Lynn Eusan

Last updated
Lynn Cecilia Eusan
Lynn Eusan.jpg
Lynn in November of 1968
Born(1948-10-11)October 11, 1948
Galveston County, Texas
DiedSeptember 10, 1971(1971-09-10) (aged 22)
Houston, Texas
OccupationJournalist
Known forFirst black Homecoming queen at UH

Lynn Cecilia Eusan was an activist and the first black Homecoming queen at the University of Houston, where she studied journalism, and the first black woman to earn the title at any predominantly white college or university in the Southern United States. [1] Only seven years earlier, UH had been an all-white institution, not integrating until the 1962–63 academic year. [2] In 1971, less than three years after that Homecoming ceremony, she was found dead in the back of a stranger's car. Her death was believed to be a murder, and no one was ever found guilty for her death. [1] A park at the university is named in her honor. [3]

Contents

Personal life

Eusan was born on October 11, 1948, in Galveston County, Texas. Her parents, Ida Mae (Boudreaux) Eusan and Wilbur Thirkield Eusan, Sr., were working class. Eusan and her four siblings grew up in San Antonio, Texas. [4]

She graduated from Phillis Wheatley High School in 1966 and immediately enrolled at the University of Houston. [5]

University of Houston

At the University of Houston, Eusan was involved in the Spirit of Houston marching band and worked as a reporter and photojournalist. She majored in education and journalism. [5]

She helped organize the Committee on Better Race Relations at UH, which aimed to "promote racial harmony among the students on the university's campus." [4] One year later, Eusan co-founded African Americans for Black Liberation, which replaced to COBRR. That organization was started with hopes to bring together other races and surrounding communities, including the surrounding Third Ward neighborhood and nearby historically black university Texas Southern University. The group also fund raised for scholarships and created summer programs for black youth. [4]

Eusan was a charter member of the Epsilon Lamba chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first black sorority at the university. She also co-founded SHAPE (Self Help for African People through Education) Community Center in the Third Ward. [4]

On November 22, 1968, Eusan was crowned UH's Homecoming queen over five other white candidates in the Astrodome, becoming the first black homecoming queen at a white Southern university. [5] The African Americans for Black Liberation ran her campaign. The Daily Cougar, the student newspaper, endorsed her candidacy. She continued to advocate for civil rights and black pride as Homecoming queen. [4] [6]

In the weeks leading up to the Homecoming game, Eusan received death threats and white fraternities mocked her in minstrel shows. [5] Through the mocking, Eusan stayed positive. [1] In an interview with the Houston Chronicle two weeks later, Eusan said, "This was the first time black students on the campus have banded together and really been effective against overwhelming odds." [1]

In February 1969, Eusan and 100 other members of the AABL marched to UH President Phillip G. Hoffman's office [1] and presented a list of 10 demands, which included:

Hoffman agreed to some of the group's demands. The same year, the university started the African-American studies program the AABL requested. [1] [4]

Twice, Eusan was arrested for demonstrating. In 1969, she was charged with destruction of public property for her role in a riot on the UH campus. The charges were later dropped. In 1967, she was arrested during a demonstration for better conditions for children in the Sunnyside neighborhood. [4]

Murder

After graduating from UH in 1970, Eusan got a job reporting with Voice of Hope, the media arm of HOPE Development, Inc., in the Fifth Ward. She contributed to Black Enterprise magazine and worked as a secretary. Eusan planned to attend graduate school in North Carolina. [4] The last time anyone saw Eusan, she was waiting at a bus stop in windy, rainy weather on the evening of September 10, 1971. [1]

On September 10, 1971, a car driven by Leo Jackson, Jr. collided with a police vehicle. In the back seat, police found Eusan's body; she had been stabbed several times. Jackson claimed that Eusan had been "hysterical", assaulted him, and then stabbed herself, and that he was on his way to the hospital. [4] [7]

Jackson had been arrested 14 times prior to the incident for charges including rape and armed robbery. [4] Jackson was charged with Eusan's murder, but in 1972, a jury acquitted him. Since then, no one has been charged in connection with Eusan's death. [5]

Legacy

Eusan was buried in the African American Cemetery on the east side of San Antonio. [5] A public memorial service was held at UH. [1]

The sorority Eusan helped charter, Alpha Kappa Alpha, is still active at the university. [8]

The SHAPE Community Center is still active in the Third Ward. [9] The center mobilized voters to elect Houston's first black mayor, organizes an annual Pan African Cultural Festival, and contributed to efforts to build the Third Ward Multi-Service Center. [10]

