Bay Area

Alice Allison Dunnigan: First Black Woman to Cover the White House

Published

4 years ago

April 8, 2020

Her father was a sharecropper and her mother took in laundry. Her grandparents were born into slavery. She endured poverty, segregation and sexism. Yet none of these factors impeded her ambition to become a journalist.

Alice Allison Dunnigan (1906–1983) would become the first black woman accredited to cover the White House. But not all Americans were ready to accept her in this position; their actions would soon make that clear.

Dunnigan covered Congressional hearings during a time when racism in America was rampant and the N-word was commonly used on the floor. She was barred from reporting on a speech given by then-Pres. Dwight Eisenhower. Upon the death of Sen. Robert Taft (1953), Dunnigan wrote her report while sitting in the servants’ section.

Dubbed a “straight-shooter,” politicians went out of their way to avoid Dunnigan’s tough questions, which often involved race. During formal functions held at the White House, she was often mistaken for the wife of a visiting dignitary. A Black woman attending such events, and alone, was unimaginable.

Born in Logan County, Ky., Dunnigan had a natural talent for writing. She entered school at age four and was reading before first grade. At age 13, she became a reporter for the Black newspaper the Owensboro Enterprise. Her assignments were one-sentence news items.

The Russellville school system at that time only made education available to Black students for 10 years. On graduating high school, Dunnigan’s parents felt that encouraging their daughter to further her education wasn’t necessary.

But a Sunday school teacher who saw that Dunnigan had promise intervened. After some convincing, Dunnigan attended Kentucky Normal and Industrial Institute (now Kentucky State). She became a teacher (1924–1942), a profession she did enjoy, but it left her longing to write.

Teaching jobs at that time offered only meager pay. During summer breaks, Dunnigan worked for a white cemetery where she washed tombstones; worked in a dairy four hours each day; cleaned houses; and took in laundry. All this totaled about seven dollars a week. But a 1942 call for government workers would soon change the trajectory of Dunnigan’s life.

Dunnigan relocated to Wash., D.C., where she worked for the federal government. After a year of night classes at Howard University, she accepted the position of Washington correspondent for the Black-owned weekly newspaper the Chicago Defender. The editor initially offered Dunnigan less money than her male peers, reasoning that she had to prove herself and her worth to the paper.

The government at first denied Dunning’s request on the grounds that she was writing for a weekly newspaper; reporters covering the U.S. Capitol were required to write for dailies. She was granted clearance six months later, making her the first African-American woman to gain accreditation.

In 1947, Dunnigan was named bureau chief of the Associate Negro Press in Wash. D.C. For 14 years she filed stories printed in 112 African-American newspapers across the country, a door-opening experience for many who followed.

Tamara Shiloh

About Tamara Shiloh

Tamara Shiloh has published the first two books in her historical fiction chapter book series, Just Imagine…What If There Were No Black People in the World is about African American inventors, scientists and other notable Black people in history. The two books are Jaxon’s Magical Adventure with Black Inventors and Scientists and Jaxon and Kevin’s Black History Trip Downtown. Tamara Shiloh has also written a book a picture book for Scholastic, Cameron Teaches Black History, that will be available in June, 2022.

Tamara Shiloh’s other writing experiences include: writing the Black History column for the Post Newspaper in the Bay area, Creator and Instruction of the black History Class for Educators a professional development class for teachers and her non-profit offers a free Black History literacy/STEM/Podcast class for kids 3d – 8th grade which also includes the Let’s Go Learn Reading and Essence and tutorial program. She is also the owner of the Multicultural Bookstore and Gifts, in Richmond, California,

Previously in her early life she was the /Editor-in-Chief of Desert Diamonds Magazine, highlighting the accomplishments of minority women in Nevada; assisting with the creation, design and writing of a Los Angeles-based, herbal magazine entitled Herbal Essence; editorial contribution to Homes of Color; Editor-in-Chief of Black Insight Magazine, the first digital, interactive magazine for African Americans; profile creations for sports figures on the now defunct PublicFigure.com; newsletters for various businesses and organizations; and her own Las Vegas community newsletter, Tween Time News, a monthly publication highlighting music entertainment in the various venues of Las Vegas.

