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Benjamin Hooks elected to succeed Roy Wilkins as executive director of NAACP

Benjamin Lawson Hooks (January 31, 1925 – April 15, 2010) was an American civil rights leader and government official.

Benjamin Lawson Hooks (January 31, 1925 – April 15, 2010) was an American civil rights leader and government official. A Baptist minister and practicing attorney, he served as executive director of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) from 1977 to 1992.

Throughout his career, Hooks was a vocal campaigner for civil rights in the United States, and served from July 5, 1972 – July 25, 1977 as the first African American member of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Historical Significance

Benjamin Lawson Hooks (January 31, 1925 – April 15, 2010) was an American civil rights leader and government official.

Events Before

  1. TV game show "Wheel of Fortune" debuts on NBC

    Wheel of Fortune (often known simply as Wheel) is an American television game show created by Merv Griffin. The show has aired continuously since January 6, 1975.

  2. Actress Zsa Zsa Gabor (57) weds toy inventor Jack Ryan (48) (div. 1976)

    Actress Zsa Zsa Gabor (57) weds toy inventor Jack Ryan (48) (div. 1976)

  3. Margaret Thatcher defeats Edward Heath for leadership of the British Conservative Party

    Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990.

  4. Colour television transmission begins in Australia

    Television broadcasting in Australia began officially on 16 September 1956, with the opening of TCN-9, quickly followed by national and commercial stations in Sydney and Melbourne, all these being in…

  5. "Mirror," a Russian film directed by Andrei Tarkovsky and starring Margarita Terekhova and Ignat Daniltsev, is released

    Mirror is a 1975 Soviet avant-garde drama film directed by Andrei Tarkovsky and written by Tarkovsky and Aleksandr Misharin.

Events After

  1. Erroll Garner dies

    Erroll Garner dies

  2. Belgium undergoes a major municipal reorganization and reapportions 2,359 communities into 596

    Belgium undergoes a major municipal reorganization and reapportions 2,359 communities into 596

  3. Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs incorporate Apple Computer, Inc.

    Apple Inc., originally Apple Computer, Inc., is an American multinational corporation that creates and markets consumer electronics and attendant computer software, and is a digital distributor of…

  4. American film director Martin Scorsese (34) divorces Julia Cameron (28) after 1 year of marriage

    Megalopolis is a 2024 American epic science fiction drama film written, directed, and produced by Francis Ford Coppola.

  5. Miniseries "Roots" premieres on ABC

    Miniseries "Roots" premieres on ABC

More from the 1970s

death

Erroll Garner dies

Erroll Garner dies

birth

Chai Jing is born

Chai Jing, Chinese journalist and environmental activist, known for chinese journalist and environmental activist, was born on 1976-01-01. Chai Jing is a Chinese journalist.

Charles "Chub" Feeney becomes the President of Major League Baseball's National League

Charles Stoneham "Chub" Feeney (August 31, 1921 – January 10, 1994) was an Irish-American front office executive in Major League Baseball.

Cigarette advertisements are banned from broadcast media in the US

Cigarette advertisements are banned from broadcast media in the US

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on November 6, 1976?
Benjamin Lawson Hooks (January 31, 1925 – April 15, 2010) was an American civil rights leader and government official. A Baptist minister and practicing attorney, he served as executive director of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) from 1977 to 1992. Throughout his career, Hooks was a vocal campaigner for civil rights in the United States, and served from July 5, 1972 – July 25, 1977 as the first African American member of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
Why is Benjamin Hooks elected to succeed Roy Wilkins as executive director of NAACP significant?
Benjamin Lawson Hooks (January 31, 1925 – April 15, 2010) was an American civil rights leader and government official.

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November 6 in HistoryYear 1976