Robert G. Clark, Jr.
| Robert G. Clark Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Mississippi House of Representatives | |
|
In office 1968–2004 |
|
| Succeeded by | Bryant Clark |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 3, 1928 Ebenezer, Mississippi, United States |
| Alma mater | Michigan State University |
| Occupation | Teacher & Coach |
Robert G. Clark Jr. (born October 3, 1928) is an American politician from the state of Mississippi and long-term representative to the state house from Holmes County, Mississippi.
Robert G. Clark was born to a landowning family in Ebenezer, Holmes County, Mississippi; his great-grandfather had first bought land after the American Civil War and his father Robert continued to farm it. Clark received his undergraduate degree from Jackson State University and a Master's Degree in Administration and Educational Services from Michigan State University, nearly completing his PhD before entering politics. In 1960 some 800 independent black landowners held nearly half the land area of Holmes County, an unusual situation in the state.
While working as a teacher in Holmes County, Clark became involved in the civil rights movement, which had been working to register and educate voters since 1963. After passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, he agreed to be a candidate in 1967 of the Freedom Democratic Party. Since assignment of a federal registrar in the county in November 1965, the FDP registered thousands of black voters for the first time since the disfranchisement of their ancestors in 1890.
Clark was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives in 1967 by the black majority of the county. He was the first African American elected to the Mississippi State Legislature since the Reconstruction era. Until 1976 he was the only African-American representative in the state house, having been repeatedly returned to office. He was repeatedly re-elected, serving until 2003.
...
Wikipedia