Leon H. Sullivan
1922-2001
Pastor, Social Reformer
Human Rights Activist
Level 2 biography
Fast Facts
Leon H. Sullivan was a pastor who started by helping his congregation to help themselves.
His job training centers spread worldwide. He challenged apartheid in South Africa.
His Global Sullivan Principles are the standard for equal opportunities in the world of business.
Born: October 16, 1922, Charleston, West Virginia.
Married: Grace Banks Sullivan
Children: Howard, Hope, Julie
Died: April 25, 2001, Scottsdale, Arizona
Human Rights Activist
Level 2 biography
Fast Facts
Leon H. Sullivan was a pastor who started by helping his congregation to help themselves.
His job training centers spread worldwide. He challenged apartheid in South Africa.
His Global Sullivan Principles are the standard for equal opportunities in the world of business.
Born: October 16, 1922, Charleston, West Virginia.
Married: Grace Banks Sullivan
Children: Howard, Hope, Julie
Died: April 25, 2001, Scottsdale, Arizona
“You are like a balloon. It’s not your color that makes you rise or fall, but what’s inside of you.”
- The Rev. Leon H. Sullivan
Early life
Leon Howard Sullivan was born on October 16, 1922. He was born in Charleston, West Virginia. His parents were divorced. Leon grew up in the hill country of West Virginia. He lived with his mother and grandmother. They were poor. Their home was a shanty next to a dirt alley. Leon’s grandmother did laundry for other people. Leon delivered the clean laundry.
Leon was very smart and very athletic. He was interested in religion, and in sports. He and his friends could not afford a football. They made one out of newspaper and stuffed it with grass and other junk.
Leon knew that things in America were not fair. When he delivered his grandmother’s laundry, he could not walk where he liked. There was a “colored side of the street.” He was expected to walk there. When Leon was 8 he tried to buy a soda at a lunch counter. This lunch counter only served white people. The clerk would not let Leon sit down. Leon decided right then that he would spend his life working to change things.
Leon’s grandmother taught him to be determined, and to help himself. Leon’s pastor worked to help the very poorest people. Leon learned from both of them. When he was a teenager, Leon organized local people to stand up for their civil rights. Movie theaters had “white only” lines. Leon and some others stood in those lines. They also went into “white only” areas of public libraries
Education
Leon was only 17 years old when he became a Baptist minister. Soon after this, he started college at West Virginia State College. The school gave him a scholarship to play basketball and football. His nickname on the basketball court was “Goose.” Everything went well until Leon injured his knee very badly. He could no longer play on sports teams. He lost his scholarship. Leon did not give up. He got a job at night working at a steel mill. He used the money to pay for his schooling.
In 1941 A. Philip Randolph organized a march on Washington. The purpose was to ask for an equal chance for black people to get jobs. Leon was involved in planning this march. He learned from Mr. Randolph about non-violent protest. Leon became the President of the march. He was 21.
In 1942 a man named Adam Clayton Powell visited West Virginia. While he was there, he met Leon Sullivan. He was very impressed by the young man. He invited Leon to come and work with him. Leon graduated from college in 1943. Then he accepted Rev. Powell’s offer.
A move to New York City
Adam Clayton Powell was the pastor of a church. The church was called the Abyssinian Baptist Church. It was in the part of New York City known as Harlem. Leon became the assistant pastor of the church. Rev. Powell encouraged Leon to do more. While he earned his living at the church, Leon continued to go to school. He went to Union Theological Seminary to study theology. At Columbia University he studied sociology.
Grace
Leon met Grace Banks on a blind date. A doctor friend introduced the couple. Before too long they were married. Grace was a partner for Leon his entire life, and supported him in all of the things that he did.
New Jersey
After two years in Harlem, it was time to move on. Leon was ready to pastor his own church. In 1945 he became the pastor of the First Baptist Church in South Orange, New Jersey. He was an effective leader. He tried out the idea of building homes for people. He stressed the value of a good education. Leon was respected in the community. He was elected President of the South Orange Council of Churches.
