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Edward Rudolph Bradley Jr. (June 22, 1941 – November 9, 2006) was an American broadcast journalist and news anchor. He was best known for his reporting on ''
60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique st ...
'' and
CBS News CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio service CBS. CBS News television programs include the '' CBS Evening News'', '' CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs '' CBS News Sunday Morning'', '' 60 Minutes'', and '' 4 ...
. Bradley began his journalism career as a radio news reporter in Philadelphia, where his first major story was covering the 1964 Philadelphia race riot. He moved to
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
in 1967 and worked for WCBS as a radio news reporter. Four years later, Bradley moved to
Paris, France Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
, where he covered the
Paris Peace Accords The Paris Peace Accords, () officially titled the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Viet Nam (''Hiệp định về chấm dứt chiến tranh, lập lại hòa bình ở Việt Nam''), was a peace treaty signed on January 27, 1 ...
as a stringer for CBS News. In 1972, he transferred to Vietnam and covered the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
and
Cambodian Civil War The Cambodian Civil War ( km, សង្គ្រាមស៊ីវិលកម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ) was a civil war in Cambodia fought between the forces of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (known as the Khmer Rouge, supported by North Vi ...
, coverage for which he won Alfred I. duPont and George Polk awards. Bradley moved to Washington, D.C. following the wars and covered Jimmy Carter's first presidential campaign. He became the first African American
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...
correspondent for CBS News, holding the position from 19761978. During this time, Bradley also anchored the Sunday night broadcast of the ''
CBS Evening News The ''CBS Evening News'' is the flagship evening television news program of CBS News, the news division of the CBS television network in the United States. The ''CBS Evening News'' is a daily evening broadcast featuring news reports, feature st ...
'', a position he held until 1981. In 1981, Bradley joined ''60 Minutes''. While reporting for CBS News and ''60 Minutes'', he reported on approximately 500 stories and won numerous Peabody and
Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
awards for his work covering a wide range of topics, including the rescue of Vietnamese refugees,
segregation in the United States In the United States, racial segregation is the systematic separation of facilities and services such as Housing in the United States, housing, Healthcare in the United States, healthcare, Education in the United States, education, Employment in ...
, the AIDS epidemic in Africa, and
sexual abuse within the Catholic Church There have been many cases of sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests, nuns, Popes and other members of religious life. In the 20th and 21st centuries, the cases have involved many allegations, investigations, trials, convictions, ac ...
. Bradley died in 2006 of
leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...
.


Early life and education

Bradley was born on June 22, 1941, in
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
. Bradley's parents divorced when he was young and he was raised in a poor household by his mother, Gladys Gaston Bradley, and spent summers with his father in
Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
. Bradley attended high school at Mount Saint Charles Academy in
Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...
and Saint Thomas More Catholic Boys School in Philadelphia, graduating from the latter in 1959. He received a
Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University o ...
degree in education from
Cheyney State College Cheyney University of Pennsylvania is a public historically black university in Cheyney, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1837, it is the oldest university out of all historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the United States. It is a mem ...
in 1964. While at Cheyney State, Bradley played offensive tackle for the school's football team.


Career


19641971: Early career

Bradley began his career as a math teacher in Philadelphia in 1964. While working as a teacher, he also worked at WDAS as
disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobil ...
. While working for WDAS, Bradley covered the 1964 Philadelphia race riot and interviewed Martin Luther King Jr. Those experiences led him to pursue a career as a journalist, with Bradley later saying, "I knew that God put me on this earth to be on the radio." Bradley moved to
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
in 1967 to further his career as a reporter, working for WCBS. While at WCBS, Bradley found he was primarily assigned stories most relevant to African American listeners. After confronting his editor about those assignments, Bradley received assignments on a broader array of topics. Bradley left WCBS in 1971.


19711981: Vietnam, White House and ''CBS Evening News''

