Activism

Opinion: John Lewis, C.T. Vivian Together Helped Start Voting Rights Movement, Died on Same Day in Atlanta Commentary

Published

5 years ago

July 23, 2020

The news of the passing of two veteran Civil Rights leaders and giants John Lewis and C.T.Vivian, on the same day, jolted the nation’s consciousness, especially around the need for Blacks and other minorities to continue to register, vote and fully participate in the census to assure our voices are heard. They were considered “prophetic activist pathfinders” in the biblical tradition of Jeremiah “running to and fro through the streets, looking for a man to execute justice.”

They together added their voices, “made trouble” and were persecuted along with Daisy Bates, Septima Clark, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Medgar and Myrlie Evers, Andrew Young, Fannie Lou Hamer, Rev. Ralph Abernathy, Ella Baker, Rev. Hosea Williams, Dorothy Height, Rev Joseph Lowery, Rosa Parks, Rev. James Lawson, Diane Nash, Rev. James Bevel and Rev. Jesse Jackson helped to birth the Civil Rights movement of the 60’s, and they both died on the same day to join the pantheon of pioneering prophetic voices.

The news of their passing jolted the nation’s consciousness, especially around the need for Blacks and other minorities to continue to register, vote, and fully participate in the census to assure our voices are heard.

They gave their lives to make sure we are counted so that we can benefit when the roll is called in the upcoming November election — and when the trillions of federal dollars are distributed in 2021.

John Lewis, a minister and an Atlanta congressman from Alabama, shed blood in Selma to earn his civil rights icon status. He continued his indefatigable dedication for voting rights, from his participation in SNCC and VEP (Voter Education Project) until the day he died at 80 in Atlanta. Lewis had collaborated with Vivian while studying theology in Nashville, and the two of them were among the original 1961 Freedom Riders seeking to expose racism and to integrate southern facilities.

C.T. Vivian, a minister and Southern Christian Leadership Conference organizer who pioneered the politics of constructive confrontation behavior in employing voter registration strategies, also shed blood in Selma one month before Lewis, when he confronted Sheriff Clark. Both he and Lewis attracted national media coverage for their courageous challenges. Their sacrifices woke up the nation to the fact that Black votes mattered.

Their struggles and deaths remind us of the courageous volunteerism of the students and activists, who were mostly white, and had worked side-by-side with the Black faith-based community in 1964 and were among those arrested and killed for the right of Blacks to vote. Vivian, 95, like Lewis, was an activator who stirred the pot of activism that motivated organizers like Rev. William Barber and Stacey Abrams. He too died in Atlanta just hours before Lewis.

Lewis and Vivian joined Rev. Joseph Lowery, who also died this year at 98 in Atlanta, the birthplace of Dr. King.

I had the opportunity to march and work with both ministers Lewis and Vivian since the 1965 Selma, Alabama Voting Rights March 1965 as a student, reporter, faith-based organizer and field director for the Southern Elections Fund and the Southern Regional Council, also headquartered in Atlanta.

While my wife Gay Plair Cobb and I lived in Atlanta from 1973 to 1977. Gay was director of the Department of Labor’s Women Bureau in Atlanta before serving in Washington, D.C. with former Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman. We rented the home of Jane Bond and Howard Moore and utilized our residence for many “organizing gatherings and meetings” with many people from the network of civil rights activists.

The Southern Elections Fund (SEF) was headed by the legendary Julian Bond who was also a Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) founder and member of the Georgia Legislature. Bond served as SEF Chair while Yancey Martin, who was a top advisor to Senator McGovern’s Presidential Campaign, was the Director. My job was to travel throughout the 11 southern states of the old confederacy to help organize voting and election strategies for Blacks. We helped raise funds and provided voter strategies for hundreds of Blacks, including Mississippi congressman Bennie Thompson (see SEF Ebony March 1975, story www.postnewsgroup.com).

I hope faith-based leaders, the Congressional Black Caucus, civil Rights activists and the participants in the Black Lives Matter Movement will dedicate their efforts to monitor the electoral process and demand that the DigiTech companies not become complicit with efforts by those who seek to suppress the Black vote. When I delivered the commencement address at Holy Names University, I challenged the students and the University — since it is in the heart of Oakland with a history of civil rights activism — to commit themselves to the causes of voting, census and ethnic studies in our schools. The passing of Lewis, Vivian and Lowery should resurrect a spirit of activism in all of us.

The Post will continue to provide information on voter suppression tactics. We will monitor social media and any attempts to discourage the Black vote.