Philadelphia
In 1950 Leon and Grace left New Jersey for North Philadelphia. Leon became the pastor of Zion Baptist Church on Venango Street. This area of Philadelphia was very poor. Not many people had jobs. Some of the young people were in trouble.
The church had about 500 members. Leon set out to help them. He started youth programs. He joined with other pastors. Together they worked to end gang wars. By 1955 Leon Sullivan was well known. That year the United States Junior Chamber of Commerce made a list. It was of Ten Outstanding Young Men in the United States. Leon was one of the ten.
“Don’t Buy Where You Can’t Work.”
Leon spent a lot of time with young people. They seemed to have no hope. He knew that many of his church members had no jobs. There were certain companies in Philadelphia that would only hire white people. Leon had an idea. He talked with some other pastors. Starting in 1958, he suggested that everyone refuse to buy from companies that would not hire African Americans. He called this “selective patronage.” Over 400 black pastors added their support. They told their congregations, “Don’t buy where you can’t work.” Some people in Philadelphia said that Leon was a troublemaker. He did not care what they said. He did what he thought was right.
This is what the group did. A committee would choose a business that had no black employees. They would visit that business. They would ask for jobs in all areas, both skilled and unskilled. After a month, the committee would look for results. If the company had provided jobs, all would be well. If not, the committee would call for a boycott.
To boycott means to refuse to buy a product. Boycotts were started against certain companies. The companies were hurt by these boycotts. People were not buying their goods. In 4 years 29 companies were boycotted. By 1962, 300 businesses agreed to provide equal chances for African Americans to get jobs.
“Integration Without Preparation is Frustration.”
Before long, Leon could see that finding jobs for his people was not enough. Some people had no job skills. Others needed to learn new skills. Leon took on this challenge. He decided to start a training center. It would be of very high quality. It would train a lot of people. Leon and his assistant, Rev. Thomas J. Ritter, started collecting money. Several large companies donated money and equipment. School children gave their pennies. Leon took a second mortgage on his home. Other black churches joined in this effort.
The City of Philadelphia was very interested in Leon’s work. There was an old, abandoned jail at 19th and Oxford Streets. The city council donated the building to Leon’s cause. Another agency gave money to hire teachers.
In January 1964 the training center was opened. It was called the Opportunities Industrialization Center. (OIC) Here people could learn electronics, power sewing, drafting, cabinet making, and restaurant work. Many adults applied to attend the classes at the OIC. No one was absent from class. Everyone knew that if he did not do well, someone else was waiting to take his place. The center was very successful. In the next five years, seven more centers opened. Now people could learn commercial cooking, welding, department store sales work, dry cleaning, and laundry work. 6000 people were trained. 5000 of them found jobs.
Leon wanted to make sure that the trainees were successful. Students were given more than a job skill. They learned hygiene and good manners. They studied their African heritage. They practiced proper grammar. They could feel good about themselves. Students finished the program. They were placed in jobs. But the program was not over. People from the OIC came to see the trainees on their jobs. They made sure that they were doing a good job and that they were happy. Because of this excellent training and careful monitoring, even people who had been in trouble with the police could be placed. Their training was a guarantee that they would do well.
The program was successful. In 1967 President Lyndon Johnson came to visit. He liked what he saw. The Federal Government provided money for more centers like these. Branches of the OIC were opened in 75 cities around the country.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was very interested in Leon’s work. Leon and Dr. King talked about selective patronage. Leon was able to help Dr. King organize his Operation Breadbasket program.
The Lion of Zion
Rev. Leon Sullivan was the pastor of Zion Baptist Church. He preached sermons and taught the Bible. He did not think this was enough. He knew that his people needed a better life. Many years later he said,
“A religion that can’t help people live together isn’t much use. It’s not enough to have God’s milk and honey in heaven if you can’t afford ham and eggs on earth.”
