Today, every day, I remember and honor three women, all sadly gone now. They embodied the spirit and fought for the reality of Dr. King's dream ... and, I'm proud to say, had the greatest impact on me in my professional career.
My mother and her mother taught me how to be a decent, honorable, hard working, loving, righteous and color-blind human being. They showed me through their lives the kind of woman I wanted to become.
Then three extraordinary women of color took my hand and helped me along the way to turn my dreams into reality.
It's one thing for an enlightened white girl to talk the talk. These three amazing women taught me how to walk the walk. Of freedom. Feminism. Civil Rights. Human rights. Personal and professional achievement.
These three women mentored, guided and inspired me to strive for equality and excellence, to change impediments into challenges, to reach my highest potential, to succeed with dignity and pride.
I owe them so much. We all do. I honor them today, at the beginning of the future they dedicated their lives to help shape.
Mal Johnson
"If anyone cries or starts to feel sorry for me, I'll come back and kick their ass." Mal Johnson, last words
Mal Johnson was my first boss. She was the real deal. A woman in a man's world. More, a Black woman in a White man's world. And she succeeded beyond all expectations. Smart. Capable. Hard-working. Genuine. Modest, sometimes almost self-effacing. Yet at her core, courageous, pragmatic, spicy and self-confident.
I worked as Mal's intern (she insisted on calling me her assistant) at WKBS TV in Philly while I was still an Annenberg student. It was such a small station, we did everything. Reporting, research, commercials, voice-overs, writing, editing, directing. Yes, that's where I directed Romper Room.
Mal was my teacher, my mentor, my role model. I was a young white girl but I never thought of Mal as a "black woman." Because she made no distinctions, fit no stereotype, drew no lines. She simply set high standards and expected us both to meet them. Together.
Mal Johnson was the kind of consummate professional who's a force of nature. A leader and a trailblazer. It stuns me to realize I knew her when that singular part of her life was just beginning. I was there when she first met Cox Broadcasting CEO Leonard Reinsch. An old-time, rich, Establishment white guy. Who saw Mal's potential--not her gender or her color--and offered her a chance to realize it.
She and I spent hours discussing whether she should become the first female reporter for Cox Radio and Television News. I learned how to weigh pros and cons, evaluate possibilities and percentages, look inside myself and reach for the truth. When Mal took the job, she became an important part of journalistic and black history.
Mal stayed with Cox Broadcasting for 27 years. As White House correspondent, Mal covered five presidents, then Capitol Hill, the State Department and various Federal agencies. In 1980, she was promoted to Senior Washington Correspondent and assigned additional duties as National Director of Community Affairs.
She was a Founder of the National Association of Black Journalists and the National Broadcast Association for Community Affairs. She was inducted in the Journalists Hall of Fame in 2000. A TV documentary of her life is in the Archives of the History Makers of America.
And she was a founder of my professional career. I say that not out of hubris, but humility. I owe Mal Johnson my beginning. She led the way. And kicked ass to make sure everybody followed.
C. DeLores Tucker
"When free elections end, slavery begins." Andrew Jackson
"A public servant who serves the public in the purest sense, with dedication, loyalty, high quality of work and a great measure of personal kindness is the most valuable asset any government can have." C. DeLores Tucker
C. DeLores Tucker wrote those words about public service in a letter to me when I left state government to pursue the next steps of my own future. I'm proud of that letter, especially because it came from a personal as well as national role model of public service and dedication to ideals.
I served with C. DeLores Tucker in the 70's under the Governor of PA. Through CDT, as all called her, I was privileged to play a small role in major events that literally changed history. I worked with CDT and Coretta King, Jesse Jackson, Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter, Fritz Mondale, Gloria Steinem, Maya Angelou ... the list goes on and on. And includes Joe Biden too.
All courageous trail blazers in the civil rights crusade, the women's movement, in creating a voice for the disenfranchised in politics and government service. They welcomed me into their world, accepted and trusted me with their goals and their real selves, because CDT trusted me with hers. It was the ride of a lifetime, especially for a young white girl.
