Legends of the Movement

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John Adams, committed to full participation of African Americans in the free enterprise system, published the first directory to black businesses in 1962 and later headed the Pittsburgh Business Resource Center and Pittsburgh Regional Minority Purchasing Council.

Harvey Adams, former Pittsburgh Police sergeant and retired director of the Housing Authority police, was president of the Pittsburgh Branch of NAACP for 16 years and aggressively fought police brutality and discrimination in corporate and public employment.

Ann Sawyer Berkley, a lifelong advocate for racial equality, helped A. Philip Randolph plan the 1941 March on Washington, protested segregated public facilities, and continued to work for interracial understanding through her artwork, poetry, and speaking engagements, both in Pittsburgh and in California, where she moved in 1994. After retiring from the Pennsylvania Department of Welfare in 1979, she was artist-in-residence at the Pittsburgh High School for the Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA) and a charter member of the Kuntu Writers Workshop. For her active volunteerism with libraries and schools, the Mayor of National City, California, where she resided, presented her with the key to the city on her 88^th birthday, just six months before her death on December 7, 2002. She is the author and illustrator of four collections of poetry and a series of books on African American history.

Frank Bolden, as a 27-year veteran with the Pittsburgh Courier, took on local politicians over such issues as job discrimination and urban renewal and, as one of only two black foreign correspondents during World War II, he met world leader such as Gandhi, Franklin Roosevelt, and Stalin and challenged the government on discriminatory treatment of black servicemen.

Byrd R. Brown, president of the Pittsburgh Branch of NAACP from 1958 to 1971, organized the first massive civil rights demonstration—the 1967 march for job opportunities at Duquesne Light—and many that followed, including the Black Construction Coalition sit-in at the U. S. Steel Building in 1969. An advocate for black political participation, he ran for Congress in 1970 and for Mayor in 1989.

Lavera S. Brown, who was the first African American president of the YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh, co-founded the Pittsburgh Coalition to Counter Hate Groups in 1979 and organized countywide unity rallies, originating at Freedom Corner, in 1997, 1998, and 1999. She is on the national YWCA board and a founding member of the Pennsylvania Network of Unity Coalitions.

Fletcher L. Byrom, president and later CEO of Koppers Company, initiated a dialogue between corporate executives and leaders in the African American community. Led by Byrom and Urban League executive Arthur J. Edmunds, the group met for eight years and dealt with social issues as well as the unrest of 1968. Byrom, with K. Leroy Irvis and Ronald R. Davenport, was also instrumental in establishing the Program to Aid Citizen Enterprise (PACE).

Dr. Alice E. Carter, as the Urban League's education director for 24 years, brought parents together to ease acceptance of school desegregation, advocated for students within the school system and in higher education, and expanded services at the Arthur J. Edmunds Center (formerly Ernest T. Williams Center), which she directed in Northview Heights.

Dr. Morton (Moe) Coleman, professor-emeritus of social work and public and international affairs at the University of Pittsburgh, witnessed—as a youth worker in the Hill—the impact of urban renewal on families. For the next 40 years, as social worker, professor, and adviser to elected officials and corporate leaders, he fostered communication across race and class lines to support minority hiring, union membership, and fair housing.

Dr. James Cunningham, professor-emeritus of social work at the University of Pittsburgh, came here in the 1960s to head up ACTION-Housing's neighborhood revitalization efforts. In the Hill and other city and Mon Valley communities, over 40 years, he worked with residents, community nonprofits, and students to "renew neighborhoods without bulldozing them."

Dr. Jack Daniel, vice provost for academic affairs at the University of Pittsburgh, participated in a 1970 sit-in the University's computer center that resulted in the creation of a Black Studies Department, which he then chaired. He has remained a forceful advocate for greater minority representation on the faculty and for increased admissions of African American students.

Ronald R. Davenport, chairman of Sheridan Broadcasting Corporation, became the nation's first African American dean of a predominantly white law school (Duquesne University, 1970-1981). In the 1960s, he helped found the Program to Aid Citizen Enterprise (PACE) and led efforts to ensure black employment in the local poverty program and in the construction trades.