Leon used many ways to reach people. A tall, athletic man, he played basketball with young people. He worked hard to help each person in need. He raised money. He lobbied for change. He was soft-spoken and patient. He was also persistent. People began calling him “the Lion of Zion.”
The 10-36 Plan
Leon thought that African Americans should help each other. He developed a plan. In 1962 he started a company called Zion Investment Associates. He invited his congregation to buy shares in this company. Leon made it easy to invest. He asked for $10.00 each week for 36 weeks. This was the 10-36 plan. 650 people joined him. The money was all put together. Now they could do some good with it.
“We Help Ourselves”
Zion Investment Associates used the money to finance four major projects. First they built an apartment complex. It was called Zion Gardens. Plumbers, carpenters, and electricians worked on the project. They were all graduates of the OIC. Next they tried a bigger project. They built a shopping center. It was called Progress Plaza. This was the first shopping center in the United States owned and operated by African Americans.
After this, the Progress Garment Manufacturing Company was started. The most ambitious project of all opened in May 1988. This was Progress Aerospace Enterprises. The government and another group gave money to train 100 unemployed people to become aerospace technicians. General Electric Company ordered work from the company worth over 2 million dollars.
All of this work gave people jobs. They could earn money to have a home and food to eat. Most of all, it gave them a sense of pride in what they could do.
The Church Grows
Zion Baptist Church did many things to help its members. As the years passed, the church started a day care center, a credit union, a community center, and a center to help people find jobs. There were reading classes, athletics teams, a center for counseling families with problems, and a home for older people. The church when Leon arrived had 500 members. It grew to over 6000 people.
General Motors
There were many large corporations in the United States. None of them had an African American on the Board of Directors. In 1971 General Motors Corporation asked Leon to join their board. He accepted.
Leon was interested in helping African Americans to become business owners. He hoped that African Americans might own and operate GM dealerships. When he joined GM he had no idea how far this position would take him.
Apartheid in South Africa
In South Africa there was a policy called apartheid. This meant that white South Africans were in charge. No black South Africans had any rights. There were laws that said so. Black people could not vote. They could not live where they liked. They were not treated well at work.
Leon visited South Africa. He wanted to set up a branch of the OIC there. While he was there he talked with many people. They urged him to help black South Africans. Leon saw their need, but he was already busy. His church had burned down. It needed to be rebuilt. He had the OIC and many other projects. He had a family who needed him. Did he really have time to help South Africans, too? At the airport on the way home Leon was stopped. He was taken to a room and searched. No one else in his group was searched. The South Africans were trying to intimidate Leon because of his race. Leon was not frightened away. When he came out of that room his mind was made up. He would take on this cause, too.
The Sullivan Principles
When Leon returned to the United States he decided to use ideas suggested by the black South Africans. Leon could not change the way South African companies behaved. Instead, he would challenge the American companies. They had a responsibility to the people who worked for them. They should treat their black African employees as well as any American employee. These employees should be offered equal pay, equal conditions, and equal chances for job training.
Leon went to the Board of General Motors. He asked them to support the rights of their black African employees. He said that if they did not, he would resign. Leon knew that he was an important symbol to GM. If they allowed him to resign, African Americans would boycott General Motors. The board agreed.
Leon then called for a meeting of the leaders of 12 large companies. Together they worked on writing a set of principles for fair labor practices. These were based on what Leon had learned in South Africa. These became known as the Sullivan Principles.
Leon asked American companies in South Africa to follow his principles. Some corporations adopted the Sullivan Principles. They improved the treatment of their black workers in South Africa. Some companies did not. Leon urged the companies who did support the Sullivan Principles to pressure the companies that did not. Each year he asked the companies to do a little more for equal rights. Step by step the companies challenged unfair laws and practices.
A Pocketbook Issue
General Motors signed the Sullivan Principles. Other companies followed. Leon urged people to support companies that followed the Principles. More companies agreed to sign the Principles. They knew that doing this was good for business.
Between 1977 and 1987 Leon raised the standard a little each year. Companies improved conditions. They provided opportunities for black people. They built schools. They trained black people for upper level positions. All of this was against South African law.
