E. Frederic Morrow Becomes First African-American Presidential Aide
E. Frederic Morrow moved to the White House on this day to become an aide to President Dwight D. Eisenhower. In that position he became the first African-American to serve as a presidential advisor.
Morrow’s autobiography, Black Man in the White House, vividly describes his difficulties in trying to persuade the administration to take a strong stand on civil rights. Morrow, for example, tried unsuccessfully to get President Eisenhower to issue a statement regarding the brutal murder of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old African-American, in Mississippi on August 28, 1955.
Morrow did finally convince Eisenhower to meet with civil rights leaders in the White House, a meeting that occurred on June 23, 1958, but was not regarded as a success.
Read Morrow’s autobiography: E. Frederic Morrow, Black Man in the White House (1963)
Learn more about Morrow at blackpast.org
Learn more about President Eisenhower: Stephen E. Ambrose, Eisenhower (1983)
Visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture here