My Take
James Brady is one of those figures whose story hits you harder the more you think about it. He was a sharp, well-liked White House Press Secretary — the kind of guy who could work a briefing room with real wit — and then on March 30, 1981, a bullet meant for Reagan changed everything. He survived, but lived the rest of his life with a severe brain injury that left him partially paralyzed. What he did next is the part that really gets me: instead of retreating, he and his wife Sarah turned their pain into the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, signed into law in 1993. The Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1996 felt genuinely earned. He passed in 2014, and his death was ruled a homicide — a final, quiet punctuation mark on a life permanently altered by gun violence. A reminder that legacy is often built from the wreckage of what you never chose.
Overview
James Scott Brady (August 29, 1940 – August 4, 2014) was an American journalist, politician, activist and American public official who served as assistant to the U.S. president and the 17th White House Press Secretary, serving under President Ronald Reagan. On March 30, 1981, John Hinckley Jr.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- James Brady
- Name (Japanese)
- ジェイムズ・ブレイディ
- Reading
- じぇいむず・ぶれいでぃ
- Born
- August 29, 1940 – August 3, 2014
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Virgo / Dragon
- Origin
- Centralia, Illinois, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- politician / press agent / political scientist
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Awards & achievements
- 1996 Presidential Medal of Freedom
- 1983 Distinguished Eagle Scout Award
- 1989 Presidential Citizens Medal
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.