Leon talked to people in the United States Government. He urged the government to refuse to do business with companies in South Africa. He asked his company, General Motors, to stop doing business there until apartheid was stopped. He asked other major corporations to do the same thing. He appealed to universities, businesses, and clubs. He asked Americans to stop buying products from South Africa, as well as companies that did business with South Africa. This was the biggest boycott of them all.
Dangerous Times
Not everyone liked what Leon was doing. Some people, both black and white, tried to intimidate him. They threatened him. They also threatened his family. This did not stop Leon. He had to move his family a few times. He had bodyguards. His children were driven to school to keep them safe. Fear would not stop him.
In 1980 Leon was invited to speak in South Africa. It was dangerous, but he agreed to go. He spoke his mind. He called for black Africans to be allowed to join unions. He called for the release of political prisoner Nelson Mandela.
Back in America more groups were supporting the cause. In 1985 Leon called for 3 things to happen. He asked for equal voting rights, the end of apartheid, and freedom for Nelson Mandela. The American government got involved. In 1986 Congress passed the Anti Apartheid Act. This made the Sullivan principles part of United States law.
The End of Apartheid
On May 2, 1986 Leon wrote a letter to all of the companies who supported the Principles. He called them to civil disobedience. This meant that they would refuse to obey unjust laws in South Africa. They were asked help black people have equal rights.
The last step was to ask companies to remove their businesses from South Africa. They would not do business at all in or with South Africa. They could move their companies in another African country instead. Leon asked them to sell their holdings within 9 months.
After 6 months 40 companies announced that they were leaving South Africa. After 10 months, there were 70 companies on the list. This was too much for South Africa. In 1989, South Africa gave up the policy of apartheid.
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela was a black South African. The government had kept him in prison for 27 years. For years Leon had asked the government to free Mr. Mandela. With the end of apartheid, he was set free. In the next election, both black and white South Africans voted. Nelson Mandela became the new President of South Africa.
Things Take Time
It took 15 years to break apartheid. Some people criticized Leon. They said it took too long. His steps were too small. Leon knew that nothing could happen in a hurry. One of his favorite sayings was, “TTT. Things Take Time.” The steps taken each year to end apartheid were each a step up. Black people had gained skills and an education. Some had been able to start their own businesses. There were young black South Africans who were ready to become leaders. The country was prepared for the change.
Leon would not stop watching the situation. He set up the Post-Apartheid Council at the end of 1993. This group keeps watch to make sure that equal rights are maintained. If they are not, the group can call for action.
Companies now realized that doing the right thing was good for business. They also got into the habit of doing the right thing.
Taking on the World
Leon wanted to help black people all over the world to learn ways to get equal rights. In 1982 Leon started a new venture. It was called the International Foundation for Education and Self-Help. (IFESH) He started it in Phoenix, Arizona. Leon hoped to have a conference each year. At this conference Africans and African-Americans could meet. They could become united. They could talk about their problems. They could plan ways to help each other.
In 1988 Leon retired as pastor of Zion Baptist Church. He had worked there for 38 years. He had changed many lives. Now it was time to help more people. He moved to Arizona to work with the Foundation. He still came back to Zion to preach sometimes. He had a lot of friends there.
The African and African-American Summits
In 1991 the first conference between Africans and African Americans was held at Abidjan, in the Ivory Coast in Africa. It was called the African and African-American Summit. Leon urged black Americans to get involved in the affairs of black Africans. He suggested that African Americans develop a sort of African Peace Corps. People could give a year of their lives to work in Africa. They could teach, build, help and heal.
As a result of the first summit, the United Nations was asked to help with African debt relief. Because of their work, billions of dollars of debt were forgiven by major nations.
Other summits followed. By the fourth summit, nearly every major nation was sending delegates.
The Sullivan Principles Updated
In 1999 the Sullivan Principles were expanded. They did not just apply to South Africa any more. Now they applied to the whole world. The new document was named the Global Sullivan Principles of Corporate Social Responsibility. Companies were to support justice wherever they did business.