Arthur J. Edmunds, executive director of the Urban League during a period of unprecedented growth (1960-1985), co-chaired the 1963 March on Washington, and initiated (with Fletcher Byrom) an ongoing dialogue between corporate and black community leaders in the 1960s and new League initiatives, including the formation of the Sickle Cell Society and NEED.

Dr. David E. Epperson, dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work since 1972 and Urban League president for a decade, headed the initial OEO poverty program (later Community Action Pittsburgh). He serves on the local and national YMCA boards and is vice chair of the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

Dr. Helen Faison, a 42-year veteran with the Pittsburgh Public Schools, was one of the district's first African American teachers, its first female and first African American high school principal, and—as interim superintendent in 1999—the first African American in that position.

Harry B. Fitzgerald, Hill district leader, political activist, and Fifth Ward alderman during the 1960s, was named police magistrate in 1984.

Rev. Charles Foggie, pastor of Wesley Center AME Church from 1944 to 1968, when he became Bishop, bridged common concerns within the church and community, also headed the Pittsburgh Branch of the NAACP. He spoke out against the lack of black involvement in urban renewal, helped to integrate the ranks of the Pittsburgh Symphony, and promoted investment in the New World Bank.

Alma Speed Fox, committed to civil rights and women's rights since her youth, was executive director of the Pittsburgh Branch of the NAACP from 1966 to 1971, participated in virtually every march from Freedom Corner, served as equal opportunity manager for U. S. Department of Interior, Bureau of Mines for 12 years, and has been a member of the Pittsburgh Human Relations Commission since 1972.

James T.G. Frazier, an activist against slum housing and housing discrimination since the mid-1960s and throughout nearly 30 years as Urban League housing director, organized buses for Housing NOW!, Save Our Children, Save Our City, and Stand for Children marches from Freedom Corner, as well as for the 1993 anniversary March on Washington. He was a pioneer in the use of housing counseling and data analysis for client service and advocacy.

Wendell G. Freeland, civil rights attorney and leader in the Urban League, locally and nationally, for more than 50 years, pressed the city schools on issues of hiring and achievement in the 1950s and was a lead attorney in the desegregation of Highland Park Pool and other public accommodations.

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Phyllis Moorman Goode, civil rights activist and community volunteer, participated in the 1963 March on Washington and was tear-gassed during a later march on the Pentagon. Long active in the Urban League and the YWCA, among many other groups, and a strong supporter of African American arts and artists, she heads the Multi-Cultural Arts Initiative of The Pittsburgh Foundation and Howard Heinz Endowment.

John Grice, active member of the United Steel Workers, was a leader in the labor movement, the local Model Cities program, and the development of the Freedom House Ambulance Service.

Malcolm Hall is representative of the youth who volunteered from community groups like the League for Civic Improvement, Frontiers Club, and Bethesda United Presbyterian Church for interracial "swim parties" to integrate the pools. Despite police escorts, they were subjected to insults and intimidation but persisted until segregation ended.

Philip B. Hallen, who retired in 1999 as president of the Maurice Falk Medical Fund, ferried medical supplies to civil rights activists in Mississippi in the 1960s. For the last 35 years, he has focused the Fund's support to issues of racism, mental health, and poverty, supporting such initiatives as the Freedom House Ambulance Service, Community Human Services, and school desegregation while supporting relevant films (including the PBS "Eyes on the Prize") and 143 books dealing chiefly with racism and mental health.

Charles C. Harris, one of seven founding members of the United Negro Protest Committee in 1963, initiated the "Let's March!" campaign that resulted in protest marches on local businesses to press for job opportunities and the demand for more black administrators and professionals on the Community College faculty. At a time when few blacks were employed in sales, he held sales positions with W. S. Brown Sporting Goods Company and Meadow Gold Dairies.

James Henry, executive director of Hill House Association, was so moved by the devastation in his native Hill District after the King assassination that he gave up a lucrative job in insurance sales to work for Community Action Pittsburgh and volunteer for the United Black Front. For more than three decades, he has devoted his energy to youth and family program and economic development and recently spearheaded a $5 million capital campaign to renovate and expand Hill House facilities and programs.

