Mervyn Dymally
Mervyn Dymally | |
---|---|
29th district | |
In office January 2, 1967 – January 6, 1975 | |
Preceded by | Vernon Sturgeon |
Succeeded by | Bill Greene |
Member of the California State Assembly from the 53rd district | |
In office January 7, 1963 – January 2, 1967 | |
Preceded by | Montivel Burke |
Succeeded by | Bill Greene |
Personal details | |
Born | Mervyn Malcolm Dymally May 12, 1926 Cedros, Trinidad and Tobago |
Died | October 7, 2012 Los Angeles, California, U.S. | (aged 86)
Resting place | Holy Cross Cemetery |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Amentha Wilkes Alice Gueno |
Children | 2 |
Education | California State University, Los Angeles (BA) California State University, Sacramento (MA) Alliant International University, San Diego (PhD) |
Mervyn Malcolm Dymally (May 12, 1926 – October 7, 2012) was an American politician from
Dymally was the first
In
Dymally was the second African-American to hold statewide office in California, following
Early life and education
Born in
He moved to the United States to study journalism at Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri. After a semester there, he moved to the greater Los Angeles area to attend Chapman University, and completed a Bachelor of Arts in education at California State University, Los Angeles in 1954.[3] Dymally became a member of Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity in 1949.[5] Dymally became a U.S. citizen in 1957.[6]
In 1969, while serving in the California State Legislature, he earned a master's degree in government from California State University, Sacramento. Dymally earned his doctorate in human behavior from United States International University in San Diego (now Alliant International University).[3]
Career
In the tightly contested race for Lt. Governor in 1978, Dymally's bid for re-election was derailed when Michael Franchetti, an aide to State Senator George Deukmejian, floated a false rumor that Dymally was about to be indicted. The story, coming days before the election, harmed the Dymally campaign, and Dymally lost to Republican Mike Curb.
Franchetti later said that the source of the rumor was a Los Angeles Times reporter, who called the Justice Department trying to confirm its authenticity. Franchetti could not substantiate the rumor but included it in a report.[7] The report was passed to Curb's office with the rumor part erased, after which it moved to broadcaster Bill Stout who announced it as fact on Los Angeles radio station KNX (AM) and its CBS affiliates. (Stout's wife worked for Curb.)[8] Then-Attorney General Younger filed a letter of reprimand in Franchetti's personnel records, accusing him of a breach of responsibility.[7]
Dymally was an old friend of Peoples Temple founder Jim Jones.[9] When Jones decided to move his congregation to Jonestown, Guyana, Dymally "wrote the Guyanese prime minister to reassure him that Jones was an upstanding citizen."[9] The Jonestown compound would be the site of the mass suicide of over 900 people on November 18, 1978.[9]
In 1983 he joined with seven other Congressional Representatives to sponsor a resolution to
In the 1990s, Dymally served as a paid lobbyist for the country of Mauritania, attempting to present the country as engaged in abolishing every remnant of slavery.[11]
Dymally came out of retirement and returned to the
Mervyn M Dymally Senior High School at 88th street and San Pedro in
See also
- List of African-American United States representatives
- List of Asian Americans and Pacific Islands Americans in the United States Congress
- List of minority governors and lieutenant governors in the United States
References
- ^ Mervyn Dymally profile, JoinCalifornia.com; accessed September 23, 2021.
- ^ "George L. Brown, 79; First Black to Hold Statewide Office in U.S." Los Angeles Times. 2006-04-05. Retrieved 2008-09-15.
- ^ a b c "Black Americans in Congress: Mervyn Malcolm Dymally". Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Archived from the original on 2012-12-11. Retrieved 2012-10-08.
- ^ Carr, Elston L. (1997), Oral History Interview with Mervyn M. Dymally, Volume 1, California State Archives, Office of the Secretary of State, Sacramento, p. 7, retrieved July 5, 2020
- ^ "A Brief History..." The Upsilon of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Incorporated. Retrieved 2012-10-08.
- ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
- ^ a b Stewart, Jocelyn Y. (February 22, 2007) "Obituaries: Michael Franchetti, 64; financial advisor to former Gov. Deukmejian", Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 12, 2009.
- ^ Carr, Elston L. (1997). "Oral History Interview with Mervyn M. Dymally". California State Archives. State Government Oral History Program, Volume 1.
- ^ a b c Flynn, Daniel (2011-11-17) The Original Kool-Aid Drinkers, The American Conservative. Accessed September 5, 2022.
- ^
John Nichols (2016). "The Genius of Impeachment: The Founders' Cure for Royalism". ISBN 9781595587350. Retrieved 2021-01-23.
- ^ Elinor Burkett, "'God Created Me To Be a Slave,'" The New York Times Magazine, October 12, 1997, pg. 58.
- ^ "Obituary". Archived from the original on 2012-12-11. Retrieved 2012-10-08.
- ^ Yardley, William (October 9, 2012). "Mervyn M. Dymally, Who Broke Racial Barriers in California, Dies at 86". The New York Times.
External links
- United States Congress. "Mervyn Dymally (id: D000592)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Voting record from the Washington Post
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Join California Mervyn M. Dymally
- Mervyn Dymally at Find a Grave