Emerpor's Reign (sep 17, 1859 – jan 1, 1880)

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Over the course of a 20-plus-year "reign” that ended with his death in January 1880, Emperor Norton continued to urge those political reforms that he felt were necessary to secure the general welfare and, as he put it, to “save the nation from utter ruin.”

He was an adversary of corruption and fraud of all kinds — political, corporate and personal.

He was a persistent voice for fair treatment and enhanced legal protections for immigrants and racial/ethnic minorities.

He demanded that African Africans be allowed to ride public streetcars and that they be admitted to public schools.

He commanded that the courts allow Chinese people to testify in court, and he pronounced that “the eyes of the Emperor will be upon anyone who shall counsel any outrage or wrong on the Chinese.”

He proclaimed, with respect to Native Americans, that all "Indian agents" and other parties connected with frauds against "the Indian tribes" were to be publicly punished before as many "Indian chiefs" as could be assembled together.

He was a religious humanist and pluralist who favoured church-state separation and warned against the dangers of puritanism and sectarianism, refusing to give his imprimatur to any one church or synagogue but, rather, attending them all. And he prohibited the enforcement of state Sunday Laws, which discriminated against Germans and Jews.

He supported women’s right to vote.

He was a defender of the people's right to fair taxes and basic services, including well-maintained streets, streetcars, ferries and trains.

He was an exponent of technological innovations that enhanced the public welfare.

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