Mervyn Dymally to be Honored
The California Friends of the African American Caucus is awarding one of its first Lifetime Achievement Awards to Mervyn M. Dymally, the state's first African American Lt. Governor, a former Assemblyman, State Senator and Congressman.
Dymally heads Charles Drew University's Urban Health Institute. He will be honored along with Congresswoman Diane Watson, the first African American woman elected to the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education; Assemblywoman Karen Bass, the first African American woman Assembly Speaker; and Yvonne Brathwaite-Burke, the first African American on the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors and the first African American woman from the West Coast in Congress.
In celebration of Black History Month, the California Friends of African American Caucus will honor Dymally and the other distinguished leaders at its first Annual Gala "Celebrating Our Leaders Then and Now" event at 6 p.m. on February 20th at the California African American Museum, 600 State Street, Los Angeles.
Dymally first served in the California Assembly from 1962 to 1966, and became the first black state senator in 1966, subsequently the first and only black lieutenant governor, and later a six-term U.S. congressman. He returned to the state Assembly in 2002, where he chaired the Health Committee until he retired in 2008. In 2001, Dymally was named a professor at CDU College of Medicine.
A longtime supporter of Charles Drew University, Dymally authored the legislation SB1026 that created the school's affiliation with the University of California Board of Regents. CDU students earn medical degrees through a shared program with UCLA and numerous research projects are conducted jointly with CDU's Colleges of Medicine, Science and Health and UCLA.
Dymally holds a bachelor's degree in education, a master's in government and a doctorate in human behavior and leadership.
According to its mission, the California Friends of the African American Caucus seeks to serve the public interest through the promotion of sound policies and practices that advance African American candidates into political office. The CFAAC assists candicates into public office by utilizing the talent and skills of African American professionals while also creating a firm economic base that supports the self-determination and survival of the African American community.
To learn more about the CFAAC and the opportunities it provides, please visit its website at www.aacaucuspac.com.