The 8 Global Sullivan Principles called on companies to protect human rights, provide educational and job opportunities, and create healthy environments. They should improve the quality of life of the people, and encourage business partners to agree to the Principles.
184 American companies have signed the Global Principles. Companies that sign the Principles are asked to report their progress every year.
Personal and Later Life
For many years Leon was happily married to Grace Banks Sullivan. Once President Jimmy Carter came to speak at Leon’s church. He was so impressed with Grace, that he called her “Amazing Grace.”
Leon and Grace had three children. Their names are Julie, Hope, and Howard. All three children have helped in their father’s work.
Leon wrote a book telling the story of his life. He called his autobiography “Moving Mountains.”
Today the Foundation has many programs. They include the Schools for Africa Program, the People’s Investment Fund for Africa, and the Self-Help Investment program. They have sponsored many job-training centers. The OIC is the largest skill-training program for people to who need new or better jobs.
Leon Sullivan died of leukemia on April 25, 2001, at the age of 78. He died in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Awards
Leon was honored for his work many times in his life. Ten universities awarded him honorary degrees. He was also awarded:
The Afro-American Achievement Award, 1956
The Freedom Foundation Award, 1960
The Russwurm Award, 1963
The Philadelphia Bok Award, 1966
The William Penn Award, 1967
The Edwin T. Dahlberg Peace Award, 1968
The Spingarn Award, 1971
The Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bush, 1992 [This is the highest award that the American government can give]
The Eleanor Roosevelt Human Rights Award by President Clinton, 1999
Where we see his name today
Companies all over the world follow the Global Sullivan Principles.
Reading Level 6.4.
- The Rev. Leon H. Sullivan
Early life
Leon Howard Sullivan was born on October 16, 1922. He was born in Charleston, West Virginia. His parents were divorced. Leon grew up in the hill country of West Virginia. He lived with his mother and grandmother. They were poor. Their home was a shanty next to a dirt alley. Leon’s grandmother did laundry for other people. Leon delivered the clean laundry.
Leon was very smart and very athletic. He was interested in religion, and in sports. He and his friends could not afford a football. They made one out of newspaper and stuffed it with grass and other junk.
Leon knew that things in America were not fair. When he delivered his grandmother’s laundry, he could not walk where he liked. There was a “colored side of the street.” He was expected to walk there. When Leon was 8 he tried to buy a soda at a lunch counter. This lunch counter only served white people. The clerk would not let Leon sit down. Leon decided right then that he would spend his life working to change things.
Leon’s grandmother taught him to be determined, and to help himself. Leon’s pastor worked to help the very poorest people. Leon learned from both of them. When he was a teenager, Leon organized local people to stand up for their civil rights. Movie theaters had “white only” lines. Leon and some others stood in those lines. They also went into “white only” areas of public libraries
Education
Leon was only 17 years old when he became a Baptist minister. Soon after this, he started college at West Virginia State College. The school gave him a scholarship to play basketball and football. His nickname on the basketball court was “Goose.” Everything went well until Leon injured his knee very badly. He could no longer play on sports teams. He lost his scholarship. Leon did not give up. He got a job at night working at a steel mill. He used the money to pay for his schooling.
In 1941 A. Philip Randolph organized a march on Washington. The purpose was to ask for an equal chance for black people to get jobs. Leon was involved in planning this march. He learned from Mr. Randolph about non-violent protest. Leon became the President of the march. He was 21.
In 1942 a man named Adam Clayton Powell visited West Virginia. While he was there, he met Leon Sullivan. He was very impressed by the young man. He invited Leon to come and work with him. Leon graduated from college in 1943. Then he accepted Rev. Powell’s offer.
A move to New York City
Adam Clayton Powell was the pastor of a church. The church was called the Abyssinian Baptist Church. It was in the part of New York City known as Harlem. Leon became the assistant pastor of the church. Rev. Powell encouraged Leon to do more. While he earned his living at the church, Leon continued to go to school. He went to Union Theological Seminary to study theology. At Columbia University he studied sociology.
