Louis E. Martin
Encyclopedia
Louis Emanuel Martin, Jr. (November 18, 1912 - January 6, 1997) was a renowned American Journalist, newspaper publisher, civil rights activist and advisor to three Presidents of the United States. Through his pioneering political activism during the civil rights era, he came to be known as the “Godfather of Black Politics.”
to Dr. Louis E. Martin Sr. and Willa Martin, Louis Jr. grew up in Savannah, Georgia
. His father, a physician of Afro-Cuban ancestry was a graduate of Meharry Medical College
in Nashville, Tennessee
. It was there that he met and married the former Willa Hill of nearby Shelbyville. Louis Jr. was their only son.
Dr. Martin moved his family to Savannah when Louis Jr. was four years old, largely because the climate of southeast Georgia reminded him of the sub-tropical climate of his native Santiago, Cuba. It was in Savannah that Louis Jr. later met and married the former Gertrude Scott, his wife of 60 years.
, Martin went on to graduate from the University of Michigan
in 1934, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts
degree in journalism. Following college, Martin traveled to his father's native Cuba, spending two years there as a freelance writer based in Havana
. Returning to the United States in 1936, he was hired as a reporter with the Chicago Defender
, a major black newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois.
After just six months in Chicago he was asked to return to Michigan
to help launch a new black newspaper, the Michigan Chronicle
, serving as its first editor and publisher. Martin remained at the Chronicle for eleven years.
Louis Martin was a founder of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a group of black newspaper publishers. He was also (in 1970) a founder of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
, a research organization in Washington, D.C.
providing technical support for black officeholders and scholars throughout the country; serving as its first chairman for eight years.
John F. Kennedy
. During the campaign, Martin was instrumental in persuading candidate Kennedy to place a telephone call to Coretta Scott King
to express dismay over the jailing of her husband, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. That phone call was widely credited with helping Kennedy win a major portion of the black vote in the general election that year. It prompted Dr. King's father, the Reverend Martin Luther King Sr., a registered Republican, to vote for Democratic Presidential candidate Kennedy.
Following the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963, Martin was among the few close Kennedy advisors to successfully make the transition to the new administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson
. In 1967, as a trusted advisor, Martin was influential in President Johnson’s decision to nominate Thurgood Marshall
as the first black Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Of his close working relationship with President Johnson it was said that They talked to each other in the shorthand of experienced political pros, according to Clifford Alexander, Special White House counsel and the first African-American Secretary of the United States Army. Secretary Alexander regarded Martin as his mentor. Among the other leading black public figures whom Martin helped raise to prominence was Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., later a close adviser to President Bill Clinton
. Martin helped recruit Mr. Jordan to head the National Urban League.
Eddie Williams, president of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies said it was surprising that Martin was largely unknown to the public at large, given his wide-ranging influence in the White House and his role in the development of black political power in the Democratic Party. "One reason for this is that in Washington, he was the consummate political insider," Mr. Williams said. "He traversed the corridors of power for many years without calling attention to himself and his achievements." According to Williams, it was in The Washington Post that Martin was first called the "Godfather of Black politics".
On Monday, January 6, 1997, Louis Emanuel Martin Jr. died in Orange, California
. He was 84.
Chicago Defender, editor-in-chief, 1947–59, editor, 1969–78, columnist, 1987–97
Democratic National Committee, deputy chairman, 1960–69
Political advisor to President John F. Kennedy, 1960–63
Political advisor to President Lyndon B. Johnson, 1963–68
Special assistant to President Jimmy Carter, 1978–81
Assistant vice president of communications, Howard University, 1981–87
Chairman of the board, Calmar Communications, 1981–97
National Newspaper Publishers Association, John B. Russwurm Award, 1980
Howard University, Communications Award, 1987
Democratic Party, Larry O'Brien Achievement Award, 1992
Harvard, 1970
Howard University, 1979
Wesleyan University, 1980
Early life
Born in Shelbyville, TennesseeShelbyville, Tennessee
Shelbyville is a city in Bedford County, Tennessee, United States. It had a local population of 16,105 residents at the 2000 census. Shelbyville, the county seat of Bedford County, was laid out in 1810 and incorporated in 1819...
to Dr. Louis E. Martin Sr. and Willa Martin, Louis Jr. grew up in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
. His father, a physician of Afro-Cuban ancestry was a graduate of Meharry Medical College
Meharry Medical College
Meharry Medical College, located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, is a graduate and professional institution affiliated with the United Methodist Church whose mission is to educate healthcare professionals and scientists. Founded in 1876 as the Medical Department of Central Tennessee...
in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
. It was there that he met and married the former Willa Hill of nearby Shelbyville. Louis Jr. was their only son.
Dr. Martin moved his family to Savannah when Louis Jr. was four years old, largely because the climate of southeast Georgia reminded him of the sub-tropical climate of his native Santiago, Cuba. It was in Savannah that Louis Jr. later met and married the former Gertrude Scott, his wife of 60 years.
