Ewart Guinier facts for kids
Ewart Gladstone Guinier (born May 17, 1910 – died February 4, 1990) was an important Jamaican-American leader. He was a teacher, a lawyer, and a champion for workers' rights. He helped start the first Afro-American Studies department at Harvard University. This department is now called the Department of African and African-American Studies.
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Early Life and Learning
Ewart Guinier was born on May 17, 1910, in the Panama Canal Zone. His parents, Howard and Marie-Louise, were immigrants from Jamaica. They faced segregation, which meant they were kept separate from others. His father was a lawyer, and his mother was a bookkeeper.
In 1919, Ewart's father passed away. His mother then moved to Boston. Ewart joined her in 1925 when he was 15 years old. He went to Boston English High School.
College Years
After high school, Guinier went to Harvard College in 1929. He was one of only a few Black students there. He faced a lot of unfair treatment. For example, he could not live in the dorms. He also could not get financial help for school. He later said he got a letter saying his request for off-campus housing was approved. But he had never even asked for it!
White students often avoided him. But he made friends with older Black students like Robert Weaver. He joined the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity in 1930.
The Great Depression made it hard for Guinier to pay for college. He left Harvard after his second year. He moved to New York City to finish his degree for free. He took night classes at City College. During the day, he worked as an elevator operator at the New York Times building. He graduated with top honors in 1935. Then, he earned a master's degree from Columbia University's Teacher's College in 1939.
Later in his career, Guinier went back to school. He earned a law degree from New York University in 1959.
Working for Change
Helping Workers and Communities
In 1935, Ewart Guinier started working for the New York City Department of Welfare. He helped people get jobs. Two years later, he became an examiner there. He later became the Chief of the Civil Service Commission.
Guinier became involved with labor unions because of unfair treatment. He and other Black employees were only hired temporarily. They organized to demand permanent jobs. Guinier became the first chairman of a local union for city workers. This union later joined the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). Guinier led the union for the New York State region.
During World War II, Guinier served in the Army in the Pacific. When he returned to New York, he continued his union work. In 1946, his union became the United Public Workers (UPW). Guinier became a top leader in the UPW. One-third of the union's members were Black workers. The union fought against unfair practices by employers. Guinier wrote in 1951 that the U.S. government was the biggest employer that practiced Jim Crow discrimination.
In 1949, Guinier ran for Manhattan Borough President. He was the first Black person nominated for this job by any party. His campaign fought for workers' rights and against racism. He wanted fair employment and to end housing discrimination. He did not win the election, but he received many votes.
In the 1950s, a "red scare" happened in the U.S. People were afraid of communism. The UPW union was shut down in 1953 because of its links to the Communist Party.
Guinier kept working for communities. He helped start the Harlem Affairs Committee in 1953. He also helped create the Jamaica Coordinating Council in 1962. He was a member of the National Urban League. He led the Queens Urban League from 1962 to 1968.
Teaching at Harvard
In 1968, Guinier became an associate director at Columbia University. He worked on community programs. Soon after, Harvard University hired him as a full professor in 1969. This was the year Harvard started its Afro-American Studies department. Students had demanded better representation in academics. Guinier was chosen to be the department's first chairman. He led it until 1976.
Guinier said the department's goal was to "study the black experience." He wanted to learn about it from the people who lived it.
As a professor, Guinier taught about African Americans in the labor movement. He also taught about the Civil Rights Movement. He worked with Black student groups at Harvard. Students from other universities also wrote to him. They wanted his advice on starting Black Studies departments.
Guinier spoke out against institutional racism at Harvard. He believed Black voices should be included in American history. Sometimes, he disagreed with the university leaders and other professors. Some did not want a department focused on Black studies. In 1973, he told the Harvard Crimson that the university made his job very difficult.
One of his main opponents was Martin Kilson, a Black professor. They debated on TV in 1973. Kilson thought Black studies could be part of other departments. Guinier argued that this was not possible. He pointed out that major departments like English had no Black professors.
Guinier retired from Harvard in 1980. He became a Professor Emeritus, which means he kept his title. He then led the National Council of American–Soviet Friendship. He fully retired in 1985.
Family Life
Ewart Guinier married Doris Cumberbatch, a teacher, in 1933. They had one daughter named Chlotilde.
In 1945, Guinier married Eugenia "Genii" Paprin. She was a European Jewish teacher. They met when he was in the Army in Hawaii. Ewart and Genii had three daughters: Sary, Marie-Louise, and Lani. Their daughter, Lani Guinier, became a civil rights lawyer. She joined Harvard Law School as a professor in 1998. She said her father "taught me to speak in my own voice."
Ewart Guinier passed away on February 4, 1990, at age 79. He died from Alzheimer's disease.
Legacy
Ewart Guinier's important papers are kept at the Schomburg Center archives. This is part of the New York Public Library.