Three years after Eusan's death, the University of Houston Board of Regents named a park in her honor, called the Lynn Eusan Park. Until the 1980s, the park was home to the university's live mascot, a cougar named Shasta, who resided in a cage. In 2013, the university built a modern stage for the park equipped with lights and a sound system. The park is a hub of student life and activity at the university. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barbara Jordan</span> American politician, lawyer, and educator (1936–1996)

Barbara Charline Jordan was an American lawyer, educator, and politician. A Democrat, she was the first African American elected to the Texas Senate after Reconstruction, the first Southern African-American woman elected to the United States House of Representatives, and one of the first two African Americans elected to the U.S. House from the former Confederacy since 1901, alongside Andrew Young of Georgia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Houston</span> State university in Houston, Texas, US

The University of Houston is a public research university in Houston, Texas. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, one of multiple junior college institutions formed in the first decades of the 20th century. In 1934, HJC was restructured as a four-year degree-granting institution and renamed as the University of Houston. Today, Houston is the fourth-largest university in Texas, awarding 11,156 degrees in 2023. It has a worldwide alumni base of nearly 200,000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Texas Southern University</span> Historically black university in Houston, Texas

Texas Southern University is a public historically black university in Houston, Texas. The university is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".

The Machine, the former Alpha Rho chapter of Theta Nu Epsilon at the University of Alabama, is a coalition of Panhellenic sororities and IFC and NPHC fraternities that formed a secret society with some degree of influence over campus and Alabama state politics. The group, which has operated in varying degrees of secrecy since 1914, is credited with selecting and ensuring the election of candidates for Student Government Association, Homecoming Queen, and other influential on-campus and off-campus offices, including the Student Government Association Senate. It was evidently first publicly noted as "a political machine" in 1928 by Alabama's campus newspaper, The Crimson White. Then in a 1945 article in the newspaper, it was referred to as "the machine", and the name has stuck ever since. It is alleged that The Machine plays a real role in both the politics of the student community and in the political careers of numerous Alabama politicians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delta Sigma Theta</span> International historically African American sorority

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. (ΔΣΘ) is a historically African American sorority. The organization was founded by college-educated women dedicated to public service with an emphasis on programs that assist the African American community. Delta Sigma Theta was founded on January 13, 1913 by twenty-two women at Howard University in Washington, D.C. Membership is open to any woman, regardless of religion, race, or nationality. Women may apply to join through undergraduate chapters at a college or university or through an alumnae chapter after earning a college degree.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alpha Kappa Alpha</span> International historically African American collegiate sorority

Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. (ΑΚΑ) is the first intercollegiate historically African American sorority. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at the historically black Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of sixteen students led by Ethel Hedgemon Lyle. Forming a sorority broke barriers for African American women in areas where they had little power or authority due to a lack of opportunities for minorities and women in the early 20th century. Alpha Kappa Alpha was incorporated on January 29, 1913.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houston Cougars</span> Intercollegiate sports teams of the University of Houston

The Houston Cougars are the athletic teams representing the University of Houston. Informally, the Houston Cougars have also been referred to as the Coogs, UH, or simply Houston. Houston's nickname was suggested by early physical education instructor of the university and former head football coach, John R. Bender after one of his former teams, Washington State later adopted the mascot and nickname. The teams compete in the NCAA's Division I and the Football Bowl Subdivision as members of the Big 12 Conference.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yates High School</span> Public high school in Houston, Texas, United States

Jack Yates Senior High School is a public high school located at 3650 Alabama Street, very near Texas Southern University, in the historic Third Ward in Houston, Texas. Yates High School handles grades nine through twelve and is part of the Houston Independent School District (HISD).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alpha Phi</span> North American collegiate sorority

Alpha Phi International Women's Fraternity is an international sorority with 175 active chapters and over 270,000 initiated members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Third Ward, Houston</span> Neighborhood in Houston, Texas

Third Ward is an area of Houston, Texas, United States, that evolved from one of the six historic wards of the same name. It is located in the southeast Houston management district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fourth Ward, Houston</span> Historic district in Houston, Texas, United States of America

Fourth Ward is one of the historic six wards of Houston, Texas, United States. The Fourth Ward is located inside the 610 Loop directly west of and adjacent to Downtown Houston. The Fourth Ward is the site of Freedmen's Town, which was a post-U.S. Civil War community of African-Americans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moores School of Music</span> Music school of the University of Houston

The Rebecca and John J. Moores School of Music is the music school of the University of Houston. The Moores School offers the Bachelor of Music, Bachelor of Arts in Music, Master of Music, and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees in music performance, conducting, theory and composition, music history and literature, pedagogy, and music education and also offers a Certificate of Music Performance. It is a component of the University of Houston's Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts. The Moores School is a fully accredited member of the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM). Its namesakes are UH alumni John Moores and his former wife Rebecca. As of 2023–2024, the Director of the Moores School is Brian Kai Chin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shasta (mascot)</span> Mascot of University of Houston teams

Shasta is the mascot of the University of Houston athletics teams, the Houston Cougars. The name "Shasta" refers to both a live and an anthropomorphic costumed cougar mascot.