She is a member of:

Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI)

Richmond Chamber of Commerce

Point Richmond Business Association

National Association of Professional Women (NAPW)

Independent Book Publishers Association (IPBA)

California Writers Club-Berkeley & Marin

Richmond CA Kiwanis

Richmond CA Rotary

Bay Area Girls Club

Tamara Shiloh, a native of Northern California, has two adult children, one grandson and four great-grand sons. She resides in Point Richmond, CA with her husband, Ernest.

www.multiculturalbookstore.com

Posts by Tamara Shiloh | Website

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Tamara Shiloh

About Tamara Shiloh

Tamara Shiloh has published the first two books in her historical fiction chapter book series, Just Imagine…What If There Were No Black People in the World is about African American inventors, scientists and other notable Black people in history. The two books are Jaxon’s Magical Adventure with Black Inventors and Scientists and Jaxon and Kevin’s Black History Trip Downtown. Tamara Shiloh has also written a book a picture book for Scholastic, Cameron Teaches Black History, that will be available in June, 2022. Tamara Shiloh’s other writing experiences include: writing the Black History column for the Post Newspaper in the Bay area, Creator and Instruction of the black History Class for Educators a professional development class for teachers and her non-profit offers a free Black History literacy/STEM/Podcast class for kids 3d – 8th grade which also includes the Let’s Go Learn Reading and Essence and tutorial program. She is also the owner of the Multicultural Bookstore and Gifts, in Richmond, California, Previously in her early life she was the /Editor-in-Chief of Desert Diamonds Magazine, highlighting the accomplishments of minority women in Nevada; assisting with the creation, design and writing of a Los Angeles-based, herbal magazine entitled Herbal Essence; editorial contribution to Homes of Color; Editor-in-Chief of Black Insight Magazine, the first digital, interactive magazine for African Americans; profile creations for sports figures on the now defunct PublicFigure.com; newsletters for various businesses and organizations; and her own Las Vegas community newsletter, Tween Time News, a monthly publication highlighting music entertainment in the various venues of Las Vegas. She is a member of:

Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI)
Richmond Chamber of Commerce
Point Richmond Business Association
National Association of Professional Women (NAPW)
Independent Book Publishers Association (IPBA)
California Writers Club-Berkeley & Marin
Richmond CA Kiwanis
Richmond CA Rotary
Bay Area Girls Club

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Bay Area

Vivian Coit, 98

Vivian Coit, a proud Dallas, Texas native made her way to the great state of California in 1943. She was a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great grandmother.

Published

19 hours ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Vivian Coit

Celebrating A Life Well Lived

Sept. 15, 1925 ~ March 30, 2024

Vivian Coit, a proud Dallas, Texas native made her way to the great state of California in 1943. She was a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great grandmother.

In her 98 years, she had various jobs – San Francisco Naval Shipyard, elevator operator, housekeeping, a salesclerk, and supervisor for the United States Postal Service. After 27 years of service with the United States Postal Service, she retired with numerous commendations. She was a lifetime member of the National Council of Negro Women. and a devoted member of the Washington/Lincoln Alumni Association of Dallas, Texas.

On April 20 at 10:00 a.m., a life well-lived will be celebrated at Beebe Memorial Cathedral CME Church, 3900 Telegraph Ave., Oakland, CA under the leadership of Rev. Antoine Shyne.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Bay Area

Rich Lyons, Longtime Campus Business, Innovation Leader, Will Be UC Berkeley’s Next Chancellor

Rich Lyons, an established economist, former dean of the Haas School of Business and the campus’s current leader for innovation and entrepreneurship, will become the next chancellor at the University of California, Berkeley, the UC Board of Regents announced on April 10.

Published

22 hours ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Rich Lyons is the first UC Berkeley undergraduate alumnus since 1930 to become the campus's top leader. Photo by Keegan Houser/UC Berkeley.

By Jason Pohl

The board’s unanimous confirmation makes Lyons, 63, the first UC Berkeley undergraduate alumnus since 1930 to become the campus’s top leader. In an interview this week, Lyons said he credits his Berkeley roots and his campus mentors with encouraging him to ask big questions, advance institutional culture and enhance public education — all priorities of his for the years to come.

Lyons, who will be Berkeley’s 12th chancellor, will succeed Chancellor Carol Christ, who announced last year that she’d step down as chancellor on July 1.

“I am both thrilled and reassured by this excellent choice. In so many ways, Rich embodies Berkeley’s very best attributes, and his dedication to the university’s public mission and values could not be stronger,” Christ said. “I am confident he will bring to the office visionary aspirations for Berkeley’s future that are informed by, and deeply respectful of, our past.”

Rising through the Berkeley ranks

Born in 1961, Lyons grew up in Los Altos in the early days of the Silicon Valley start-up boom.

He attended Berkeley, where he graduated in 1982 with a Bachelor of Science degree in business and finance. Lyons went on to earn his Ph.D. in 1987 in economics from MIT. After six years teaching at Columbia Business School, Lyons returned west, where in 1993 he joined the Berkeley faculty as a professor of economics and finance, specializing in the study of international finance and global exchange rates.

He’s remained on campus since, with one notable exception.

Starting in 2006, Lyons spent two years working at Goldman Sachs as the chief learning officer. It was a period that instilled in him an appreciation for leadership and the importance of organizational culture.

He carried those lessons with him when he returned to campus in 2008 and became the dean of the Haas School of Business.