Bradley moved to
Paris, France Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
in 1971. He was fluent in French, and while there was hired by
CBS News CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio service CBS. CBS News television programs include the '' CBS Evening News'', '' CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs '' CBS News Sunday Morning'', '' 60 Minutes'', and '' 4 ...
as a stringer. He transferred to
Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...
in 1972 to report on the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...
and
Cambodian Civil War The Cambodian Civil War ( km, សង្គ្រាមស៊ីវិលកម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ) was a civil war in Cambodia fought between the forces of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (known as the Khmer Rouge, supported by North Vi ...
, as well as reporting on the
Paris Peace Accords The Paris Peace Accords, () officially titled the Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Viet Nam (''Hiệp định về chấm dứt chiến tranh, lập lại hòa bình ở Việt Nam''), was a peace treaty signed on January 27, 1 ...
. While reporting in
Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand ...
, Bradley was wounded by a mortar round. After recovering, he returned to Asia to continue reporting on both wars. Bradley was one of the last American journalists to be evacuated in 1975 during the
Fall of Saigon The Fall of Saigon, also known as the Liberation of Saigon by North Vietnamese or Liberation of the South by the Vietnamese government, and known as Black April by anti-communist overseas Vietnamese was the capture of Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon, t ...
. He was awarded Alfred I. duPont and George Polk awards for his coverage in Vietnam and Cambodia. In 1976, Bradley was assigned to cover Jimmy Carter's 1976 presidential campaign, as well the Republican and Democratic national conventions, covering the latter events until 1996. Following Carter's victory, Bradley became the network's first African American White House correspondent, a position he held from 19761978. Bradley disliked the position at the White House and being tied to the movements of the president. Also in 1976, Bradley began
anchoring An anchor is a device, normally made of metal , used to secure a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the craft from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ''ancora'', which itself comes from the Greek � ...
the Sunday night broadcasts of the ''
CBS Evening News The ''CBS Evening News'' is the flagship evening television news program of CBS News, the news division of the CBS television network in the United States. The ''CBS Evening News'' is a daily evening broadcast featuring news reports, feature st ...
'', holding that position until 1981. In 1978, he became one of the principal correspondents for the documentary program ''
CBS Reports ''CBS Reports'' is the umbrella title used for documentaries by CBS News which aired starting in 1959 through the 1990s. The series sometimes aired as a wheel series rotating with ''60 Minutes'' (or other similar CBS News series), as a series of it ...
'', reporting for the program until 1981. Bradley won the first of 20
News and Documentary Emmy Awards The News & Documentary Emmy Awards, or News & Documentary Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the National Academy of Television Arts and Scien ...
in his career for his 1979 documentary "The Boat People", reporting on Vietnamese refugees escaping the country via boat or ship, at one point wading into the water to assist in the rescue of the refugees. "The Boat People" also earned Bradley an Edward Murrow Award, a duPont citation, and a commendation from the
British Academy of Film and Television Arts British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
. The same year, another Bradley documentary, "Blacks in America: With All Deliberate Speed?", aired. The documentary detailed
segregation in the United States In the United States, racial segregation is the systematic separation of facilities and services such as Housing in the United States, housing, Healthcare in the United States, healthcare, Education in the United States, education, Employment in ...
and how the treatment of African Americans in the U.S. had changed since '' Brown v. Board of Education''. The 2-hour program also won duPont and Emmy awards.


19812006: ''60 Minutes''

