We West Virginians can boast of having more than our share of great African-American leaders who have made significant impacts on American history.
Bill Nunn, Jr.
Nunn was a three-year captain of the West Virginia State basketball team, including the undefeated 1948 squad, before he gave up a chance to play for the Harlem Globetrotters to embark on a career path that would reveal the promise of HBCU football players to the National Football League.
Carter G. Woodson
Of all the African Americans of distinction from our state, perhaps the one who will end up having the greatest impact on American culture and history is Carter G. Woodson
Earl Lloyd
When it comes to the world of professional basketball, Earl Lloyd was a trailblazer in the truest sense of the word.
Judge Damon J. Keith
Crusader for Justice: His eyes have witnessed firsthand some of the most historic moments of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States, and his words and actions have protected the constitutional rights of untold thousands of Americans.
Katherine Johnson
West Virginia State graduate Katherine Johnson has received many accolades for her pioneering work at NASA, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015. Johnson's remarkable story is also told in the book and major motion picture "Hidden Figures," released nationwide in January 2016.
Leon Sullivan
The Sullivan Principles: Leon Sullivan, an African-American Baptist minister, author and civil rights leader, was born in Charleston, West Virginia, in 1922.
Lou Myers
Star of stage, television and film, West Virginia native Lou Myers was born in Cabin Creek on Sept. 26, 1935. After graduating from West Virginia State University in 1962 with a degree in sociology, he pursued his dream of acting.
Walter F. Johnson III
'It's the Giving that is Important.' Retired United States Army Brigadier General Walter F. Johnson III has always been a leader.