Doxey Alphonso Wilkerson | |
|---|---|
| Born | Doxey Alphonso Lewis Alexander Wilkerson 1905-04-24 Excelsior Springs, Missouri |
| Died | 1993-06-17 |
| Education | University of Kansas English B.A in 1926. University of Kansas M.A. in Education in 1927. |
| Alma mater | University of Kansas |
| Occupation | Educator |
| Organization | Communist Party USA |
Doxey Alphonso Wilkerson was an American educator, Marxist, civil rights activist, and Communist Party spokesman.[1][2] Wilkerson retired from the Communist Party in 1957, remaining active in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.[1]
Early life
Wilkerson was born in Excelsior Springs, Missouri to Mattie L. Wilkerson of Kentucky (1884–1955) and Methodist minister Alphonso Wilkerson. He attended Sumner High School in Kansas City, Kansas, and graduated in 1921.[3]
Career
He attended the University of Kansas, where he received a B.A in English in 1926 and a M.A. in education in 1927. He worked at Howard University as an associate professor of education from 1935 to 1943.[4] During his tenure at Howard University, he served as a Research Associate for the Roosevelt administration's Advisory Committee on Education and as an Education Specialist at the Office of Price Administration.[5] Wilkerson was the vice president of the American Federation of Teachers union from 1937 to 1941.[6]
In addition to teaching at Howard University, Wilkerson taught at Yeshiva University.[1] Wilkerson continued educational and civil rights works until his retirement in 1984.[1]
References
- Appiah, Anthony; Gates (Jr.), Henry Louis (2005). Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-517055-9.
- Boyd, Herb (2025-03-27). "Educator, activist and communist, Dr. Doxey A. Wilkerson". New York Amsterdam News. Retrieved 2026-04-22.
- Guzmán, Will (May 6, 2021). "Doxey Wilkerson (1905–1993)".
- Lambert, Bruce (1993-06-18). "Doxey Wilkerson Is Dead at 88; Educator and Advocate for Rights". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- Doxey Alphonso Wilkerson (1955-01-01). "The people versus segregated schools". stars.library.ucf.edu.
- "Doxey Wilkerson Archive". www.marxists.org.