Vernon Dobson

[1]Reverend Vernon Nathaniel Dobson (October 29, 1923 – January 26, 2013)[2] was a Baptist minister and civil rights activist in Baltimore, Maryland.

Early years

Vernon Dobson, the son of Rev. Spencer Dobson and Mrs. Estelle Cook Dobson,[2] was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland. He attended Booker T. Washington Middle School and graduated from Frederick Douglass Senior High School in 1941.[3] He attended Howard University and earned a Bachelor of Divinity degree.[2] He also studied at Harvard University. He had four brothers—Rev. Harold Dobson, Spencer G. Dobson, Jr., Irvin Dobson, and David C. Dobson—and one sister, Anne Dobson.[4] Rev. Vernon Dobson was married to his wife, Napoleon B. Dobson, for over 60 years. They have six children together.[5]

Ministry

In 1958 Dobson was named assistant pastor of Union Baptist Church in Baltimore. He became the pastor of Union Baptist Church in 1963, and served in that role for 39 years.[6] His predecessor, Rev. Harvey Johnson, was present at the founding of the Niagara Movement and of the NAACP.[7] Dobson was twice elected the president of the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance in Baltimore.[2]

Civil Rights activism

In 1963 Dobson was one of the many community activists who attempted to integrate Gwynn Oak Amusement Park.[8] In 1998, The Baltimore Sun published for the first time the names of all the people arrested during the protests, and Dobson's name was found on the list.[5] Their demonstration against the park was organized by the Congress of Racial Equality. Dobson was a member of the self-titled "Goon Squad," a group of Baltimore-based ministers and lawyers who advocated for civil rights. In 1967 they sought the reinstatement of Joseph C. Howard Sr., a prosecutor who had exposed Baltimore's unequal treatment of rape victims based on their race.[9]

In 1968 Dobson founded the Union Baptist Church Head Start Program.[10] He was one of the founders of Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development (BUILD) in 1977.[2][11]

Reverend Dobson worked with many of the legendary civil rights activists of Baltimore, including Walter P. Carter, Parren J. Mitchell, Rev. Marion Bascom[12] of Douglass Memorial Community Church, Sampson "Sam" Green, Rev. Wendell H. Phillips of Heritage United Church of Christ,[13] Chester Wickwire, and Samuel T. Daniels, Sr. of the Prince Hall Masons.[14][15]

Dobson's brother, Rev. Harold Dobson, was the first president of Baltimore's branch of Opportunities Industrialization Center, (OIC).[16] OIC was founded in Philadelphia by Rev. Leon Sullivan.

Dobson was the co-host of Look At It This Way, a community affairs television show on WBAL-TV in Baltimore. Co-hosts included Samuel Thornton Daniels, Sr. and Homer Favor.[17]

References
  1. Duncan, Ian. "Vernon Dobson, Civil Rights Leader". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  2. "The HistoryMakers". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  3. Brown, Mandela. "Douglass High School". Keep On Movin' Toward Freedom: The "Free" State's Struggle With Equality. Archived from the original on October 6, 2007. Retrieved November 12, 2012.
  4. "The Rev. Harold L. Dobson Sr., 74, pastor, champion for youth". Baltimore Sun. Articles.baltimoresun.com. January 10, 2000. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  5. Duncan, Ian. "Vernon Dobson, Civil Rights Leader". Baltimore Sun.
  6. Rasmussen, Frederick N. (January 19, 2008). "Whatever Happened to...? Rev. Vernon N. Dobson". Baltimore Sun. Articles.baltimoresun.com. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  7. Ackerman, Karen L. T (2004). The African American experience : personal and social activism in the 19th and 20th centuries. Bowie, Md: Heritage Books. ISBN 978-0-7884-2510-3.
  8. "Nation: March on Gwynn Oak Park". Time. July 12, 1963.
  9. "The Last Tycoon: Love Him or Hate Him, Peter Angelos Holds the Key to Downtown's Future". Baltimore City Paper. Citypaper.com. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  10. "Child Care". Unionbaptistbalt.org. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  11. "Victories & History: BUILD Baltimore". Buildiaf.org. Retrieved 2012-11-12.
  12. "The HistoryMakers". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  13. "Heritage United Church of Christ – Home". Heritageucc.org. Retrieved February 18, 2012.
  14. "Samuel T Daniels | Samuel T. Daniels, 84, leader in local civil rights struggle - Baltimore Sun". Articles.baltimoresun.com. 2005-01-07. Retrieved 2012-11-12.
  15. "Congressional Record, Volume 151 Issue 26 (Tuesday, March 8, 2005)". Gpo.gov. Retrieved 2012-11-12.
  16. Mills, Barbara (2002). Got My Mind Set on Freedom: Maryland's Story of Black & White Activism, 1663-2000. Bowie, Md: Heritage Books. ISBN 978-0-7884-2268-3.
  17. https://web.archive.org/web/20110713204313/http://marchfh.lifefiles.com/registryMain.php?PHPSESSID=f89&i_memorialid=1105129666
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