Marguerite I. Hofer, as Director of Church and Community, led the Pittsburgh Presbytery into the fight for racial justice during the 1950s and 1960s. A vigorous advocate, she worked for the integration of public accommodations, marched for job opportunities, and promoted fair employment and fair housing laws in the city and state. She was an NAACP board member and chair of the Allegheny County Council on Civil Rights.

Earl Hord, newly appointed director of development for Allegheny County, has—as a banker, CEO of the Minority Enterprise Corporation, and managing general partner of Keystone Minority Capital Fund— secured millions of dollars in financing and technical assistance for minority business development. He was also deputy assistant secretary of the U. S. Department of Commerce and commissioner of aviation for Chicago.

K. Leroy Irvis, whose picketing of downtown department stores in 1947 to protest their refusal to hire black clerks pre-dated the non-violent demonstrations led by Dr. King, was responsible during his 30 years in the Pennsylvania legislature for key legislation in fair employment and fair housing, establishment of the community college system and college scholarships, and the creation of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission.

Judge Justin M. Johnson, Pennsylvania Superior Court judge, authored a precedent-setting opinion related to the introduction of irrelevant and prejudicial evidence in 1978 and is known for his commitment to fairness on the bench and through community service with the United Way, Urban League, Carnegie Mellon University, and Mercy Hospital.

Katie Everette Johnson, who was office manager for the Urban League in the 1940s and 1950s, coordinated the 1954 National Urban League conference in Pittsburgh. A Hill District resident, she took part in the marches and demonstrations. She later headed consumer relations for the Port Authority.

Judge Livingstone Johnson, Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas judge for 25 years, was assistant county solicitor for a decade and active in political and community affairs. A Korean War veteran, he is an original member of the Hall of Valor at Soldiers and Sailors Memorial.

Bernard Jones, Assistant Director of the Allegheny Conference, founded Urban Youth Action, an education and employment program for students, and POISE Foundation, which is supported by the African American community and provides grants to organizations that benefit it.

Marion B. Jordon, first executive secretary of the Pittsburgh Branch of the NAACP, increased membership from 500 to 25,000 and revitalized it to become a leading force for social justice during the civil rights era. With Florence Reizenstein, she founded NEED.

Charles Kendall, long active in the Pittsburgh Chapter of the NAACP, was a principal organizer of Pittsburghers Against Apartheid and led the protests in the 1980s over the sale of South African Krugerrands.

Thomas Kerr, attorney, Carnegie Mellon University professor of industrial administration and law, has been a leader in the local and state chapters of the American Civil Liberties Union and a vocal defender—in the courts and the community—of individual rights and free speech.

Douglas King, community activist and NAACP leader during the civil rights era, worked through the Greater Pittsburgh Civil League to support the political campaigns of K. Leroy Irvis and Judge Henry Smith and led UNPC demonstrations targeting Duquesne Light and other major businesses.

Robert Lavelle, as realtor and banker, has carried on a ministry of self-help for half a century in the Hill District, where he has increased home ownership 30 percent by encouraging personal responsibility and participation in the free enterprise system. A leader in the NAACP and his church, he co-founded (with Frankie Pace) the Citizens Committee for Hill District Renewal (CCHDR) during the 1950s.

Nancy H. Lee, who was the first African American social worker appointed to a supervisory position in Juvenile Court, led the fundraising effort that generated more than $250,000 to endow the African Heritage Classroom at the University of Pittsburgh.

Aaron Levinson, retired president of Levinson Steel, a family-owned business that practiced non-discriminatory hiring long before it was mandated by law, headed the department store picket lines with Leroy Irvis in 1947 and mobilized corporations to support Alma Illery's Camp Achievement. He was a life member of the NAACP and served on the Urban League and Centre Avenue YMCA boards.

Vernell Lillie, founder and director of Kuntu Repertory Theatre, has encouraged and mentored African American actors and playwrights, encouraged student activism on campus, and presented original plays that accurately reflect African Americans to the community as a whole.

Thelma Lovette, retired social worker supervisor at Mercy Hospital, has been actively involved in all aspects of the civil rights movement and in community organizations (YMCA, YWCA, block clubs, and the Hill CDC) to build and rebuild the Hill District community.