Newspaper career
After first attending Fisk UniversityFisk University
Fisk University is an historically black university founded in 1866 in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. The world-famous Fisk Jubilee Singers started as a group of students who performed to earn enough money to save the school at a critical time of financial shortages. They toured to raise funds to...
, Martin went on to graduate from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in 1934, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in journalism. Following college, Martin traveled to his father's native Cuba, spending two years there as a freelance writer based in Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
. Returning to the United States in 1936, he was hired as a reporter with the Chicago Defender
Chicago Defender
The Chicago Defender is a Chicago based newspaper founded in 1905 by an African American for primarily African American readers.In just three years from 1919–1922 the Defender also attracted the writing talents of Langston Hughes and Gwendolyn Brooks....
, a major black newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois.
After just six months in Chicago he was asked to return to Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
to help launch a new black newspaper, the Michigan Chronicle
Michigan Chronicle
The Michigan Chronicle is a weekly African-American run newspaper based in Detroit, Michigan. It was founded in 1936 by John Sengstacke, owner of the Chicago Defender. The first editor was Louis E. Martin, whom Sengestacke sent to Detroit on June 6, giving him a $5.00 raise above his $15-per-week...
, serving as its first editor and publisher. Martin remained at the Chronicle for eleven years.
Louis Martin was a founder of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a group of black newspaper publishers. He was also (in 1970) a founder of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies , headquartered in Washington, DC in the United States, is a national, nonprofit research and public policy institution or think tank...
, a research organization in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
providing technical support for black officeholders and scholars throughout the country; serving as its first chairman for eight years.
Political career
Originally recruited by R. Sargent Shriver, Martin joined the 1960 Presidential campaign of SenatorUnited States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
. During the campaign, Martin was instrumental in persuading candidate Kennedy to place a telephone call to Coretta Scott King
Coretta Scott King
Coretta Scott King was an American author, activist, and civil rights leader. The widow of Martin Luther King, Jr., Coretta Scott King helped lead the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.Mrs...
to express dismay over the jailing of her husband, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. That phone call was widely credited with helping Kennedy win a major portion of the black vote in the general election that year. It prompted Dr. King's father, the Reverend Martin Luther King Sr., a registered Republican, to vote for Democratic Presidential candidate Kennedy.
Following the assassination of President Kennedy in 1963, Martin was among the few close Kennedy advisors to successfully make the transition to the new administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
. In 1967, as a trusted advisor, Martin was influential in President Johnson’s decision to nominate Thurgood Marshall
Thurgood Marshall
Thurgood Marshall was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, serving from October 1967 until October 1991...
as the first black Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Of his close working relationship with President Johnson it was said that They talked to each other in the shorthand of experienced political pros, according to Clifford Alexander, Special White House counsel and the first African-American Secretary of the United States Army. Secretary Alexander regarded Martin as his mentor. Among the other leading black public figures whom Martin helped raise to prominence was Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., later a close adviser to President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
. Martin helped recruit Mr. Jordan to head the National Urban League.
Eddie Williams, president of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies said it was surprising that Martin was largely unknown to the public at large, given his wide-ranging influence in the White House and his role in the development of black political power in the Democratic Party. "One reason for this is that in Washington, he was the consummate political insider," Mr. Williams said. "He traversed the corridors of power for many years without calling attention to himself and his achievements." According to Williams, it was in The Washington Post that Martin was first called the "Godfather of Black politics".
On Monday, January 6, 1997, Louis Emanuel Martin Jr. died in Orange, California
Orange, California
Southern California is well-known for year-round pleasant weather: - On average, the warmest month is August. - The highest recorded temperature was in 1985. - On average, the coolest month is December. - The lowest recorded temperature was in 1950...
. He was 84.
Career achievements
Michigan Chronicle, editor and publisher, 1936–47Chicago Defender, editor-in-chief, 1947–59, editor, 1969–78, columnist, 1987–97
Democratic National Committee, deputy chairman, 1960–69
Political advisor to President John F. Kennedy, 1960–63
Political advisor to President Lyndon B. Johnson, 1963–68
Special assistant to President Jimmy Carter, 1978–81
Assistant vice president of communications, Howard University, 1981–87
Chairman of the board, Calmar Communications, 1981–97
Awards
National Urban League, Equal Opportunity Award, 1979National Newspaper Publishers Association, John B. Russwurm Award, 1980
Howard University, Communications Award, 1987
Democratic Party, Larry O'Brien Achievement Award, 1992
Honorary degrees
Wilberforce University, 1951Harvard, 1970
Howard University, 1979
Wesleyan University, 1980
External links
Additional reading
- Poinsett, Alex Walking With Presidents: Louis Martin and the Rise of Black Political Power. Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, Madison Books, Lanham, Maryland, 1997
- Height, DorothyDorothy HeightDorothy Irene Height was an American administrator, educator, and social activist. She was the president of the National Council of Negro Women for forty years, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994, and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2004.-Early life:Height was born in...
Open Wide The Freedom Gates, Public Affairs, New York, N.Y., Perseus Books Group, 2003