Jesse Hill Jr. (May 30, 1926 – December 17, 2012) was an African American
civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...
activist. He was active in the civic and business communities of the city for more than five decades. Hill was president and chief executive officer of the
Atlanta Life Insurance Company, from 1973 to 1992, and was the first African American to be elected president of a chamber of commerce in a major city. During Hill's presidency of the
Atlanta Life Insurance Company it became the largest black-owned life insurance company in the nation. He was a member of the board of directors for the
1996 Summer Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
in Atlanta.
Early life
Born in 1926 in
St. Louis, Missouri, to Nancy Dennis Martin and Jesse Hill, he grew up in a poor socio-economic background
and attended public schools in St. Louis. He graduated from
Lincoln University in Jefferson City with a bachelor's degree in mathematics and physics in 1947. He received his MBA from the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
in 1949.
Career
Hill's career in business began in 1949 when he moved to Atlanta, the center of African American entrepreneurship in the United States during the mid-twentieth century. He joined the Atlanta Life Insurance Company, one of the country's largest and most successful black-owned businesses, as assistant actuary; he was only the second African American actuary in the country. When he first moved to the city, Hill lived at the Butler Street YMCA in Atlanta, the headquarters of the city's black leadership during the period. He also volunteered for both the Urban League and the
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. ...
(NAACP).
During his first two decades with Atlanta Life, Hill became vice president and the chief actuary of the company. From 1973 to 1992, Jesse Hill Jr. was president and chief executive officer of Atlanta Life, becoming the company's third president and the first not to be a family member of
Alonzo Herndon
Alonzo Franklin Herndon (June 26, 1858 Walton County, Georgia – July 21, 1927) was an African-American entrepreneur and businessman in Atlanta, Georgia. Born into slavery, he became one of the first African American millionaires in the Unit ...
, Atlanta Life's founder. During Hill's tenure as chief executive, Atlanta Life experienced a significant period of growth. Total assets, revenues, profits, and shareholder value all surpassed previous levels. During the 1970s, Atlanta Life Insurance Co. was the largest privately held black business in the country, with 85 million dollars in assets.
Hill and Atlanta Life Insurance Company worked to increase African American access to affordable home-mortgage financing in Georgia, Alabama, Texas, and Florida.
Hill retired from Atlanta Life in 1995.
Black movement
In 1960, along with
Herman J. Russell
Herman Jerome Russell (December 23, 1930 – November 15, 2014) was an entrepreneur and influential figure in Atlanta, Georgia.
Business career
Russell served as the first African American member of the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce. He founded H. ...
, Jesse Hill Jr. founded the black newspaper ''
Atlanta Inquirer
''The Atlanta Inquirer'' was founded on July 31, 1960 by Jesse Hill, Herman J. Russell, and various students of the Atlanta Student Movement including Julian Bond, Charlayne Hunter-Gault, Lonnie King, and many other students in the Atlanta Univ ...
'', the second black newspaper in Atlanta.
During the 1950s and 1960s, Hill used his position of prominence in Atlanta's black business community to promote civil rights in Georgia and Alabama. In 1960 Hill, along with other young black leaders of the Atlanta Committee for Cooperative Action, including
Grace Towns Hamilton
Grace Towns Hamilton (February 10, 1907 – June 17, 1992) was an American politician who was the first African-American woman elected to the Georgia General Assembly. As executive director of the Atlanta Urban League from 1943 to 1960, Hamilt ...
and Whitney Young, produced a survey of Atlanta's black population entitled "A Second Look: The Negro Citizen in Atlanta." This document challenged a common belief in Atlanta's white community that the city was a shining beacon for racial harmony in the South, "the City Too Busy to Hate." As a member of the NAACP's education committee, Hill began recruiting black students to challenge segregation in Georgia's colleges and universities. He met with students
Hamilton Holmes and
Charlayne Hunter
Charlayne Hunter-Gault (born February 27, 1942) is an American civil rights activist, journalist and former foreign correspondent for National Public Radio, CNN, and the Public Broadcasting Service. Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes were the ...
to discuss plans to desegregate
Georgia State College (later
Georgia State University). At Holmes's request, however, the plans were modified and efforts were focused instead at the
University of Georgia
, mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things."
, establ ...
(UGA) in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
. Holmes and Hunter were ultimately the first two African American students admitted to UGA. Hill also organized successful voter registration drives in Atlanta. These efforts aided a campaign which eventually registered an estimated 50,000 new African American voters in Atlanta.
Hill's company was also involved in activities to help black communities across the South. During the 1950s and 1960s, Hill raised money from employees at Atlanta Life and donated the funds to
Martin Luther King Jr.'s efforts to promote civil rights. Hill also encouraged employees to donate their time in support of the civil rights movement. Atlanta Life's Montgomery office even employed Rosa Parks as a secretary during the Montgomery bus boycott, which she sparked.
In 1970, as
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...
