on home mortgages, the Credit Denial Disclosure Act of 1976, increased funding for inner city schools, the creation of Baldwin Hills Regional Park, proliferation and control of liquor stores and property tax relief for senior citizens.
Before his term as State Senator, Holden served as Assistant Chief Deputy to then-Los Angeles County Supervisor Kenneth Hahn for 12 years.
"Nate Holden was a legend here in Los Angeles. He was a lion in the State Senate and a force to be reckoned with on the Los Angeles City Council," Supervisor Janice Hahn said at the time of his death. "I learned a lot sitting next to him in the chambers as a new Councilmember. He was a valued member of my father's staff for years and my dad relied on his unique brand of wisdom."
Holden started his career in the aerospace industry as a design engineer for 17 years, which brought him to California. He is also a veteran of the U.S. Army.
Holden was born in Macon, Georgia and spent most of his childhood in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He was honored in 2003 when the Nate Holden Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles was named after the Councilman.
The celebration of life ceremony takes place at 11 a.m. on Thursday at West Angeles Church of God in South Los Angeles.
