Willie Burton
| Willie Dennis Burton, Jr.
(African-American historian, educator, and politician) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| Born | August 6, 1944 Shreveport, Louisiana | ||
| Died | January 23, 2020 (aged 75) Shreveport, Louisiana Resting place: | ||
| Political Party | Democrat | ||
| Spouse | Sylvia L. Bradford Burton Two children: | ||
| Religion | Baptist | ||
Willie Dennis Burton, Jr. (August 6, 1944 – January 23, 2020),[1] was an African-American historian and politician from his native Shreveport, Louisiana. During the 1960s, he participated in civil rights marches for voter registration and school desegregation.[2]
The son of Willie Burton, I, and the former Bertha Williams, Burton graduated in 1962 from the historically black Booker T. Washington High School in Shreveport. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from historically black Southern University in the capital city of Baton Rouge and a Master of Arts degree from North Carolina Central University, another historically black institution located in Durham, North Carolina.[3]
He was a history professor and chairman of the Social Sciences Department at the historically black Southern University Shreveport (acronym:SUSLA), at which he spent forty-four years on the faculty. His scholarship focused on African Americans and the civil rights movement. One of his works is On the Black Side of Shreveport.[3] A Democrat, he was elected to the District 3 seat on the Caddo Parish School Board in 1990, when he defeated two fellow Democrats, 56 percent to their combined 44 percent.[4] He won his last term with 72 percent of the ballots cast in 2010[5] but soon thereafter left the board in 2011.[3]
Burton died at the age of seventy-five. Visitation was held at the Mt. Canaan Baptist Church in Shreveport. To accommodate the mourners, services were held on February 1, 2020, at the Booker T. Washington High School Gymnasium. Burial followed at Lincoln Cemetery in Shreveport. Burton was survived by his wife, Sylvia Burton, son Willie, III, daughter, Sandra Denise Burton, and three grandchildren.[3]
Burton's memorabilia and research material is housed in the Willie Burton Museum in the remodeled Leonard C. Barnes Administration Building at SUSLA.[2]
References
- ↑ Willie Burton (Dennis). Mylife.com. Retrieved on February 3, 2020.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Curtis Heyen (January 23, 2020). Iconic historian, ex-SUSLA professor Willie Burton dies: He came to Southern University (acronym: SUSLA) when the Shreveport campus was in its infancy, then spent 44 years helping shape its future. KTSA-TV (CBS). Retrieved on February 5, 2020.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Willie Burton obituary. The Shreveport Times (January 27, 2020). Retrieved on February 4, 2020.
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns (Caddo Parish), October 6, 1990.
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, Election Returns (Caddo Parish), October 2, 2010.
