Calvin Rolark

Calvin W. Rolark (1926 or 1927 – October 23, 1994) was an American newspaper publisher and activist. Based in Washington, D.C., Rolark founded The Washington Informer and the United Black Fund.[1]

Early life and education

Calvin W. Rolark, Jr., was born in Texarkana, Texas, circa 1927.[1] He received a bachelor's of business administration from Prairie View College (now called Prairie View A&M University) and also attended Tennessee State University, Michigan State University, and Cornell University.[2] He lived in Memphis, Tennessee, in the 1940s,[3] where he worked as an editor of the Memphis World.[4]

Career

Rolark moved from Texas to Washington in either 1952[5] or 1959.[6] He founded The Washington Informer, a newspaper, in 1962. In 1969, he founded the United Black Fund, a foundation structured similarly to United Way that supported charitable activities for Black and Latino residents in the Washington, D.C., area.[7][2][1] Rolark was also affiliated with the United Planning Organization, a charity.[8]

Personal life

Rolark married Wilhelmina Rolark, a Washington politician, in 1963.[9][1][6] According to The Washington Post, Wilhelmina and Calvin were "one of the District's preeminent power couples".[4]

References
  1. Thomas-Lester, Avis (October 24, 1994). "D.C. Publisher, Activist Calvin W. Rolark Dies". The Washington Post.
  2. "Calvin Rolark, 67, civic leader in D.C." The Town Talk. Associated Press. October 25, 1994. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Jaffe & Sherwood 1994, p. 34.
  4. Levy, Claudia (October 25, 1994). "Crusading Publisher Calvin Rolark Dies". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved March 6, 2021.
  5. Jaffe & Sherwood 1994, p. 28.
  6. Thomas-Lester, Avis (October 30, 1994). "D.C. Says Goodbye to Activist Calvin Rolark". The Washington Post.
  7. Carson, Emmett Devon (1993). A Hand Up: Black Philanthropy and Self-Help in America. Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies. pp. 45–46. ISBN 1-880285-02-9. OCLC 26398540.
  8. "Calvin W. Rolark; Founded United Black Fund". Los Angeles Times. October 31, 1994. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. Davenport, Elizabeth K. (2008). "Rolark, Wilhelmina Jackson". In Gates, Henry Louis Jr.; Higginbotham, Evelyn Brooks (eds.). The African American National Biography. Oxford University Press. pp. 676–677. doi:10.1093/acref/9780195301731.013.37772. ISBN 978-0-19-516019-2. OCLC 156816848.

Sources


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