Oscar Brown, Sr.

This article is about the lawyer, businesman and community activist. For his son, the singer, songwriter, playwright and poet, see Oscar Brown. For the baseball player, see Oscar Brown (baseball).

Oscar Brown, Sr.
Born	December 22, 1895(1895-12-22)[1] nr.Camden, Arkansas, USA
Died	October 1, 1990(1990-10-01) (aged 94)[2] Chicago, Illinois, USA
Nationality	American
Alma mater	Howard University, Howard University School of Law
Occupation	Businessman, lawyer
Known for	Civil rights activist, early proponent of black separatism, first African American on real estate planning committee for State of Illinois

Oscar Brown, Sr. was a prominent Chicago businessman, lawyer and community activist. He is also the father of singer Oscar Brown, Jr..

Biography

Oscar Cicero Brown was born near Camden, Arkansas on December 22, 1895. In 1916, he graduated from Howard University in Washington, DC with degrees in commerce and law. He served in the military during World War I.^[1][3][4]

In 1929, he founded the law firm of Brown, Brown, Cyrus and Green in Chicago. Gradually, he turned his attention away from law and started the Oscar C. Brown Real Estate Corp. and spent a good part of his life on issues relating to real estate, either as a developer, an activist or as an administrator.^[3]

In the mid-1930s, disillusioned with the progress of racial integration, Brown seriously considered the concept of separatism. He led a group of African American intellectuals to initiate The National Movement for the Establishment of a 49th State (there were only 48 United States at the time).^[5]

In 1944, Brown served as president of the Chicago branch of the NAACP. A major focus of his efforts there were to protest housing segregation and to improve police enforcement in predominantly African American neighborhoods. He became the first African American appointed to the real estate planning committee of the Illinois Department of Registration and Education in 1964.^[3]

He died at the University of Chicago Hospital on October 1, 1990 after a lengthy illness.^[2][3]

Personal

He is the father of entertainer Oscar Brown, Jr.. He is also the brother of William H. Brown, who was a prominent attorney based in Chicago.^[6]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Social Security Death Index [database on-line"]. United States: The Generations Network. http://www.ancestry.com. Retrieved October 1, 2010. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "Cook County (IL) Death Index [database on-line"]. United States: The Generations Network. http://www.ancestry.com. Retrieved October 1, 2010. 
3. ^ ^{a b c d} "Rites in Chicago for Oscar Brown Sr., 94" Jet (Chicago, Illinois: Johnson Publishing Company, Inc.) 78 (27) October 22, 1990 
4. ^ "World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line"]. United States: The Generations Network. http://www.ancestry.com. Retrieved October 1, 2010. 
5. ^ Llorens, David (September 1968) Johnson, John H. ed. "Black separatism in perspective:movement reflects failure of integration" Ebony (Chicago, Illinois: Johnson Publishing Company, Inc.) 23 (11): 88–90,92–95 
6. ^ "Prominent Chicago Attorney Dies of Heart Attack" Jet (Chicago, Illinois: Johnson Publishing Company, Inc.) 37 (2) October 16, 1969 

Persondata
Name	Brown Sr., Oscar
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	December 22, 1895
Place of birth	nr.Camden, Arkansas, USA
Date of death	October 1, 1990
Place of death	Chicago, Illinois, USA