Mervyn Malcolm Dymally (May 12, 1926 – October 7, 2012) was an American politician from

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. He served in the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The A ...

(1963–66) and the

California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature, the lower house being the California State Assembly. The State Senate convenes, along with the State Assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, Cal ...

(1967–75) as the 41st Lieutenant Governor of California (1975–79) and in the

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

(1981–93). Dymally returned to politics a decade later to serve in the

(2003–08). Dymally was the first

Trinidadian Trinidadians and Tobagonians, colloquially known as Trinis or Trinbagonians, are the people who are identified with the country of Trinidad and Tobago. The country is home to people of many different national, ethnic and religious origins. As a ...

to serve California as State Senator and Lieutenant Governor. He was one of the first persons of

Dougla Dougla people (plural ''Douglas'') are Caribbean people who are of mixed African and Indian descent. The word ''Dougla'' (also Dugla or Dogla) is used throughout the Dutch and English-speaking Caribbean. Definition The word ''Dougla'' origin ...

(mixed African and Indian) origin to serve in the U.S. Congress. In 1974, he and George L. Brown became among the first

African Americans African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

elected to statewide state office since

Oscar Dunn Oscar James Dunn (1822 – November 22, 1871) served as a Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana during the era of Reconstruction and was the first African American to act as governor of a U.S. state. In 1868, Dunn became the first elected black ...

did so during

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

. Edward W. Brooke, III (R-MA) had been elected Attorney General of Massachusetts in 1962 and 1964, and was elected to the United States Senate from Massachusetts in 1966 and 1972. Dymally was the second African-American to hold statewide office in California, following

Wilson Riles Wilson Camanza Riles (June 27, 1917 – April 1, 1999) was an American educator and politician from California. He was the first African American to be elected to statewide office in California. Career Riles graduated from Northern Arizona Univ ...

who served as

California Superintendent of Public Instruction The state superintendent of public instruction (SPI) of California is the nonpartisan (originally partisan) elected executive officer of the California Department of Education. The SPI directs all functions of the Department of Education, execut ...

starting in 1971.

Early life and education

Born in

Cedros Cedros, Portuguese and Spanish for ''cedars'', may refer to the following places: Honduras * Cedros, Francisco Morazán, a municipality in the Department of Francisco Morazán Mexico *Cedros Island, an island in the State of Baja California Portu ...

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

, Dymally first received his secondary education at

Naparima College Naparima College (informally known as Naps) is a public secondary school for boys in Trinidad and Tobago. Located in San Fernando, the school was founded in 1894 but received official recognition in 1900. It was established by Dr. Kenneth J. G ...

before transferring to Saint Benedict's College, both in

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

. He is of

(mixed

African African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...

and

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

) descent. He moved to the United States to study journalism at Lincoln University in

Jefferson City, Missouri Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the capital of Missouri, United States. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 census, ranking as the 15th most populous city in the state. It is also the county seat of Cole County and the princip ...

. After a semester there, he moved to the greater

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

area to attend

Chapman University Chapman University is a private research university in Orange, California. It encompasses ten schools and colleges, including Fowler School of Engineering, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, Fowler School of Law, and Schmid College of Scie ...

, and completed a Bachelor of Arts in education at

California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) is a public university in Los Angeles, California. It is part of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system. Cal State LA offers 142 bachelor's degrees, 122 master's degrees, ...

in 1954. Dymally became a member of

Kappa Alpha Psi Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. Since the fraternity's founding on January 5, 1911 at Indiana University Bloomington, the fraternity has never restricted membership on the basis of color, creed ...

fraternity in 1949. Dymally became a U.S. citizen in 1957. In 1969, while serving in the

California State Legislature The California State Legislature is a bicameral state legislature consisting of a lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members; and an upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members. Both houses of the Legisla ...

, he earned a master's degree in government from

California State University, Sacramento California State University, Sacramento (CSUS, Sacramento State, or informally Sac State) is a public university in Sacramento, California. Founded in 1947 as Sacramento State College, it is the eleventh oldest school in the 23-campus California ...

. Dymally earned his doctorate in human behavior from United States International University in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

(now Alliant International University).

Career

In the tightly contested race for Lt. Governor in 1978, Dymally's bid for re-election was derailed when Michael Franchetti, an aide to State Senator

George Deukmejian Courken George Deukmejian Jr. (; June 6, 1928 – May 8, 2018) was an American politician who served as the 35th governor of California from 1983 to 1991. Of Armenian descent, Deukmejian was a member of the Republican Party and he also serve ...

