Jesse Brown

In 1967, Brown joined the staff of the Disabled American Veterans. He served in various supervisory roles with the DAV in the 1970s and 1980s:[2]

• 1973 — supervisor of National Service Office in Washington, D.C.
• 1976 — supervisor of National Appeals Office
• 1981 — Chief of Claims, National Service and Legislative Headquarters
• 1983 — Deputy National Service Director

In 1988, Brown became the DAV's first African-American executive director, serving until 1993.

Jesse Brown and President Bill Clinton at the Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery (1993)

In January 1993, Brown was selected by President Bill Clinton to the post of Secretary of Veterans Affairs,[3] serving until July 1997. He was the first African American to hold that post. He is also the first former enlisted member of the United States Armed Forces named Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs. During his tenure, Brown expanded the services offered to female veterans, homeless veterans, and veterans who were ill due to chemical exposures in Vietnam or the Gulf War. After he resigned as secretary, Brown founded a consulting firm, Brown and Associates.[4]

Brown was one of three people who provided the impetus for the creation of the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, a national memorial in Washington, D.C., which honors disabled veterans. In 1998, philanthropist Lois Pope realized there was no memorial to disabled veterans in the nation's capital. Although she did not know him, Pope called Brown's Veterans Affairs office to plead for a memorial. Pope called every day for the next six months, until finally Brown's secretary put her call through.[5][6] Brown agreed to support legislation establishing a memorial.[7] Brown introduced Pope to Art Wilson,[5] the National Adjutant (e.g., chief executive officer) of the DAV. The DAV was itself not a nonprofit, and thus Pope and Wilson agreed that a new foundation, the American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial Foundation (AVDLMF; also known as the Disabled Veterans' LIFE Memorial Foundation) should be created.[5] Brown left office in 1997. Brown, Pope, and Wilson incorporated the foundation in 1998, and Wilson was named its president.[8] Brown served as the executive director of the American Disabled Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial Foundation until his death.

The three individuals and their supporters began lobbying Congress to win passage of the necessary federal legislation.[6] Congress quickly approved the bill, and President Clinton signed it into law (Public Law 106–348) on October 24, 2000.[9][10] After a decade of fundraising, the memorial began construction in 2011. It was dedicated by President Barack Obama on October 5, 2014.[11] Two quotations by Brown are featured on the memorial.[12]