Louis Lomax

Louis Emanuel Lomax (August 16, 1922 – July 30, 1970) was anAfrican-American journalist and author. He was also the first African-Americantelevision journalist.^[1]

Louis Lomax
Lomax in an undated photo
Born	Louis Emanuel Lomax (1922-08-16)August 16, 1922 Valdosta, Georgia, United States
Died	July 30, 1970(1970-07-30) (aged 47) Santa Rosa, New Mexico, United States
Occupation	Journalist,author
Alma mater	Paine College (1940–1942) American University (1945–1946)
Spouse	Betty Frank (m. 1958;div. 1961) Wanda Kay (m. 1961;div. 1967) Robinette Kirk (m. 1968⁠–⁠1970)

Early years

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Lomax was born inValdosta, Georgia.^[2] His parents were Emanuel C. Smith and Sarah Louise Lomax.^[1] Lomax attendedPaine College inAugusta, Georgia for two years, where he later claimed he was editor of the student newspaper and had graduated in 1942.^[3] He subsequently attendedAmerican University, claiming he was awarded anM.A. in 1944, as well as claiming he attendedHoward University andYale University, where he had indicated he earned aPh.D. in 1947.^[3] Despite reporting these credentials throughout his career, Lomax never completed a degree after his two years at Paine and his one year at American.^[3]

Lomax was married three times. His first wife was Betty Frank (1958–1961),^[4] his second was Wanda Kay (1961–1967),^[5] and his third was Robinette Kirk (1968–1970).^[6] He lived inBaldwin Harbor, New York.^[7]

Career

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Lomax began his journalism career at theAfro-American and theChicago Defender. These two newspapers focused on news that interested African-American readers.^[2] In 1958, he became the first African-American television journalist when he joinedWNTA-TV inNew York.^[8]^[9]

In 1959, Lomax told his colleagueMike Wallace about theNation of Islam. Lomax and Wallace produced a five-part documentary about the organization,The Hate That Hate Produced, which aired during the week of July 13, 1959. The program was the first time mostwhite people heard about the Nation and its leader,Elijah Muhammad, as well as its charismatic spokesman,Malcolm X.^[10]

Lomax later became afreelance writer, and his articles were published in publications such asHarper's,Life,Pageant,The Nation, andThe New Leader.^[11] His subjects included theCivil Rights Movement, the Nation of Islam, and theBlack Panther Party.^[12] In 1961, he was awarded theAnisfield-Wolf Book Award for his book,The Reluctant African.^[13]

From 1964 to 1968, Lomax hosted a semi-weekly television program onKTTV inLos Angeles.^[12] Lomax also spoke frequently on college campuses.^[2]

Lomax was a supporter of several civil rights organizations, including theCongress of Racial Equality (CORE), theStudent Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), and theSouthern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).^[14] In 1968, he signed the "Writers and Editors War Tax Protest" pledge, vowing to refuse tax payments in protest against U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.^[15]

TheFederal Bureau of Investigation maintained a file on Lomax containing over 150 pages.^[1] According to theLowndes County Historical Society and Museum, the file "consists of letters, telegraphs, FBI inter-office memos, newspaper clippings; copies of speeches and several sheets headed FBI Deleted Page Information Sheet."^[1]

Death

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Lomax had received a $15,000Esso Foundation grant and was writing a three-volume work about black history at the time of his death.^[1]^[16]^[17] On July 30, 1970, Lomax was returning to New York after completing alecture tour on the West Coast when he died in acar accident alongInterstate 40, 26 miles east ofSanta Rosa, New Mexico.^[16] Witnesses reported that he was traveling at a high speed on the double-laned highway and lost control of his rented Ford station wagon while attempting to pass another motorist.^[16] An investigation byNew Mexico State Police determined that Lomax was not wearing hisseatbelt and was ejected from his car after it overturned three times.^[16] Pronounced dead at the scene, he died due to head and internal injuries.^[18] His body was identified by his Hofstraclass ring.^[17]^[18]

Karl Evanzz, a staff writer forThe Washington Post, wrote in his 1992 bookThe Judas Factor: The Plot to Kill Malcolm X that Lomax was working on a documentary concerning the role played by the FBI in the death of Malcolm X, and claimed that Lomax's own death may have been connected to that project.^[19]

Selected works

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The Reluctant African (1960)
The Negro Revolt (1962)
When the Word Is Given: A Report on Elijah Muhammad, Malcolm X, and the Black Muslim World (1963)
Thailand: The War That Is, The War That Will Be (1967)
To Kill a Black Man: The Shocking Parallel in the Lives of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. (1968)