, floated a false rumor that Dymally was about to be

indicted An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felonies, the most serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use the felonies concept often use that of ...

. The story, coming days before the election, harmed the Dymally campaign, and Dymally lost to Republican Mike Curb. Franchetti later said that the source of the rumor was a ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' reporter, who called the Justice Department trying to confirm its authenticity. Franchetti could not substantiate the rumor but included it in a report. The report was passed to Curb's office with the rumor part erased, after which it moved to broadcaster Bill Stout who announced it as fact on Los Angeles radio station

KNX (AM) KNX (1070 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Los Angeles, California. It airs an all-news radio format and is owned by Audacy, Inc. KNX is one of the oldest stations in the United States, having received its first broadcasting license, ...

and its CBS affiliates. (Stout's wife worked for Curb.) Then-Attorney General Younger filed a letter of reprimand in Franchetti's personnel records, accusing him of a breach of responsibility.Stewart, Jocelyn Y. (February 22, 2007
"Obituaries: Michael Franchetti, 64; financial advisor to former Gov. Deukmejian"
''Los Angeles Times''. Retrieved January 12, 2009. Dymally was an old friend of

Peoples Temple The Peoples Temple of the Disciples of Christ, originally Peoples Temple Full Gospel Church and commonly shortened to Peoples Temple, was an American new religious organization which existed between 1954 and 1978. Founded in Indianapolis, Ind ...

founder

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American preacher, political activist and mass murderer. He led the Peoples Temple, a new religious movement, between 1955 and 1978. In what he called "revolutionary suicide ...

.Flynn, Daniel (2011-11-17
The Original Kool-Aid Drinkers
''

The American Conservative ''The American Conservative'' (''TAC'') is a magazine published by the American Ideas Institute which was founded in 2002. Originally published twice a month, it was reduced to monthly publication in August 2009, and since February 2013, it has ...

''. Accessed September 5, 2022. When Jones decided to move his congregation to

Jonestown The Peoples Temple Agricultural Project, better known by its informal name "Jonestown", was a remote settlement in Guyana established by the Peoples Temple, a U.S.–based cult under the leadership of Jim Jones. Jonestown became internationall ...

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

, Dymally "wrote the Guyanese prime minister to reassure him that Jones was an upstanding citizen." The Jonestown compound would be the site of the mass suicide of over 900 people on November 18, 1978. In 1983 he joined with 7 other Congressional Representatives to sponsor a resolution to impeach Ronald Reagan over his sudden and unexpected invasion of Grenada. In the 1990s, Dymally served as a paid lobbyist for the country of

Mauritania Mauritania (; ar, موريتانيا, ', french: Mauritanie; Berber: ''Agawej'' or ''Cengit''; Pulaar: ''Moritani''; Wolof: ''Gànnaar''; Soninke:), officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania ( ar, الجمهورية الإسلامية ...

, attempting to present the country as engaged in abolishing every remnant of

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

. Dymally came out of retirement and returned to the

in 2002 when Assemblyman Carl Washington was

term limit A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms an officeholder may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potenti ...

ed. He served for six years and then tried to return to the State Senate in 2008. However, he was defeated in the Democratic primary for State Senate election by Rod Wright. He died in Los Angeles and is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City. Mervyn M Dymally Senior High School at 88th street and San Pedro in

South Central Los Angeles South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of downtown. It is "defined on Los Angeles city maps as a ...

, part of the Los Angeles Unified School District is named in his honor.

References

External links

record
from the ''Washington Post'' *
Join California Mervyn M. Dymally
* , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Dymally, Mervyn M. 1926 births 2012 deaths 20th-century American politicians 21st-century American politicians African-American members of the United States House of Representatives Asian-American members of the United States House of Representatives African-American state legislators in California California politicians of Indian descent American politicians of Indian descent American memoirists Democratic Party California state senators California State University, Sacramento alumni Trinidad and Tobago people of Indian descent Lieutenant Governors of California Lincoln University (Missouri) alumni Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly Members of the United States Congress of Indian descent Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California People from Siparia region Trinidad and Tobago emigrants to the United States United States International University alumni 20th-century African-American politicians 21st-century African-American politicians People from Compton, California Burials at Holy Cross Cemetery, Culver City

Early life and education

Career

See also

References

External links