Juneteenth 2024 marks the federal holiday celebrating the emancipation of slaves in the US. The actual Juneteenth celebration was first commemorated in Texas in 1865 where on that date, in the aftermath of the Civil War, slaves were declared free under the terms of the 1862 Emancipation Proclamation. The word did not make it to Texas until almost three years later.
When considering the fight for Civil Rights, many notable citi zens have contributed to the quest for equality and fair treatme nt. One such not able Rockdale native is Mr. Lee Alcorn, of Grand Prairie. Lee Alcorn is currently 86 years old and will be 87 on July 23 but continues to contribute not only to the Rockdale community but also to his current home city.
Born in Ledbetter, Mr. Alcorn came to Rockdale at the age of 3 or 4. He attended the Aycock Schools and graduated in 1956. Being in the segregated school, Aycock, Mr. Alcorn indicates that as students, the teachers gave them a good education; but the students could not have everything they needed. They received second hand equipment and books, or dated materials to study with.
When thinking about his background, Mr. Alcorn states that his teachers made a big difference in his life; however, some did not think much of him because of his family situation. He indicates that he was an honor student; but was not given his honors due to the fact that he did not have a present father or mother.
After graduating from high-school, Alcorn hitchhiked to Dallas with two friends and decided to take the Air Force exam. He was the only one who passed the test and went on to serve four years as a Cryptologist in the Air Force. He says that after High School, in other places, some of the fellow enlisted men had Physics or other math and science classes that he did not have. In order to learn these subjects, Mr. Alcorn studied on his own and bought books to fill in his education.
Due to his military job, he held a top-secret clearance and spent his time in the Pacific Islands and Albuquerque, NM. After the Air Force, Mr. Alcorn went to UT Galveston Department of Radiology and received a degree in radiology technology. He later received a radiology related degree from Mountain View College in Dallas. He served as a radiology technician for over 25 years and retired as the Radiology Manager from the VA Hospital in Dallas. At the time of his retirement, he oversaw the entire radiology department.
After retiring, Mr. Alcorn continued to pursue the rights for equality in the Grand Prairie area. He was the initial founder and President of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). It took him over one year to gather the 100 people necessary as well as the funding to begin the NAACP charter for a new chapter. He remained over the NAACP until 2000 when he started a civil rights organization called the Coalition for the Advancement of Civil Rights (CACR). He also served one term on the Grand Prairie City Council and worked to remove the confederate flag from the high school in the Grand Prairie ISD. His commitment to be the best that he can be to family, friends and community is second nature to Lee Alcorn and is reflected in all that he does. He has served his community in many capacities to improve its political representation and economic plight.
In all, Mr. Alcorn is proud of the work that he has done both in Rockdale and Grand Prairie and he would like for students and citizens to know that it takes working together to build strong communities. He has been a board member of the Dallas American Civil Liberties Union and an Election Precinct Judge. He also led Grand Prairie citizens to successfully change the city's at-large voting districts to single member districts due to unresponsive representation. Mr. Alcorn worked with the developers of the new American Airlines Center and the City of Dallas, to implement the Fair Share Agreement with the Arena Group to ensure that ethnic minorities and women owned businesses received at least 25% of the dollar value of contracts awarded for the center. As a result of his work, Lee Alcorn has been inducted into the National Voting Rights Museum in Selma, Alabama. He is the recipient of numerous awards for his dedication and untiring service, among those being the Dallas and Grand Prairie NAACP Branch Thalheimer Award, Black State of Texas Community Service Award, Texas Torchbearer Award, Grand Prairie Chamber Dedication and Service Award, Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce, Significant Volunteer Contribution Willow Award, Texas Peace Officers Community Advocacy Award, Kappa Alpha Psi Metroplex Black lmage and Distinguished Citizen Awards.
The work he hopes to continue is his contribution to Rockdale. He wants to leave his legacy to his family and the students he and his classmates support through the 1956 Aycock scholarship fund.
A s one of t he t hree remaining 1956 Aycock graduates, Mr. Alcorn, Dr. Fannie Lovelady and Sarah Terry continue to contribute to Rockdale by funding a class of 1956 Scholarship. Each year, they try to meet for lunch before the scholarship presentation at the Rockdale High School. This year, Mr. Alcorn was the lone alumnus on-hand to present two $500 scholarships for the 2024 graduates on behalf of himself and his classmates. Mr. Alcorn was recognized and honored for his contributions by a Mayoral Proclamation in the City of Grand Prairie on his 84th birthday in 2021.
He enjoys a wonderful marriage to Rhonda Alcorn and is the father of five children.
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