While dean, Lyons oversaw the construction of Connie & Kevin Chou Hall, a state-of-the-art academic building that opened in 2017 and is celebrated for its sustainability. He also helped establish two new degree programs, linking the business school with both the College of Engineering and the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology.

But it was his creation of four distinct defining leadership principles that spurred a sweeping culture initiative at the school that stands out in the minds of many. Those values — question the status quo, confidence without attitude, students always, and beyond yourself — became a creed of sorts for new students and alumni alike.

Those values are important, Lyons said, because they shape and support the cohesive structure of a strong, connected community — spanning science and technology to the arts and humanities. They also convey the story about what it means to be at Berkeley and to believe in the university’s public mission.

“When we are great as educators, it’s identity-making,” Lyons said. “We’re helping students and others see identities in themselves that they couldn’t see.”

Lyons in January 2020 became Berkeley’s first-ever chief officer of innovation and entrepreneurship.

Building on his research exploring how leaders drive innovation and set behavioral norms and culture, Lyons worked to expand and champion Berkeley’s rich portfolio of innovation and entrepreneurship activities for the benefit of students, faculty, staff, startups and external partners.

It was a major commitment to thinking outside the box, he said. One need only look to the Berkeley Changemaker program that he helped launch in 2020 to see innovation and entrepreneurship in action.

The campuswide program with some 30 courses tells the story of what Berkeley is — the story that members of the Berkeley community can tell long into the future. Berkeley Changemaker started as an idea and its courses quickly became among the most popular academic offerings on campus.

“Over 500 students showed up,” he said. “Why? Because it’s a narrative. It’s not just a name. It’s not just a curriculum. It’s not just a course. It’s a way of living, and it’s a way of living that Berkeley has occupied forever. This idea that there’s got to be a better way to do this, question the status quo.”

Oakland Post

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Activism

Oakland’s ‘Green the Church,’ Others, Host a Climate Revival

On April 20, Oakland’s Green The Church California (GTC) and the Center For Food, Faith and Justice will celebrate Earth Day and present a Climate Revival event titled “Growing Healthy Communities From Soil To The Soul” at McGee Avenue Baptist Church at 1640 Stuart St, Berkeley, CA. The day will include inspiring talks, interactive workshops, networking opportunities, and a special panel on Food Sovereignty and Global Food Resilience.

Published

22 hours ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

The revival will take place at McGee Avenue Baptist Church in Berkeley on April 20. Courtesy image.

Growing Healthy Communities from Soil to the Soul in Berkeley

By Y’Anad Burrell

The day will include inspiring talks, interactive workshops, networking opportunities, and a special panel on Food Sovereignty and Global Food Resilience.

The keynote speaker is Rev. Danté R. Quick, PhD, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens in Somerset, N.J. Quick is well known in the Bay Area, having served for more than 10 years as pastor of Friendship Missionary Baptist Church in Vallejo, CA.

Green The Church, founded in 2010 by Rev. Dr. Ambrose Carroll, Sr., and headquartered in Oakland, helps galvanize Black churches and their local communities and leaders to address issues critical to populations historically disengaged from conversations around pollution and health, climate change, and sustainability and energy efficiency.

The organization collaborates with major environmental, sustainability, food security, faith, and community-based non-profit organizations, and is committed to “creation justice”—care and justice for God’s people and the planet—and building the Beloved Community.

Environmental justice has long been a pressing concern for communities of color who bear the brunt of pollution and ecological degradation. Climate change exacerbates these issues, disproportionately impacting vulnerable communities. Recognizing this urgency, Black churches across the country are taking action.

With deep roots in the African American community and its commitment to social justice, the Black Church has become an essential advocate for sustainable practices and policies.

Over the past 14 years, in a powerful collaboration with significant environmental, sustainability, food security, faith, and community-based non-profit organizations, GTC has created a cadre of Black churches engaging in the environmental justice, climate, and sustainability movement.

GTC presently works with more than 1,000 pastors and congregations across the U.S., and groups in the Bahamas, Ghana, Nigeria, and the UK, showing that we can make a difference together.

The partnership between environmental justice advocates and the Black Church extends beyond individual congregations. Green The Church provides resources and support for faith communities seeking to address climate change and promote environmental justice.

Through collaboration, initiatives such as energy efficiency programs, solar installations, and environmental education have been implemented in Black churches nationwide. These efforts reduce the carbon footprint and save money on energy bills, benefiting the congregations and their communities.

The involvement of the Black Church in the fight against climate change is not just a participation, it’s a powerful message that galvanizes action across communities.

By integrating environmental justice into their ministry, Black churches are demonstrating that addressing climate change is not only a matter of science but also of social and moral responsibility, inspiring change at a grassroots level.

For more information, go to: www.greenthechurch.org.