I traveled all over the country with them, to rallies and marches, meetings and soup kitchens, church suppers and coffee klatches, legislative caucuses and political campaigns. And CDT always stood out, with a radiant glow.
Statuesque and striking, a peerless fashion plate with nary a wrinkle in clothes or brow -- but with a work ethic that had us jumping, often from dawn to dark. She made incredible demands on us for excellence and perfection – but because she set those same standards for herself, we could do no less. And we respected her more for it.
C. DeLores Tucker would enter a room and command immediate attention. Backs would straighten. Eyes would brighten. Smiles--or sparks of determination--would appear in anticipation of a battle of wits with a superb negotiator.
Arguably CDT’s greatest strength was as an orator. If you never had the rare experience of hearing her raise the roof, you missed one of the all-time greats. Think female Dr. King. I kid you not.
The daughter of a preacher, C. DeLores Tucker more than did her Daddy proud. The Voice. The Presence. The Zeal. The Passion. And the Power. She could make rafters ring and goose bumps rise and people leap to their feet as if drawn by golden strings. CDT plucked those strings with unique mastery.
She spoke to people for people, from her heart and soul, with the authority of Right and Might on her side. The C in her name was for Cynthia, but it also stood for Charisma. And Conscience.
C. DeLores Tucker was a woman from humble beginnings who rose to positions of power and influence through her own hard work and determination. She never forgot where she came from. And she never lost sight of where she was going.
She's gone to Glory now. Which is where she wanted to be in the end. I know she's with Coretta and Martin Luther King, and all the others who fought so hard to see tomorrow's dream become a reality.
Coretta Scott King
"Women, if the soul of the nation is to be saved, I believe that you must become its soul." Coretta Scott King
Throughout history, great women have stood by their men. The extraordinary ones stood by themselves when their men were taken. Coretta Scott King was one of those women.
She was married to a living legend who, following assassination became a legendary hero. She lived with that hero's feet of clay but stayed quietly loyal. Because history is greater than any man. And Coretta King knew it.
Three months after we lost C. DeLores Tucker, a close and loyal friend to Coretta Scott King, the extraordinary Mrs. King was gone too. And I lost the last of my seminal role models.
I was so privileged to have met and worked with Coretta Scott King. She was soft-spoken, charming and disarmingly smart. She was kind and generous but she didn't suffer fools lightly. She had a heart of gold, a soul of platinum and a backbone of steel. She had enormous inner strength and outer grace.
If I had to choose one word to describe Coretta Scott King, the word would be Dignity.
She was married to a public icon around whom the hopes and aspirations of an entire race were centered. He had flaws, some of which caused her pain. After his death, she faced challenges and rumors. Hero worship and whispers. I'm sure she had many private moments of hurt, anger, frustration, grief.
But publicly and steadfastly Coretta Scott King focused on her late husband's vision, his dreams, his love for her, their children and all people's children. She carried on. That's the essence of dignity.
And she became a legend herself, fighting tirelessly not only for civil rights, but for women and other minorities, for children, society and morality. Her voice became not only a reflection of her husband's mission, but a clarion call for her own.
I learned one of life's most important lessons from Mrs. King, DeLores Tucker and Mal Johnson: it's not the color of your skin that counts -- it's the brightness of your spirit.
And, I would add, the lasting legacy of your dreams.
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Max Rivlin-Nadler
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Comments
Rated
loving honoured
thank you
It isn't the Last Stand of the Three Hundred or the Charge of the Light Brigade that changes the world; it's the simple acts of ordinary people who refuse to bend the knee that in the end changes everything.
I'm happy for the incredible experiences you shared, and how it so obviously formed your firm, creative voice. Thanks Sally!
:) Ann
Boanerges1, thank you. Working with all of them was humbling indeed. And I learned SO much.
Silkstone, I'm glad to have introduced you to Mal Johnson and CDT!
Brian, how lovely indeed. Thank You.