Following Dan Rather's move to the ''CBS Evening News'', Bradley joined the
news magazine A news magazine is a typed, printed, and published magazine, radio or television program, usually published weekly, consisting of articles about current events. News magazines generally discuss stories, in greater depth than do newspapers or n ...
program ''60 Minutes''. According to producer Don Hewitt, Bradley's "calm, cool, and collected" reporting style was the right fit for the program. In his first decade on ''60 Minutes'', Bradley reported numerous high-profile stories in the 1980s on a variety of topics, including with
Lena Horne Lena Mary Calhoun Horne (June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010) was an American dancer, actress, singer, and civil rights activist. Horne's career spanned more than seventy years, appearing in film, television, and theatre. Horne joined the chorus of th ...
, convicted criminal Jack Henry Abbott, and on
schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social w ...
. He won Emmys for all three stories. In 1986, Bradley interviewed singer
Liza Minnelli Liza May Minnelli ( ; born March 12, 1946) is an American actress, singer, dancer, and choreographer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli is among a rare group of performers awarded an Emmy, Grammy ...
and expressed interest in wearing an earring. Minnelli gave him a diamond stud after the interview, which Bradley began wearing on air. He was the first male reporter to consistently wear an earring on air, "challenging the notions of journalistic propriety," according to '' Robb Report'' writer Kristopher Fraser. Bradley repeatedly turned down offers to anchor the ''CBS Evening News'' in the late 1980s, preferring instead to continue working on ''60 Minutes''. Bradley's reporting in the 1990s included such topics as Chinese forced labor camps, Russian military installations, and the effects of
nuclear weapons testing Nuclear weapons tests are experiments carried out to determine nuclear weapons' effectiveness, yield, and explosive capability. Testing nuclear weapons offers practical information about how the weapons function, how detonations are affected by ...
near Semey, Kazakhstan. He also profiled numerous people, including
Thomas Quasthoff Thomas Quasthoff (born 9 November 1959) is a German bass-baritone. Quasthoff has a range of musical interest from Bach cantatas, to lieder, and solo jazz improvisations. Born with severe birth defects caused by thalidomide, Quasthoff is , and has ...
,
Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, ...
, and
Mike Tyson Michael Gerard Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005. Nicknamed "Iron Mike" and "Kid Dynamite" in his early career, and later known as "The Baddest Man on the Planet", Tyson is con ...
. He won a series of awards for his reporting that decade, including Emmys, duPont citations, and a
Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...
. Bradley also anchored CBS's ''Street Stories'' from 19921993. In 1995, he was awarded the grand prize Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award for the ''CBS Reports'' documentary "In the Killing Fields of America". Throughout the 2000s until his death in 2006, Bradley continued to cover a variety of topics, including the AIDS epidemic in Africa,
sexual abuse within the Catholic Church There have been many cases of sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests, nuns, Popes and other members of religious life. In the 20th and 21st centuries, the cases have involved many allegations, investigations, trials, convictions, ac ...
, and the 1955 murder of
Emmett Till Emmett Louis Till (July 25, 1941August 28, 1955) was a 14-year-old African Americans, African American boy who was abducted, tortured, and Lynching in the United States, lynched in Mississippi in 1955, after being accused of offending a whi ...
. He also interviewed such people as
Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
and
Neil Armstrong Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aeronautical engineer who became the first person to walk on the Moon in 1969. He was also a naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor. ...
, and conducted the only television interview with
Timothy McVeigh Timothy James McVeigh (April 23, 1968 – June 11, 2001) was an American domestic terrorist responsible for the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people, 19 of whom were children, injured more than 680 others, and destroyed one-third ...
. Bradley reported approximately 500 stories for ''60 Minutes'' over his 25-year tenure with the program, more than any other correspondent over the same time period. In 2005, Bradley was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the
National Association of Black Journalists The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) is an organization of African-American journalists, students, and media professionals. Founded in 1975 in Washington, D.C., by 44 journalists, the NABJ's stated purpose is to provide quality p ...
.


Illness and death

Bradley was diagnosed with lymphocytic leukemia in his later years, keeping the illness secret from many, including colleagues such as
Mike Wallace Myron Leon Wallace (May 9, 1918 – April 7, 2012) was an American journalist, game show host, actor, and media personality. He interviewed a wide range of prominent newsmakers during his seven-decade career. He was one of the original correspo ...
. His health rapidly declined after contracting an infection, but Bradley continued to work, saying that he preferred to die "with (his) boots on." Bradley filed 20 stories in his final year with ''60 minutes'', conducting his last interviews with members of the Duke University lacrosse team accused of rape weeks before his death. Bradley died at Mount Sinai Hospital in
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
on November 9, 2006, at the age of 65.


Funeral and memorial

More than 2,000 people attended Bradley's funeral service at
Riverside Church Riverside Church is an interdenominational church in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, on the block bounded by Riverside Drive, Claremont Avenue, 120th Street and 122nd Street near Columbia University's Mornin ...
in New York. Among the attendees were the Reverends Al Sharpton and
Jesse Jackson Jesse Louis Jackson (né Burns; born October 8, 1941) is an American political activist, Baptist minister, and politician. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988 and served as a shadow U.S. senato ...
, musicians
Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (born December 25, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, and businessman. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffe ...
and
Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, teacher, and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has promoted classical and jazz music, often to young audiences. Marsalis has won nine Grammy Award ...
, journalists Dan Rather,
Walter Cronkite Walter Leland Cronkite Jr. (November 4, 1916 – July 17, 2009) was an American broadcast journalist who served as anchorman for the ''CBS Evening News'' for 19 years (1962–1981). During the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the mo ...
, and Charlayne Hunter-Gault, and former U.S. president
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...
. In April 2007, Bradley was honored with a jazz funeral procession at the
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (commonly called Jazz Fest or Jazzfest) is an annual celebration of local music and culture held at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans, Louisiana. Jazz Fest attracts thousands of visitors to New ...
.