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Fr. Donald McIlvane , convener of the Pittsburgh Area Race and Religion Council and longtime priest of St. Richard's and Corpus Christi Roman Catholic Churches, marched in Selma in 1965, monitored polls in South Africa's first open election in 1994, and over the years pressed for black representation on hospital and corporate boards.

Dr. Edna McKenzie, veteran Courier reporter, historian, author, and professor-emeritus of history at Community College of Allegheny County, has promoted equal rights throughout her life and fostered greater understanding of African American history, both local and national.

Gladys (Frances E.) McNairy, who became the first African American president of the Pittsburgh Board of Education in 1971, was also the school board's first black female member (1964) and the first black president of the Pittsburgh Parent-Teachers Association (1962).

Herman Mitchell, retired police commander, was a founder of the Guardians (organization of black police officers). He began the "Officer Friendly" program in public schools and—during the unrest of the late 1960s—initiated a community relations program that was a precursor of the Community Oriented Police today. A lifelong volunteer at Lemington Center, he raised more than $50,000 from community donors for the home's capital campaign in the 1980s.

Wm. (Muggsy) Moore, who became Pittsburgh's first black police chief in 1986, came to the force in 1951 when black officers weren't allowed to drive patrol cars; as an inspector 25 years later, he was the first to allow women officers to drive. Long active in the NAACP, he joined the peace march from Freedom Corner in the aftermath of Martin Luther King's assassination.

Thaddeus Mosley, nationally acclaimed sculptor, taught himself his craft as he earned a living as a mail carrier. The son of a migrant coal miner, he experienced segregation and prejudice in New Castle, where he grew up, and in the Navy, where he served. He sees his art, inspired by American, European, and Asian as well as African examples, as a means of "transcending racism."

Coretta Ogburn, talented seamstress and long time employee of the Allegheny County Health Department, was active in the NAACP for more than 50 years, serving on the executive and scholarship committees and winning national recognition for membership recruitment.

Fr. Jack O'Malley, pastor of St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church in Manchester during the civil rights era, was active with the Citizen Clergy Coordinating Committee in its efforts to eliminate slum housing and a strong supporter and participant in the Black Construction Coalition's efforts to increase the hiring of blacks on construction jobs. Long active in the peace movement, he has remained committed to human rights causes and is currently AFL-CIO chaplain.

Dr. LeRoy Patrick, pastor of Bethesda Presbyterian Church in Homewood, was a part of virtually every demonstration, sit-in, and picket line during the civil rights era as he pressed for employment, housing, and educational opportunities.

Rob Penny, poet, playwright, and University of Pittsburgh professor of black studies, was working at OIC when the sit-in at the University computer center resulted in the creation of the Black Studies Department. He now teaches in that department and works closely with Vernell Lillie in Kuntu Repertory Theatre and Kuntu Writers Workshop.

Robert L. Pitts, active in the NAACP nationally and locally, negotiated civil rights and employment issues for 30 years with corporations and, as director of the Black Catholic Ministries, with the Catholic Diocese. He became the first African American mayor in Western Pennsylvania when Wilkinsburg elected him to the post in 1989.

Dr. Ralph Proctor, Director of Kingsley Association for 19 years, has promoted equal opportunity through programs for youth, radio and television show hosting (including WQED's "Black Horizons," where he was the first black producer in 1968), promotion of African art through exhibits, and the recording of oral histories from the civil rights period. His consulting firm, introspec, provides diversity training and other services to corporations and schools.

Rev. Alfred Pugh, pastor of Macedonia Baptist Church, served on many committees during the civil rights era, including the negotiating committee of the Black Construction Coalition, and made his church available to community groups. He was an active member of the NAACP and served on the Urban League board.

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Edward (Ned) Randall, an executive officer of Pittsburgh National (PNC) Bank during the 1960s, demonstrated his commitment to civil rights and provided financial support through the bank to community initiatives.

Monsignor Charles Owen Rice, known as Pittsburgh's "labor priest" for more than half a century, asked to be assigned to Homewood's Holy Rosary parish during the 1960s, where he supported racial justice, even when it ran counter to union feelings. A participant in all the major marches for civil rights and for peace, he was also a forceful advocate through his weekly column in the Pittsburgh Catholic.

