Alpha Phi Alpha: A Legacy of Greatness, the Demands of Transcendence

Appendix C. Prominent Alpha Phi Alpha Members

361 Appendix C Prominent Alpha Phi Alpha Members Editors’ Note: We made every effort to use reliable sources to build and crosscheck this list of prominent Alpha Phi Alpha members. In addition to consulting Alpha’s national website, we reviewed written biographies of men alleged to be Alpha members to confirm their membership. The final list was reviewed by several Alpha brothers who are knowledgeable about Alpha’s history. John Hurst Adams: president of Congress of Black Churches Cannonball Adderley: jazz saxophonist Orison Rudolph Aggrey: ambassador to Republic of Gambia, Republic of Senegal, and Romania Na’im Akbar: psychologist Gerald Albright: American jazz saxophonist Dave Albritton: 1936 Olympian, high jump; 1980 U.S. Track and Field Hall of Fame inductee Ron Allen: news correspondent for NBC and ABC Vinton R. Anderson: ninety-second bishop of African Methodist Episcopal Church; president of World Council of Churches William T. Andrews: New York State assemblyman Dennis Archer: justice of Michigan Supreme Court; mayor of Detroit, Michigan ; first black president of American Bar Association Nate Archibald: NBA player; Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Richard Arrington Jr.: first black mayor of Birmingham, Alabama Don Barksdale: 1948 Olympian and first African American to play with U.S. Olympic basketball team; first African American consensus All-American college basketball player; NBA player; first African American to play in NBA All-Star game Thomas V. Barnes: mayor of Gary, Indiana Marion Barry: mayor of Washington, D.C.; first chairman of Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) Bobby Bell: NFL player; Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Darryl M. Bell: actor, best known for A Different World Walt Bellamy: 1960 Olympian; NBA player; Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Robert Benham: chief justice of Supreme Court of Georgia 362 Appendix C Ted Berry: first black mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio; board member of NAACP Jesse Binga: founder of Binga State Bank in Chicago Michael Alexander Blake: deputy associate director, Offices of Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement, Obama White House Daniel T. Blue Jr.: speaker of North Carolina House of Representatives; 2002 Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Benny Boom: director of music videos Herman Branson: president of Central State University and Lincoln University; codiscoverer of alpha-helix; sickle cell physicist James P. Brawley: president of Clark College Junior Bridgeman: NBA player (twelve years), number retired by Milwaukee Bucks Edward W. Brooke III: senator from Massachusetts; attorney general of Massachusetts ; chairman emeritus of World Policy Council; 1967 Spingarn Medal and 2004 Presidential Medal of Freedom and Congressional Gold Medal recipient Anthony Browder: author and renowned Egyptologist Byron Brown: senator from New York; first black mayor of Buffalo Henry Brown: vice president for marketing affairs and development with Anheuser-Busch Joe Brown: host of syndicated TV show Judge Joe Brown; presided over James Earl Ray’s last appeal of his conviction for assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. John O. Brown: basketball coach for Dillard University Lee P. Brown: director of National Drug Control Policy; first African American mayor of Houston, Texas Robert J. Brown: special assistant for minority affairs Tony Brown: commentator of syndicated TV show Tony Brown’s Journal; founding dean of Howard University’s School of Communication W. Melvin Brown: CEO of American Development Corporation Wesley A. Brown: navy lieutenant commander; first black graduate of U.S. Naval Academy Willie Brown: first black mayor of San Francisco; speaker of California State Assembly Quinn Buckner: 1976 Olympian; NBA player (ten seasons) Calvin Burnett: president of Coppin State University Thomas J. Burrell: CEO of Burrell Advertising Roland Burris: senator from Illinois (appointed to fill seat vacated by President Barack Obama); first black attorney general of Illinois Prominent Alpha Phi Alpha Members 363 Jerry Butler: songwriter; composer; former lead singer of the Impressions James A. Butts: 1976 Olympian, track and field Raymond Cannon: first editor of The Sphinx; twelfth general president of Alpha Phi Alpha Archibald Carey Jr.: diplomat Walter Carrington: ambassador to Republic of Senegal and Federal Republic of Nigeria Robert L. Carter: played a pivotal role in Sweatt v. Painter, Brown v. Board of Education, and NAACP v. Alabama; U.S. District Court judge; 2004 Spingarn Medal recipient Roscoe Cartwright: general, U.S. Army Julius Chambers: attorney in Supreme Court case Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education; third director-counsel of NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund; president of North Carolina Central University Wes Chandler: NFL player, four-time Pro Bowler, two-time college AllAmerican James Cheek: president of...