Myra Lillian Davis Hemmings was an American actress and teacher, and a founder of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated.

Riverside Terrace is a neighborhood in Houston, Texas, United States. It is along Texas State Highway 288 and north of the Texas Medical Center and located near Texas Southern University and University of Houston. There about 20 sections of Riverside Terrace that span across North and South MacGregor. The community, formerly an affluent Jewish neighborhood, became an affluent community for African Americans in the 1950s and '60s. It is still predominantly African American neighborhood with different income levels. It has been undergoing a gradual change in demographics and aesthetics due to gentrification efforts since the early 2000s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of African Americans in Houston</span> Ethnic group

The African American population in Houston, Texas, has been a significant part of the city's community since its establishment. The Greater Houston area has the largest population of African Americans in Texas and west of the Mississippi River. Black Enterprise has referred to Houston as a Black mecca.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Jackson (engineer)</span> American aerospace engineer (1921–2005)

Mary Jackson was an American mathematician and aerospace engineer at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), which in 1958 was succeeded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). She worked at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, for most of her career. She started as a computer at the segregated West Area Computing division in 1951. In 1958, after taking engineering classes, she became NASA's first black female engineer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carroll Parrott Blue</span> American film director

Carroll Parrott Blue was an American filmmaker, director and author. Based in Houston, Texas, she was part of the L.A. Rebellion film movement. She was noted for her documentary film and interactive multimedia works, particularly for her project The Dawn at My Back: Memoir of a Black Texas Upbringing. Blue was a research professor at the University of Houston. She worked to preserve and celebrate the history of the African American community in Houston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ida Louise Jackson</span> American educator and philanthropist

Ida Louise Jackson was an American educator and philanthropist. She attended and graduated from the University of California, Berkeley following her family’s move to California. As one of 17 Black students that attended the university at the time, Jackson prioritized creating safe spaces for African American community members. Throughout her undergraduate career, Jackson was invested in a teaching career, specifically in Oakland, California. Despite push back from school administration, her dreams were finally realized in 1926 when she became the first African American woman to teach high school in the state of California. At the same time, her ambitions were rooted in giving back to her community back in Mississippi. Through the networks that she formed in California, Jackson returned back to her home state in 1935 to develop programs around education and health care for poor, rural Black folks. Ida Louise Jackson’s contributions were celebrated by her alma mater and the University of California, Berkeley named their first graduate apartment housing unit in her honor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michelle Barnes</span> American artist, educator and arts administrator

Michelle Barnes is an American artist, educator, and arts administrator based in Houston. She works with sculptural materials including fibers and papier-mâché, and is the co-founder and executive director of the Community Artists’ Collective.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Campbell, Rick (December 22, 2008). "Queen Lynn: From glory to tragedy". Houston Chronicle. Archived from the original on June 12, 2021. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  2. ↑ "Blazing the Trail" Archived 2018-05-12 at the Wayback Machine , by Robert D. Jacobus, in University of Houston magazine (Fall 2015)
  3. 1 2 "New stage touts history, new technology - The Daily Cougar". The Daily Cougar. 2013-04-18. Archived from the original on 2018-03-01. Retrieved 2018-02-28.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Brush, Danielle (February 9, 2017). "EUSAN, LYNN CECELIA". Texas State Historical Society. Archived from the original on December 20, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Clack, Carey (April 2, 2011). "Unlikely crusader left mark". San Antonio Express-News. Archived from the original on March 1, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  6. ↑ Johnson Publishing Company (January 1969). "Ebony". Ebony. Johnson Publishing Company: 104–. ISSN   0012-9011.
  7. ↑ Johnson Publishing Company (30 September 1971). "Jet". Jet. Johnson Publishing Company: 23–. ISSN   0021-5996.
  8. ↑ "Sororities". www.uh.edu. Archived from the original on 2018-03-01. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
  9. ↑ Whitfield, Stephanie (February 8, 2018). "Third Ward residents ready to tackle trash problem". KHOU.com. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  10. ↑ "SHAPE Community Center | Texas". SHAPE Community Center | Texas. Archived from the original on 2017-09-29. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.