Grace
Leon met Grace Banks on a blind date. A doctor friend introduced the couple. Before too long they were married. Grace was a partner for Leon his entire life, and supported him in all of the things that he did.
New Jersey
After two years in Harlem, it was time to move on. Leon was ready to pastor his own church. In 1945 he became the pastor of the First Baptist Church in South Orange, New Jersey. He was an effective leader. He tried out the idea of building homes for people. He stressed the value of a good education. Leon was respected in the community. He was elected President of the South Orange Council of Churches.
Philadelphia
In 1950 Leon and Grace left New Jersey for North Philadelphia. Leon became the pastor of Zion Baptist Church on Venango Street. This area of Philadelphia was very poor. Not many people had jobs. Some of the young people were in trouble.
The church had about 500 members. Leon set out to help them. He started youth programs. He joined with other pastors. Together they worked to end gang wars. By 1955 Leon Sullivan was well known. That year the United States Junior Chamber of Commerce made a list. It was of Ten Outstanding Young Men in the United States. Leon was one of the ten.
“Don’t Buy Where You Can’t Work.”
Leon spent a lot of time with young people. They seemed to have no hope. He knew that many of his church members had no jobs. There were certain companies in Philadelphia that would only hire white people. Leon had an idea. He talked with some other pastors. Starting in 1958, he suggested that everyone refuse to buy from companies that would not hire African Americans. He called this “selective patronage.” Over 400 black pastors added their support. They told their congregations, “Don’t buy where you can’t work.” Some people in Philadelphia said that Leon was a troublemaker. He did not care what they said. He did what he thought was right.
This is what the group did. A committee would choose a business that had no black employees. They would visit that business. They would ask for jobs in all areas, both skilled and unskilled. After a month, the committee would look for results. If the company had provided jobs, all would be well. If not, the committee would call for a boycott.
To boycott means to refuse to buy a product. Boycotts were started against certain companies. The companies were hurt by these boycotts. People were not buying their goods. In 4 years 29 companies were boycotted. By 1962, 300 businesses agreed to provide equal chances for African Americans to get jobs.
“Integration Without Preparation is Frustration.”
Before long, Leon could see that finding jobs for his people was not enough. Some people had no job skills. Others needed to learn new skills. Leon took on this challenge. He decided to start a training center. It would be of very high quality. It would train a lot of people. Leon and his assistant, Rev. Thomas J. Ritter, started collecting money. Several large companies donated money and equipment. School children gave their pennies. Leon took a second mortgage on his home. Other black churches joined in this effort.
The City of Philadelphia was very interested in Leon’s work. There was an old, abandoned jail at 19th and Oxford Streets. The city council donated the building to Leon’s cause. Another agency gave money to hire teachers.
In January 1964 the training center was opened. It was called the Opportunities Industrialization Center. (OIC) Here people could learn electronics, power sewing, drafting, cabinet making, and restaurant work. Many adults applied to attend the classes at the OIC. No one was absent from class. Everyone knew that if he did not do well, someone else was waiting to take his place. The center was very successful. In the next five years, seven more centers opened. Now people could learn commercial cooking, welding, department store sales work, dry cleaning, and laundry work. 6000 people were trained. 5000 of them found jobs.
Leon wanted to make sure that the trainees were successful. Students were given more than a job skill. They learned hygiene and good manners. They studied their African heritage. They practiced proper grammar. They could feel good about themselves. Students finished the program. They were placed in jobs. But the program was not over. People from the OIC came to see the trainees on their jobs. They made sure that they were doing a good job and that they were happy. Because of this excellent training and careful monitoring, even people who had been in trouble with the police could be placed. Their training was a guarantee that they would do well.
The program was successful. In 1967 President Lyndon Johnson came to visit. He liked what he saw. The Federal Government provided money for more centers like these. Branches of the OIC were opened in 75 cities around the country.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was very interested in Leon’s work. Leon and Dr. King talked about selective patronage. Leon was able to help Dr. King organize his Operation Breadbasket program.
