Walter Francis White

Shout out to Walter Francis White—civil rights activist and former leader of the NAACP.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1893, you progressed to graduate from Clark Atlanta University in 1916. Ten years earlier, you observed the Atlanta Race Riot, where more than two dozen African Americans were killed by mob violence over a 48-hour span; and this massacre would shape your views on civil rights for the remainder of your life.

In 1918, you joined the New York Chapter of the NAACP as an assistant national secretary who traveled south to investigate lynchings. These surreptitious missions were made possible by your pale complexion and courage to qualitatively survey the activities of white supremacist groups. Throughout this process, you set the example for keeping one’s own counsel.

In 1931, your father, George White, was mistakenly taken to the white ward of an Atlanta Hospital and refused an emergency medical procedure on account of being Black. He succumbed to his illness soon thereafter. Earlier that year, you were announced as Executive Secretary and head of the NCAAP; and you manned this post with pride until your death in 1955. During this time, you rallied your resources to effectively campaign for anti-lynching legislation, the abolishment of discrimination in the U.S. Armed Forces, and the establishment of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.

Having only 5 of 32 great-great-great grandparents of African ethnicity, you were a fair-skinned man who could have easily blended into the white majority. However, you embraced your heritage; and rather than exploiting the privilege allotted to you based on the color of your skin, you fiercely and unrelentingly championed justice and equality for all African Americans.

Frequently labeled, “a Negro by choice,” you articulated your genuine affection and cultural connection with the Black diaspora in your autobiography, A Man Called White. You stood for justice when it was unpopular for those who looked like you—fair skinned with blonde hair and blue eyes—accurately predicting that history would smile on you.

#BlackHistoryMonth™ #BHM

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