The Honorable Julian C. Dixon was born on August 8, 1934, in Washington, D.C. He moved to Los Angeles, California and graduated from Dorsey High School in Los Angeles in 1953. From 1957 to 1960 Dixon served in the U.S. Army and earned the rank of sergeant. He later earned his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from California State University, Los Angeles in 1962. Dixon earned his LL.B at Southwestern Law School, Los Angeles in 1967.

Dixon was a legislative aide to California state senator Mervyn M. Dymally in his early career. He later succeed Yvonne Braithwaite Burke’s seat in the California State Assembly when she ran for Congress in 1972. He represented the 49th District from 1972-1978. He was the first freshman legislator in history to be elected as Chairman of the Assembly Democratic Caucus. In 1978, he was elected to the House of Representatives from the 28th Congressional District of Los Angeles. He ran for the 28th District for nine years until a redistricting in California, which later became the 32nd. He served in Congress for over 20 consecutive years.

Some of his career highlights were being part of the House Appropriation Committee which oversees all allocations of revenue for federal programs and agencies. Made history by being the first freshman to chair the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the District of Columbia. He chaired for the Congressional Black Caucus from 1986 to 1990 and was president of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. He worked for issues concerning civil rights, foreign affairs, and issues affecting his district. He authored the first law calling for economic sanctions against South Africa and providing humanitarian aid to southern Africa. He supported the Los Angeles Metro Rail system, and the Downtown Los Angeles Julian Dixon Transfer Station was named in his honor. He remains a chief founder of the Los Angeles’s Metro subway system. He succeeded in obtaining federal studies on the Baldwin Hills area which was nationally recognized for disastrous mudslides. He was the lead supporter of the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

In 2000, while still serving in office, Julian Dixon died of a heart attack. He was honored in several areas in Los Angeles for his years in public service. In 2001, Southwestern Law School would open the Julian C. Dixon Courtroom and Advocacy Center and Culver City Library renamed the library, Culver City Julian Dixon Library, in recognition of his service as their representative for the 32nd Congressional District.