Roots, Growth, and Legacy: The African American Experience in Phoenix
On Feb. 11, 2025 in conjunction with the Arizona Commission on African American Affairs Legislative Conference, I went on the first ever “Roots” tour of Phoenix. We boarded the brand new, super cool Phoenix Metro bus in the parking lot of the First Institutional Baptist Church that is one of the earliest churches in Phoenix and hosts the just retired Pastor Warren Stewart Sr. who was recognized on the tour for the many changes he fostered in Phoenix including the official Martin Luther King Jr. Day. When we returned to the parking lot, we went via the Warren Stewart Parkway.
The riders and the bus.
Other churches noted were Pilgrim’s Rest now the biggest church, AME the oldest church that birthed a corporation devoted to property development and assistance to youth and seniors, and Rev. Brooks South Phoenix Baptist Church that housed the first HeadStart location in the U.S.
Many African Americans when moving to Phoenix say they cannot find the Black community. That’s because it’s not based in a geographical area but in networks. However Eastlake Park has been the center of the community for a long time. It was built in 1930 when parks and swimming pools were segregated. It had a lake then with a real live alligator in it. Phoenix was redlined as most cities were and Blacks could not buy or live north of McDowell until 1965. The light rail stops outlines this story with art and photos reflecting the origins and history of the neighborhood.
Our narrators were elders with lived experience i.e. Mr. Berry, Cloves Campbell III, and Cody Williams. The building on the corner of 12th and Jefferson where the New Times and Informant are used to be the Booker T. Washington segregated elementary school. At 14th and Washington there used to be a segregated Booker T. Washington hospital as well. Now the Afro Soul store and only Black bookstore in the state live there.
The Child Development Center began 50 years ago by City Council Member Calvin Goode still stands today with 358 students and 80 staff. Another stop on the tour was the Swindall House that was the only place where African Americans could stay as they came through town on musical tours or sports events. In 1964, Martin Luther King Jr. spoke here.
The tour could not pass Mrs. Whites restaurant, the first soul food restaurant in the valley and the best fried chicken, catfish, and greens, without comment. Gizette Knight painted the mural on the side of Mrs. Whites along with many other murals in downtown Phoenix illustrating African American history. White’s son runs Lo Lo’s Chicken and Waffles with two venues also on the tour.
From Eastlake neighborhood, the tour went to South Phoenix where Cody Williams outlined the birth and growth of a community.
Cody Williams
During WWII, African Americans were not allowed to fight in the military but were assigned to building in the Army Corps of Engineers. When they returned and went to the VA office to get their GI benefits to buy a house, they found that the GI benefits only extended to white GIs. But the VA said they would give them a loan if they would build the homes themselves. So they did. Progressive Home Builders was created and bought a parcel of land from 16th to 24th street, from Broadway to Rosier and built the first master planned community that still stands today. A builder, a seller, and an insurer joined forces to create this community that spanned all SES categories.
Another WWII veteran, Lincoln J. Ragsdale, was a member of the famed Tuskegee Airman who were in high demand because they had a much lower loss rate for the bombers they escorted. After he returned, he became a highly successful businessman. The Phoenix Sky Harbor executive terminal was named for Ragsdale in 1995. Arizona’s Notable Aviators display located post-security on the west end of level 4, tells the story of eight African Americans who have made a significant contribution to aviation in Arizona.
In South Phoenix you must drive on Broadway. Few know that the song “Funky Broadway” is not about Broadway in New York but about Broadway in Phoenix. It was written by Arlester Christian and recorded in Artco Records in Phoenix with his band “Dyke and the Blazers.” One of the members of the band was on the tour with us. The song did well reaching #17 on the Top Selling R&B Singles list and #65 in the Hot 100 list. In 1967 when Wilson Picket released it, it reached number 1 on the R&B list and 8 on the Hot 100 list.
The Percy L. Julian school honors Julian who died in 1975 as a research chemist and a pioneer in the chemical synthesis of medicinal drugs from plants. His work led to birth control pills. He was the first African American chemist inducted into the National Academy of Sciences and received over 130 patents in his lifetime.
We paused in the Elijah Muhammad Historical District where he had lived and where Louis Farrakhan now lives. His is the only two-story house originally built by the Progressive Builders for Louis Jordan, a popular musician. After integration, when the residents could move to other places in the valley, the community dissipated and began a downward spiral. This was unfortunately a negative result of integration.
The struggle for political representation was illustrated in the tour as well. Dr. Morrison Warren was the first Black city council person in Phoenix and served 2 years in 1968. Calvin Goode was the second and served 22 years from 1972 to 1994. Cody Williams was the third serving from 1994 – 2002. Various African American representatives have served from that time and today.
In 1966, the first Black Senator, Cloves Campbell, was elected in Arizona and of his many contributions one was to get South Mountain Community College built to serve residents. We have Campbell to thank for the expiration dates now required on food because the stores were sending outdated food to his area. His initiatives ensured fresh food for all of us. The Cloves Campbell Elementary School was built in 2004.
We also passed by the newly upgraded Jesse Owens Medical Center and Parkway. Some family members of Owens, who did our country and the world a great service in the Berlin Olympic games in 1936, live here. We passed by the Matthew Henson housing project owned by the city and lauded nationwide as exemplary. If you don’t know, Matthew Henson was an African American explorer who accompanied Richard Peary on 7 expeditions to the Arctic.
We stopped for a presentation from the 58-year-old OIC. They have numerous programs including hospitality, food safety and sanitation, types of cuisine, and three culinary classes in addition to GED preparation, office skills and ESL. They have served over 65,000 people and placed 48,000 in good jobs. 45% were welfare recipients prior to the training; 20% were ex-offenders, 52% were female, and 40% were Black. Unfortunately time was running short, and we had to skip Carver Cultural Center, a business on Roosevelt Row, and other potential stops.
The organizers.
These examples of Black excellence despite racism, segregation, violence, and discrimination illustrate a point that was made clearly during the OIC stop. Blacks in this country were never “given” anything. Even the 40 acres and a mule turned out to be illusory. The few families who did get deeds to land were divested of that land in a few years by white judges.
Black history shows us that the people kidnapped from Africa have been excelling since they arrived. This is precisely what those who are railing against Black History, the 1619 Project, and Critical Race Theory don’t want you to know. They don’t want you to know that African Americans have made great progress in spite of white opposition not because of white assistance. These white men crying and wailing about affirmative action and DEI are afraid of their own inability to compete on a level playing field. As more people of color and women enter the workforce, the arts, the sciences, and politics, they are often beating out white guys who got in based on favoritism, privilege, and cronyism, not merit. Those hollering the loudest are the most incompetent so they must be bullies to cover up their own inferiority.
Thank you!