Asa Philip Randolph (1889–1979) was an American labor leader, civil rights activist, and socialist, known for organizing Black workers and advocating for racial equality.
Born in Crescent City, Florida, he moved to New York City in 1911, becoming involved in socialist politics and labor organizing. In 1925, he founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP,) the first successful African American-led labor union, securing its first contract in 1937 after years of struggle.
Randolph played a key role in the Civil Rights Movement, pushing President Franklin D. Roosevelt to issue Executive Order 8802 (1941,) banning racial discrimination in defense industries, and later influencing Harry Truman to desegregate the U.S. military in 1948.
In 1963, he helped organize the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech. Randolph later proposed the Freedom Budget (1967) to address economic inequality.
Jervis Anderson’s A. Philip Randolph: A Biographical Portrait (1973) examines his life and activism, while Andrew E. Kersten’s A. Philip Randolph: A Life in the Vanguard (2007) explores his political philosophy and leadership.
More: Wikipedia • READ: Works by A. Philip Randolph
We must develop huge demonstrations, because the world is used to big dramatic affairs. They think in terms of hundreds of thousands and millions and billions… Billions of dollars are appropriated at the twinkling of an eye. Nothing little counts.
—A. Philip Randolph
Topics: Protest
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