The grandson of a slave, he worked for Black newspapers before he joined the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1931. He was an active leader of the civil rights movement to improve the status of the Black population. He held high executive office in the NAACP from 1955 to 1977, but came under increasing criticism from Black militants towards the end of his life, for his commitment to non‐violence.