Louis L. Redding, prominent African American lawyer and civil rights pioneer, was born in 1901.
Born in Alexandria, VA, Louis Lorenzo Redding grew up in Wilmington, DE, and graduated from Howard High School in 1919. Lawyer Redding, as he was affectionately called, continued his education and graduated from Brown University in 1923 and from Harvard Law School in 1928. In 1929, Redding became the first Black lawyer in Delaware. He was a respected civil rights pioneer for Delaware and America. prominent lawyer and civil rights advocate from Wilmington, Delaware. Redding, the first African American to be admitted to the Delaware bar, was part of the NAACP legal team that challenged school segregation in the Brown v. Board of Education case in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.
In 1950, Redding compiled a case against the University of Delaware, which barred black students. But the university’s chancellor, wanting to avoid a trial, decided to desegregate, becoming the first federally-funded institution to do so.
He also presented legal arguments that provided for the desegregation of schools in Claymont and Hockessin in 1952. In 1954, Mr. Redding assisted Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, legal counsel for the NAACP, in the Brown vs. Education case, which struck down the “separate but equal” system of public school segregation across the country. These are but a small portion of the many great deeds that Lawyer Redding accomplished in his lifetime.
He fought to open schools and housing for minorities. A school The Louis L. Redding Intermediate School in Middletown, DE, was renamed for him.
“What we were doing was not addressed to the purpose of singularly changing lives,” wrote Redding. “We were trying to change the status and experience of a minority of Americans who happened to be Black. We were not trying to change our lives; we were trying to change the opportunities of American citizens.”
Louis L. Redding died on September 28, 1998. In 2000, the University of Delaware established the Louis L. Redding Chair in their School of Education.
Have you ever heard of Sugar Chile Robinson? Well I hadn’t at least not until a few weeks ago and to be honest with you, I am not sure how I stumbled upon him, it must have been while viewing YouTube videos.
Anywho, I want you to know more about this child prodigy because his story is very interesting and history that should be shared, so please do so. However, before, I give you more info about Sugar Chile Robinson, I want you to listen to him play the piano, he started at the early age of 1 1/2…. and never had a lesson! I know there are many other child prodigies which have been written about or even given numerous accolades, including Stevland Morris, aka Stevie Wonder and Shirley Temple, but Sugar Chile Robinson should have received the same if not more exposure.
This child genius played at many famous venues and received top billing, he actually played for presidents! I am not sure why I never heard of him, but to say, that I’m obsessed would be an understatement – I can listen to him play and sing all night!
This is his biography according to Wikipedia
Robinson was born in Detroit, Michigan. At an early age he showed unusual gifts singing the blues and accompanying himself on the piano.[2] According to contemporary newsreels he was self-taught, and he managed to use techniques including slapping the keys with elbows and fists.[3] He won a talent show at the Paradise Theatre in Detroit at the age of three, and in 1945 played guest spots at the theatre with Lionel Hampton, who was prevented by child protection legislation from taking him on tour with him. However, he performed on radio with Hampton and Harry “The Hipster” Gibson, and also appeared as himself in the Hollywood film No Leave, No Love, starring Van Johnson and Keenan Wynn.[4]
“I wanted to go to school… I wanted some school background in me and I asked my Dad if I could stop, and I went to school because I honestly wanted my college diploma.”
Until 1956 he continued to make occasional appearances as a jazz musician, billed as Frank Robinson, and performed on one occasion with Gerry Mulligan, but then gave up his musical career entirely. Continuing his academic studies, he earned a degree in history from Olivet College and one in psychology from the Detroit Institute of Technology. In the 1960s, he worked for WGPR-TV, and also helped set up small record labels in Detroit and opened a recording studio.[1]
In recent years he has made a comeback as a musician with the help of the American Music Research Foundation. In 2002, he appeared at a special concert celebrating Detroit music, and in 2007 he traveled to Britain to appear at a rock and roll weekend festival.[1] In the last Dr Boogie show of 2013, Sugar Chile Robinson was the featured artist, with four of his classic hits showcasing amid biographical sketches of his early career.
Had you ever heard of Sugar Chile Robinson? I would love to meet him and just sit down and listen to his life story!