The Lion of Zion
Rev. Leon Sullivan was the pastor of Zion Baptist Church. He preached sermons and taught the Bible. He did not think this was enough. He knew that his people needed a better life. Many years later he said,
“A religion that can’t help people live together isn’t much use. It’s not enough to have God’s milk and honey in heaven if you can’t afford ham and eggs on earth.”
Leon used many ways to reach people. A tall, athletic man, he played basketball with young people. He worked hard to help each person in need. He raised money. He lobbied for change. He was soft-spoken and patient. He was also persistent. People began calling him “the Lion of Zion.”
The 10-36 Plan
Leon thought that African Americans should help each other. He developed a plan. In 1962 he started a company called Zion Investment Associates. He invited his congregation to buy shares in this company. Leon made it easy to invest. He asked for $10.00 each week for 36 weeks. This was the 10-36 plan. 650 people joined him. The money was all put together. Now they could do some good with it.
“We Help Ourselves”
Zion Investment Associates used the money to finance four major projects. First they built an apartment complex. It was called Zion Gardens. Plumbers, carpenters, and electricians worked on the project. They were all graduates of the OIC. Next they tried a bigger project. They built a shopping center. It was called Progress Plaza. This was the first shopping center in the United States owned and operated by African Americans.
After this, the Progress Garment Manufacturing Company was started. The most ambitious project of all opened in May 1988. This was Progress Aerospace Enterprises. The government and another group gave money to train 100 unemployed people to become aerospace technicians. General Electric Company ordered work from the company worth over 2 million dollars.
All of this work gave people jobs. They could earn money to have a home and food to eat. Most of all, it gave them a sense of pride in what they could do.
The Church Grows
Zion Baptist Church did many things to help its members. As the years passed, the church started a day care center, a credit union, a community center, and a center to help people find jobs. There were reading classes, athletics teams, a center for counseling families with problems, and a home for older people. The church when Leon arrived had 500 members. It grew to over 6000 people.
General Motors
There were many large corporations in the United States. None of them had an African American on the Board of Directors. In 1971 General Motors Corporation asked Leon to join their board. He accepted.
Leon was interested in helping African Americans to become business owners. He hoped that African Americans might own and operate GM dealerships. When he joined GM he had no idea how far this position would take him.
Apartheid in South Africa
In South Africa there was a policy called apartheid. This meant that white South Africans were in charge. No black South Africans had any rights. There were laws that said so. Black people could not vote. They could not live where they liked. They were not treated well at work.
Leon visited South Africa. He wanted to set up a branch of the OIC there. While he was there he talked with many people. They urged him to help black South Africans. Leon saw their need, but he was already busy. His church had burned down. It needed to be rebuilt. He had the OIC and many other projects. He had a family who needed him. Did he really have time to help South Africans, too? At the airport on the way home Leon was stopped. He was taken to a room and searched. No one else in his group was searched. The South Africans were trying to intimidate Leon because of his race. Leon was not frightened away. When he came out of that room his mind was made up. He would take on this cause, too.
The Sullivan Principles
When Leon returned to the United States he decided to use ideas suggested by the black South Africans. Leon could not change the way South African companies behaved. Instead, he would challenge the American companies. They had a responsibility to the people who worked for them. They should treat their black African employees as well as any American employee. These employees should be offered equal pay, equal conditions, and equal chances for job training.
Leon went to the Board of General Motors. He asked them to support the rights of their black African employees. He said that if they did not, he would resign. Leon knew that he was an important symbol to GM. If they allowed him to resign, African Americans would boycott General Motors. The board agreed.
Leon then called for a meeting of the leaders of 12 large companies. Together they worked on writing a set of principles for fair labor practices. These were based on what Leon had learned in South Africa. These became known as the Sullivan Principles.