Legacy


Impact of journalism

Morley Safer described the themes of Bradley's reporting as "justice, justice served and justice denied." Bradley's reporting on the AIDS epidemic in Africa has been credited with convincing drug companies to donate and discount drugs to treat the disease. His reporting on psychiatric hospitals in the U.S. prompted federal investigations into the largest chains, and his reporting on the Duke lacrosse team has been credited with ensuring the accused had a fair trial. Bradley was seen as an inspiration for Black Americans, with columnist Clarence Page writing: "Mr. Bradley challenged the system. He worked hard and prepared himself. He opened himself to the world and dared the world to turn him away. He wanted to be a lot, and he succeeded. Thanks to him, the rest of us know that we can too."


Style

Bradley became well-known for his style on air, both for his demeanor and his fashion sense. Often described as "cool" by his colleagues, Bradley's unflappability led to his position on ''60 Minutes''. His interview style has drawn comparisons to
Columbo ''Columbo'' () is an American crime drama television series starring Peter Falk as Lieutenant Columbo, a homicide detective with the Los Angeles Police Department. After two pilot episodes in 1968 and 1971, the show originally aired on NBC fr ...
and been described as "disarming", "confident", and "streetwise." He was noted for his ability to get interview subjects to divulge information on camera with his body language. Bradley was also known for bucking fashion trends for newscasters. His iconic style included an array of patterns, a short beard, and an earring worn in his left ear. Bradley began wearing the earring during the 1980s during a time when it was uncommon for men in America to do so. Mike Wallace said after Bradley's death that he thought Bradley's decision to wear an earring inspired others to do the same.


Philanthropy and honors

In 1994, Bradley and the Radio Television News Directors Association Foundation started a scholarship program in his name for journalists of color. It awards $10,000 annually. In 2007, he was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame by the
Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia is a state-chartered, federally recognized, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, devoted to collecting information about and promoting cultural work related to broadcasting and communications in Philadelphia, Pe ...
. Bradley was named one of the "100 Outstanding American Journalists in the last 100 years" in 2012 by faculty at
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...
. In 2015, the Pennsylvania State Legislature renamed City Avenue in Philadelphia "Ed Bradley Way." A mural of Bradley was completed in the city in 2018, and a historical marker was installed in 2021.


Personal life

Bradley was fond of jazz and hosted ''
Jazz at Lincoln Center Jazz at Lincoln Center is part of Lincoln Center in New York City. The organization was founded in 1987 and opened at Time Warner Center in October 2004. Wynton Marsalis is the artistic director and the leader of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orches ...
'' on
National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...
. He performed with
Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (born December 25, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, and businessman. He is best known for his music, which often portrays an "island escapism" lifestyle. Together with his Coral Reefer Band, Buffe ...
and the
Neville Brothers The Neville Brothers were an American R&B/soul/funk group, formed in 1976 in New Orleans, Louisiana. History The group notion started in 1976, when the four brothers of the Neville family, Art (1937–2019), Charles (1938–2018), Aaron (b. 1 ...
and was referred to as "the fifth Neville brother" by the group. He was an outdoorsman, and often hiked or skied in his free time. Bradley married three times, to Diane Jefferson,
Priscilla Coolidge Priscilla Coolidge (1941 – October 2, 2014) was an American recording artist and sister of singer Rita Coolidge. Life and career Coolidge was born in Lafayette, Tennessee. Between 1969 and 1979, she was married to Booker T. Jones, who produce ...
, and Patricia Blanchet. He split his time between homes in New York and Colorado.


Recognition


See also

*
History of African Americans in Philadelphia This article documents the history of African-Americans or Black Philadelphians in Philadelphia. Recent 2010 estimates by the U.S. Census Bureau put the total number of people living in Philadelphia who identify as Black or African-American a ...
* List of Cheyney University of Pennsylvania alumni * List of people from Philadelphia * The Interviews: An Oral History of Television *
National Association of Black Journalists Hall of Fame The National Association of Black Journalists Hall of Fame is a hall of fame project of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) honoring African-American and other journalists. The original Hall of Fame list was established on April ...


References


External links

* * *
Jazz at Lincoln Center Radio remembers Ed Bradley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bradley, Edward 1941 births 2006 deaths American television reporters and correspondents American war correspondents of the Vietnam War African-American journalists African-American television personalities American male journalists American radio journalists CBS News people 60 Minutes correspondents Journalists from Pennsylvania Television personalities from Philadelphia Cheyney University of Pennsylvania alumni Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Deaths from lymphocytic leukemia People from East Hampton (town), New York 20th-century American journalists 21st-century American journalists Mount Saint Charles Academy alumni 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people