O,Kath, my greatest wish is to continue to honor their legacies, and I've tried to pass as much of their teachings on as I can.
Tom, yes, the whole point was about my personal experience, but considering the women I honor today (and all days), you can bet I've learned very well how seminal was the contribution, and the legacy, of Rosa Parks. I wish I could have known her, but I knew her sisters, I am one of her sisters, and I try to live up to the wisdom passed on from them to all of us.
Gary, thank you, and what a wonderful way to synthesize my tribute to these... "extraordinary women who moved culture and society in a positive direction."
Especially for all of us who learned something today about woman number 1 and 2.
Mal Johnson sounds like a lady I would have loved to have a cup of coffee with. Thanks for introducing her to us.
Deservedly rated.
Well done.
Thanks for sharing.
(rated)
Greg
Ann, you really made my day! My mother would say I was a pearl because of all the irritation I created to become who I am. It was gems like her and these three incredible women who made the process easier.
Dolores, thank you. Humor definitely from Mal. Kindness from Mrs. King. Remarkable from C. DeLores. And all of the above from all three.
Roger, so glad to be introducing people to Mal and CDT. They're worth it, don't you think?
wskra, you got it right. Hanging out with Mal was the best. Oh, the DC stories!
Greg, you dickens, you. Thank you, as always, for your attagirl. It's not a good post until you say so. ;)
Of course you know how lucky you are---that is the reason you are inspired to write such a beautiful loving tribute to these remarkable women.
Thank you so much for sharing these personal memories. They are priceless.
Thumbed with dreams feeling attainable.
When someone says that they are colorblind or don't see my race, in a nutshell it makes it as if my race is the problem that should not be seen, rather than racism being the actual problem. My race is not a problem and I have no issue with your noticing that I am a black woman. My racial identity is an important part of who I am. For you to not see it ignores and important facet of my being. Yet prejudging me based solely or in part on my race is problematic. Nuance yes, but a very meaningful nuance to some of us.
So this idea of raising people to be colorblind concerns me, since color (or race) is not the problem. It's the racism that I could do without.
Hope you don't mind this slight digression.
Monte
Mary, you know about sisters, tell Judy I don't pander, k? Thank you for your praise, we're both living lives filled with stories. And I sure do love yours.
Maddie, you're right, the memories are priceless. And at a time in history like this, all the more so.
Michael, don't scrap anything, we'd miss too much great writing!
Cat, you nailed it, as usual. Short and sweet and totally correct.
Lauren, I love this sentence and the promise behind it: "Thumbed with dreams feeling attainable." That's how I feel too.
Lea, I have a feeling you can out-story me any day. But swap we shall, the sooner the better.
D, UK, thank you for making me feel even more special for having know them, and you.
Teendoc, either you misunderstood or perhaps I didn't explain well enough (more likely). I agree with your modern interpretation that colorblind throws the issue of racism into the mix, as if color has a separate and bad connotation.
When I was growing up, the idea behind colorblind was simply that all races are to be respected, and that no race makes a person better.. or worse. That people matter, all facets of them, who they are, what they bring to the world. It was a concept meant to counter racism, not foster it. To acknowledge that racism is real and evil. And to refuse to be part of that. Remember too, at the time Black Pride was not yet a universal concept among any race.
Maybe it's time to lose the word colorblind. And if it offended you, I sincerely apologize. God knows that was the Last thing my post was meant to do.
Again, sorry for the derailment.
But for an older generation, there's a different take. I learned from those who fought that battle for all of us that in their view nobody can honestly say I don't see race and mean it. What we must now focus on for the future is this: there are a multitude of races, cultures and religions, all of which represent Americans as we are, none of which should factor in to how we elect our leaders or choose our friends.
(And oddly enough, my uncle worked on Romper Room out here in LA.)
Anni, goosebumps is a very high compliment indeed. I got them just writing this.
Connie, I do know how lucky I've been, especially in historic times like these.
A wonderful homage to three remarkable ladies.
Rated.