's career was on hiatus following his lawsuit against the federal government for refusing to enroll in the Army, Jesse Hill was instrumental in organizing his come-back fight in Atlanta on 26 October 1976. He used his political connections and set up the company House of Sports with
Leroy Johnson and
Harry Pett
Harry may refer to:
TV shows
* ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin
* ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons
* ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...
to organize the fight. This fight unlocked Ali's career and led to the organization of the
Fight of the Century
Joe Frazier vs. Muhammad Ali, billed as ''The Fight Of The Century'' or simply ''The Fight'', was a heavyweight championship boxing match between WBA, WBC, and ''The Ring'' heavyweight champion Joe Frazier and former undisputed heavyweight champ ...
, underlining the influence power of Georgia's black politics.
With Herman Russell, he bred the black "social worker types" to reach for more black representatives in local politics. This new black political class was eventually criticized as the "new old guard" since voters felt those new leaders forgot about the black cause once they had been sworn into office.
In 1971, he became a partner of
Maynard Jackson
Maynard Holbrook Jackson Jr. (March 23, 1938 – June 23, 2003) was an American politician and attorney from Georgia. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected in 1973 at the age of 35 as the first black mayor of Atlanta, Georgia and of ...
's law firm knowing that the young politician would soon run for the seat of mayor of Atlanta. The white community of Atlanta asked Hill to run against Jackson, but he refused.
Hill ran political campaigns for Maynard Jackson, who became the first black mayor of Atlanta, as well as for congressman
Andrew Young who later became United Nations ambassador.
Governor
Jimmy Carter
James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
selected Hill to chair the State Board of Regents in 1973. Following Carter's election as President, he chose Hill to chair the
Minority Business Resource Center
Minority may refer to:
Politics
* Minority government, formed when a political party does not have a majority of overall seats in parliament
* Minority leader, in American politics, the floor leader of the second largest caucus in a legislative ...
, a group created by Congress.
Jesse Hill was the first black president of the
Atlanta Chamber of Commerce
The Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce is the chamber of commerce for the Atlanta metropolitan area. It was founded in 1859.
History
The first Atlanta Chamber of Commerce was founded in 1859, and was chiefly concerned with fighting railroad rate ...
and the first black member of the Board of Directors for
Rich's Department Store
Rich's was a family-owned business that was established in 1962, grew out of Jerry's Army Navy Surplus in Salem, Massachusetts, USA. The Rich family once operated 29 stores in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and Massachusetts, which offered disco ...
.
Education
Jesse Hill chaired the All-Citizens Registration Committee and helped to desegregate the
Atlanta Public School system. During the 1990s, he received an honorary doctor of laws degree from his alma mater, the University of Michigan. In 2001, in recognition of contributions to the city, Butler Street in Atlanta was renamed in Hill's honor.
Hill served on the boards of directors for eight major U.S. corporations, including
Knight Ridder
Knight Ridder was an American media company, specializing in newspaper and Internet publishing. Until it was bought by McClatchy on June 27, 2006, it was the second largest newspaper publisher in the United States, with 32 daily newspaper brand ...
,
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines, Inc., typically referred to as Delta, is one of the major airlines of the United States and a legacy carrier. One of the List of airlines by foundation date, world's oldest airlines in operation, Delta is headquartered in Atla ...
,
National Services Industries, and
SunTrust, and was a founding director of
MARTA
Marta may refer to:
People
* Marta (given name), a feminine given name
* Märta, a feminine given name
* Marta (surname)
:István Márta composer
* Marta (footballer) (born 1986), Brazilian professional footballer
Places
* Marta (river), an ...
, Atlanta's public transportation system. He has also served as the chairman of the board of directors for the Martin Luther King Jr. Center in Atlanta. He was involved in the development of wireless communications in Nigeria.
Personal life
Hill and his wife, Azira, have two children and several grandchildren.
He was a member of the
Omega Psi Phi
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African-American fraternity. The fraternity was founded on November 17, 1911, by three Howard University juniors Edgar Amos Love, Oscar James Cooper and Frank Coleman, and their faculty advi ...
fraternity.
In Atlanta, Butler street was renamed Jesse Hill Junior drive after him.
References
*
Further reading
* Alexa Benson Henderson, ''A Twentieth Century Black Enterprise: The Atlanta Life Insurance Company, 1905–1975'' (Ph.D. diss., Georgia State University, 1975).
* William Schemmel, "Profile: Jesse Hill Jr.," ''Atlanta Magazine'', January 1971.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Jesse
Articles imported from the New Georgia Encyclopedia
Ross School of Business alumni
1926 births
2012 deaths
Businesspeople from Atlanta
Businesspeople from St. Louis
African-American Christians
African-American activists
Activists for African-American civil rights
20th-century American businesspeople
Burials at South-View Cemetery
Lincoln University (Missouri) alumni
University of Michigan alumni
21st-century African-American people