Lloyd Davis papers

Lloyd Davis, advocate for urban development, equal opportunity in employment, and integration, was an active participant in the civil rights movement in the areas of human and intergroup relations. Davis was instrumental in the establishment of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Non-Violent Social Change and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Federal Holiday.

Davis was born in Chicago, Illinois, on May 4, 1928, to Ollie and Walice Davis and was up for adoption at birth. Davis never knew or met his father and spent much of his childhood in a foster home run by gospel singer, Mahalia Jackson. In 1946, Davis graduated from Tilden Technical High School and in 1950 enlisted in the United States Army. Davis served in the 6^th Armed Division at Fort Leonard, Missouri, as a Sergeant Major and was responsible for the administration of five companies, the supervision of a staff of non-commissioned officers, and served as the administrator directing the first program of racial integration at Fort Leonard. Davis served in this position until 1952, but continued his involvement by enrolling in the army reserves until 1956. In 1955, Davis received a bachelor of philosophy degree with majors in sociology and public speaking from DePaul University and went on to earn a masters degree in social and industrial relations from Loyola University of Chicago in 1958.

Davis served as the executive director of the Catholic Interracial Council of Chicago (1953-1960). The Council was an organization dedicated to eliminating racial prejudice and discrimination through the promotion of spiritual unity between people of different races based upon the Christian principals of justice and charity. As the executive director of the council, Davis worked with an advisory committee of 25 members from the Protestant, Catholic and Jewish communities. In this position Davis was responsible for the development and implementation of the program.

Davis was vice president (1959-1960) and then president (1961-1962) of the National Association of Intergroup Relations Officers (NAIRO) in Chicago. Newly established city human relations commissions throughout the United States requested that the American Council on Race Relations assist in the organization of a professional association to provide personnel working in the area of intergroup relations with training and networking opportunities through national and regional conferences, publications, and programs. Davis was primarily responsible for identifying training needs for field agencies, preparing training programs, and identifing support for the establishment of a national facility. NAIRO later became the National Association of Human Rights Workers (NAHRW).

Following his work with NAIRO, Davis became the Intergroup Relations Officer, Region 4, for the Federal Urban Renewal Administration’s Housing and Home Finance Agency (1960-1962) in Chicago. Davis’s primary function was to review intergroup aspects of and planning for urban renewal areas, including the impact of projects on living spaces. The Housing and Home Finance Agency was the precursor of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

In 1962, Davis moved to New Haven, Connecticut, to accept a position as assistant director of the Dixwell Renewal and Redevelopment Project (1962-1965), which was part the Redevelopment Agency of the City of New Haven. The project, located in a 256-acre area with serious blight and urban decay, was to relocate 928 families, demolish 382 residential and business structures, and to rehabilitate additional structures. The main objective of the program was to revitalize the community and encourage diversity in a neighborhood that had become over time an African American ghetto. Davis also worked as an assistant director of the Commission on Equal Opportunities (1965) of the City of New Haven for a short time following his work on the Dixwell Project. While in New Haven, Davis met Mary Palmer Kirk and they were married in 1965.

Davis moved his young family to Chevy Chase, Maryland, and started a career with various agencies of the United States federal government. Davis worked for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as Intergroup Relations Specialist in the Office of the Secretary (1965-1967). At HUD, Davis was credited with establishing the department’s first voluntary fair housing program and the first minority business enterprise program. He became the manager of the Model Urban Neighborhood Demonstration (MUND) program (1967-1970), which was an urban renew project funded by the United States Office of Economic Opportunity. Davis eventually rose to the position of senior adviser to the secretary of the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. Davis worked for the federal government throughout his lifetime, including as a coordinator for a number of task forces and committees focused on minority business, housing, affirmative action, and equal opportunity in employment.

Davis received a Federal IPA (Interagency Personnel Assignment) as the executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia (1979-1989). The King Center established in 1969 to serve as the official memorial to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and his commitment to the philosophy of social change through nonviolent means became a national and international institution. Davis worked closely with the Center’s president, Coretta Scott King and was responsible for day-to-day operations, promotion, program development and planning, and coordination of all special events. Davis continued to serve the King Center as a member of the board of directors following his resignation in 1989. In 1984, the legislation to establish the Martin Luther King, Jr. Federal Holiday Commission was passed by the United States Congress. Davis became the executive director of the commission (1984-1995) and coordinated efforts with citizens groups, city and state governments, and private organizations for the annual observance of the national holiday on the third Monday of each January in honor of Dr. King.

Davis was a long time member of the National Catholic Conference on Interracial Justice and the National Catholic Social Action Conference. He was also a freelance writer and an active speaker and lecturer throughout his life.

Davis died in Chevy Chase, Maryland on September 17, 2007.