Rev. James J. Robinson, pastor of Bidwell Presbyterian Church, was arrested in Mississippi for voter registration efforts and, with Byrd Brown, was beaten and maced in a confrontation between the Black Construction Coalition and the police on the Manchester Bridge. Committed to job training and education, he established the Bidwell Training Center and served on the Pittsburgh Board of Education.

Frieda G. Shapira, through service with many groups including the YWCA, Urban League, National Council of Jewish Women, and National Conference of Christians and Jews, has worked actively to establish "a level playing field" for all people and to increase interracial understanding.

Dr. Barbara Shore, professor-emeritus of social work at the University of Pittsburgh, has been a strong advocate and crusader for social justice in the community and within the university for nearly four decades and has been widely recognized for building relationships between the black and Jewish communities.

Judge Paul Simmons, the first African American named to the Washington County Court of Common Pleas and for many years the county's only black attorney, was appointed by President Jimmy Carter to the U. S. District Court in 1978. He was long active in the NAACP, and as a professor in the South Carolina State College law school, he advised the attorney who initiated the first public school desegregation suit, Briggs v. Elliott, which was later a part of the landmark Supreme Court case, Brown v. Board of Education.

Obadiah Simms III , a social worker with Manchester House and later with Saul Alinsky's Institute of Human Change in Chicago, was among the first freedom riders, and his "Letters from a Mississippi Jail" were published in the Courier in the summer of 1961. In Pittsburgh, he was active in all the major civil rights marches and demonstrations.

Dr. Barbara Sizemore, former superintendent of the Washington, DC, public schools, joined the University of Pittsburgh faculty and worked actively on the implementation of Pittsburgh's school desegregation plan and on reducing the black/white achievement gap in the schools.

Dr. Earl Belle Smith, who, in the late 1950s, became the first African American surgeon admitted to a hospital staff, later became chief of surgery at St. Francis General Hospital and Governor of the American College of Surgeons. He was a vocal advocate for civil rights and, as chairman of the Urban League's Health Committee in the 1960s, spearheaded the formation of the Sickle Cell Society.

Nate Smith, the first African American member of Local 66 of the Operating Engineers' Union, founded Operation Dig, a program to train heavy equipment operators, and pressured his union to hire 90 of the trainees in the 1960s.He organized and led marches of the Black Construction Coalition from Freedom Corner and marched with demonstrators throughout the South.

Cecile Springer, who retired in 1989 as president of the Westinghouse Foundation, drew upon her leadership roles, both in the community and the corporation, to expand opportunities for minority professionals to advance and to encourage young African Americans to enter careers in science and engineering.

Dr. Jerome Taylor, executive director of the Center for Family Excellence, founded its predecessor organization, the Instititute for the Black Family and, over more than 30 years, has worked to strengthen black families and increase opportunities for their children to succeed in school. In the 1960s, he worked with Jake Milliones, Rev. Elmer Williams, and others to ensure that school desegregation was implemented fairly throughout the district.

Sala Udin, who spent five years in Mississippi during the civil rights movement, registering voters and enduring numerous arrests and beatings, has since directed his commitment to social justice to the local political scene, initially as administrative aide to Councilman Jake Milliones and later as his successor in office, where he has fought police brutality and promoted minority job opportunities in construction and other areas. He is a founder of the House of the Crossroads and spearheaded the campaign to erect the Freedom Corner Memorial.

Milton A. Washington, who steered the corporate and government-funded Allegheny Housing Rehabilitation Company through the 1960s and the renovation of more than 2,000 properties, then acquired it and turned it into a successful business that continues to rebuild and renew homes, many of them in the Hill District. A former Urban League president, he has been active in community and health planning.

Judge Warren Watson, elected judge of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas in 1965, was previously assistant city solicitor, a role in which he tried more than half of the County Court cases. He served on the board of the Homewood YMCA and Homewood Community Improvement Association and was legal counsel for Local 471 of the American Federation of Musicians.

Legends of the Movement
The Freedom Corner Memorial includes pavers with the names of these leaders who have played a key role in the struggle for social justice over the years since the civil rights movement. Others will be added in the future.