Paul Cobb, Post News Group Publisher

Posts by Paul Cobb, Post News Group Publisher

Related Topics:C.T. Vivian featured John Lewis

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Activism

Ann Lowe: The Quiet Genius of American Couture

Lowe was born in Clayton, Alabama, into a family of gifted seamstresses. Her mother and grandmother were well-known dressmakers who created exquisite gowns for women in the area. By the time Lowe was a young girl, she was already showing extraordinary talent — cutting, sewing, and decorating fabric with a skill that far exceeded her age. When her mother died unexpectedly, Lowe – only 16 years old then – took over her mother’s sewing business, completing all the orders herself.

Published

2 days ago

December 14, 2025

Oakland Post

Photo courtesy of National Archives.

By Tamara Shiloh

Ann Cole Lowe, born Dec.14, 1898, was a pioneering American fashion designer whose extraordinary talent shaped some of the most widely recognized and celebrated gowns in U.S. history.

Although she designed dresses for society’s wealthiest families and created masterpieces worn at historic events, Lowe spent much of her life in the shadows — uncredited, underpaid, yet unmatched in skill. Today, she is celebrated as one of the first nationally recognized African American fashion designers and a true visionary in American couture.

In 1917, Lowe moved to New York City to study at the S.T. Taylor Design School. Although she was segregated from White students and forced to work separately, she, of course, excelled, graduating earlier than expected. Her instructors quickly recognized that her abilities were far above the typical student, especially her skill in hand-sewing, applique, and intricate floral embellishment – techniques that would become her signature.

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, she designed gowns for high-society women in Florida and New York, operating boutiques and working for prestigious department stores. Her reputation for craftsmanship, originality, and elegance grew increasingly. She was known for creating gowns that moved beautifully, featured delicate hand-made flowers, and looked sculpted rather than sewn. Many wealthy clients specifically requested “an Ann Lowe gown” for weddings, balls, and galas.

Her most famous creation came in 1953: the wedding gown worn by Jacqueline Bouvier when she married Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kennedy. The dress – crafted from ivory silk taffeta with dozens of tiny, pleated rosettes – became one of the most photographed bridal gowns in American history. Despite this achievement, Lowe received no public credit at the time. When a flood destroyed her completed gowns 10 days before the wedding, she and her seamstresses worked day and night to remake everything – at her own expense. Her dedication and perfectionism never wavered.

She eventually opened “Ann Lowe Originals,” her own salon on New York’s Madison Avenue. She served clients such as the Rockefellers, DuPonts, Vanderbilts, and actresses like Olivia de Havilland. Yet even with her wealthy clientele, she struggled financially, often undercharging because she wanted every dress to be perfect, even if it meant losing money.

Lowe’s contributions were finally recognized later in life. Today, her exquisite gowns are preserved in museums, including the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

In the last five years of her life, Lowe lived with her daughter Ruth in Queens, N.Y. She died at her daughter’s home on Feb. 25, 1981, at the age of 82, after an extended illness.

Oakland Post

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Activism

2025 in Review: Seven Questions for Black Women’s Think Tank Founder Kellie Todd Griffin

As the president and CEO of the California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute, Griffin is on a mission to shift the narrative and outcomes for Black women and girls. She founded the nation’s first Black Women’s Think Tank, securing $5 million in state funding to fuel policy change.

Published

2 days ago

December 14, 2025

Oakland Post

Kellie Todd Griffin. CBM file photo.

By Edward Henderson
California Black Media

With more than 25 years of experience spanning public affairs, community engagement, strategy, marketing, and communications, Kellie Todd Griffin is recognized across California as a leader who mobilizes people and policy around issues that matter.

Griffin spoke with California Black Media (CBM) about her successes and setbacks in 2025 and her hopes for 2026.

Looking back at 2025, what stands out to you as your most important achievement and why? 

Our greatest achievement in this year is we got an opportunity to honor the work of 35 Black women throughout California who are trailblazing the way for the next generation of leaders.

How did your leadership, efforts and investments as president and CEO California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute contribute to improving the lives of Black Californians? 

We’re training the next leaders. We have been able to train 35 women over a two-year period, and we’re about to start a new cohort of another 30 women. We also have trained over 500 middle and high school girls in leadership, advocacy, and financial literacy.

What frustrated you the most over the last year?

Getting the question, “why.” Why advocate for Black women? Why invest in Black people, Black communities? It’s always constantly having to explain that, although we are aware that there are other populations that are in great need, the quality-of-life indices for Black Californians continue to decrease. Our life expectancies are decreasing. Our unhoused population is increasing. Our health outcomes remain the worst.

We’re not asking anyone to choose one group to prioritize. We are saying, though, in addition to your investments into our immigrant brothers and sisters – or our religious brothers and sisters – we are also asking you to uplift the needs of Black Californians. That way, all of us can move forward together.

What inspired you the most over the last year?

I’ve always been amazed by the joy of Black women in the midst of crisis.

That is really our secret sauce. We don’t let the current state of any issue take our joy from us. It may break us a little bit. We may get tired a little bit. But we find ways to express that – through the arts, through music, through poetry.

What is one lesson you learned in 2025 that will inform your decision-making next year?

Reset. It’s so important not to be sitting still. We have a new administration. We’re seeing data showing that Black women have the largest unemployment rate. We’ve lost so many jobs. We can have rest – we can be restful – but we have to continue the resistance.

In one word, what is the biggest challenge Black Californians faced in 2025?

Motivation.

I choose motivation because of the tiredness. What is going to motivate us to be involved in 2026?

What is the goal you want to achieve most in 2026?

I want to get Black Californians in spaces and places of power and influence – as well as opportunities to thrive economically, socially, and physically.

Oakland Post

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Activism

BRIDGE Housing President and CEO Ken Lombard Scores Top Honors for Affordable Housing Leadership

The Development Company of the Year honor represents a milestone for BRIDGE Housing, which received the Gold award—its top designation—in a category that included both affordable and market-rate developers. The recognition caps what has been one of the strongest growth periods in the organization’s 42-year history.

Published

2 days ago

December 14, 2025

Oakland Post

BRIDGE Housing President and CEO Ken Lombard. Courtesy of BRIDGE Housing.

By the Oakland Post Staff

San Francisco-based BRIDGE Housing and its president and CEO, Ken Lombard, have been named among the nation’s housing industry standouts, earning two of the top prizes at the 2025 Multi-Housing News Excellence Awards.

BRIDGE Housing was named Development Company of the Year, while Lombard received Executive of the Year, recognition that places the nonprofit affordable housing provider alongside leading national developers of both affordable and market-rate housing.

The awards were announced in New York for the accomplishments achieved during 2024.

Multi-Housing News is one of the industry’s most respected publications. Award winners are selected by a panel of housing professionals, including multifamily developers, architects, and owners.

“BRIDGE Housing is deeply honored to be recognized by Multi-Housing News and our industry peers,” Lombard said. “These awards are a testament to the high-impact, mission-driven work by BRIDGE’s exceptional team to deliver quality affordable housing and support services that empower residents to improve their lives.”

In 2024, BRIDGE significantly expanded its footprint across California, Oregon, and Washington. That momentum continued into 2025, with portfolio growth of 9%, including the addition of nine new communities and 1,187 new or acquired affordable housing units. The nonprofit also added three new projects to its development pipeline as it nears a portfolio of 16,000 units.

The growth reflects a broader strategy aimed at accelerating both acquisitions and ground-up development, supported by partnerships with major financial institutions and innovative capital markets strategies. BRIDGE has also emphasized high-quality design and deep community engagement as central elements of its approach.

BRIDGE became the first affordable housing developer to issue tax-exempt construction bonds for one of the largest affordable housing projects in Portland, Ore., leveraging its strong credit rating.

Earlier this year, the nonprofit launched the BRIDGE Housing Impact Fund, with a goal of investing $1 billion to preserve and create affordable housing. It also closed on $175 million in taxable general-obligation bonds after increasing the offering in response to strong investor demand.

The company’s performance also underscores the role of Lombard, who has led BRIDGE since 2021 and was honored individually for his leadership.

Under Lombard’s tenure, BRIDGE has built a new leadership team with experience drawn from both the nonprofit and private sectors, with a particular focus on what the organization describes as efforts to “break the status quo,” especially in affordable housing finance. Those initiatives have helped reduce capital and construction costs, strengthen relationships with institutional investors, and expand resident support services.

Today, BRIDGE Housing serves more than 33,000 residents across 139 communities on the West Coast.

“Ken has dedicated his career to innovative real estate solutions that improve the quality of life in underserved neighborhoods,” said Kenneth Novack, chair of BRIDGE Housing’s board of directors. “His visionary leadership and the work of our incredible team have positioned BRIDGE for long-term growth that will extend our impact throughout the West Coast.”

Founded in 1983, BRIDGE Housing has helped create more than 23,000 affordable homes with a total development cost of $6 billion.