Leon asked American companies in South Africa to follow his principles. Some corporations adopted the Sullivan Principles. They improved the treatment of their black workers in South Africa. Some companies did not. Leon urged the companies who did support the Sullivan Principles to pressure the companies that did not. Each year he asked the companies to do a little more for equal rights. Step by step the companies challenged unfair laws and practices.
A Pocketbook Issue
General Motors signed the Sullivan Principles. Other companies followed. Leon urged people to support companies that followed the Principles. More companies agreed to sign the Principles. They knew that doing this was good for business.
Between 1977 and 1987 Leon raised the standard a little each year. Companies improved conditions. They provided opportunities for black people. They built schools. They trained black people for upper level positions. All of this was against South African law.
Leon talked to people in the United States Government. He urged the government to refuse to do business with companies in South Africa. He asked his company, General Motors, to stop doing business there until apartheid was stopped. He asked other major corporations to do the same thing. He appealed to universities, businesses, and clubs. He asked Americans to stop buying products from South Africa, as well as companies that did business with South Africa. This was the biggest boycott of them all.
Dangerous Times
Not everyone liked what Leon was doing. Some people, both black and white, tried to intimidate him. They threatened him. They also threatened his family. This did not stop Leon. He had to move his family a few times. He had bodyguards. His children were driven to school to keep them safe. Fear would not stop him.
In 1980 Leon was invited to speak in South Africa. It was dangerous, but he agreed to go. He spoke his mind. He called for black Africans to be allowed to join unions. He called for the release of political prisoner Nelson Mandela.
Back in America more groups were supporting the cause. In 1985 Leon called for 3 things to happen. He asked for equal voting rights, the end of apartheid, and freedom for Nelson Mandela. The American government got involved. In 1986 Congress passed the Anti Apartheid Act. This made the Sullivan principles part of United States law.
The End of Apartheid
On May 2, 1986 Leon wrote a letter to all of the companies who supported the Principles. He called them to civil disobedience. This meant that they would refuse to obey unjust laws in South Africa. They were asked help black people have equal rights.
The last step was to ask companies to remove their businesses from South Africa. They would not do business at all in or with South Africa. They could move their companies in another African country instead. Leon asked them to sell their holdings within 9 months.
After 6 months 40 companies announced that they were leaving South Africa. After 10 months, there were 70 companies on the list. This was too much for South Africa. In 1989, South Africa gave up the policy of apartheid.
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela was a black South African. The government had kept him in prison for 27 years. For years Leon had asked the government to free Mr. Mandela. With the end of apartheid, he was set free. In the next election, both black and white South Africans voted. Nelson Mandela became the new President of South Africa.
Things Take Time
It took 15 years to break apartheid. Some people criticized Leon. They said it took too long. His steps were too small. Leon knew that nothing could happen in a hurry. One of his favorite sayings was, “TTT. Things Take Time.” The steps taken each year to end apartheid were each a step up. Black people had gained skills and an education. Some had been able to start their own businesses. There were young black South Africans who were ready to become leaders. The country was prepared for the change.
Leon would not stop watching the situation. He set up the Post-Apartheid Council at the end of 1993. This group keeps watch to make sure that equal rights are maintained. If they are not, the group can call for action.
Companies now realized that doing the right thing was good for business. They also got into the habit of doing the right thing.
Taking on the World
Leon wanted to help black people all over the world to learn ways to get equal rights. In 1982 Leon started a new venture. It was called the International Foundation for Education and Self-Help. (IFESH) He started it in Phoenix, Arizona. Leon hoped to have a conference each year. At this conference Africans and African-Americans could meet. They could become united. They could talk about their problems. They could plan ways to help each other.
In 1988 Leon retired as pastor of Zion Baptist Church. He had worked there for 38 years. He had changed many lives. Now it was time to help more people. He moved to Arizona to work with the Foundation. He still came back to Zion to preach sometimes. He had a lot of friends there.
The African and African-American Summits
In 1991 the first conference between Africans and African Americans was held at Abidjan, in the Ivory Coast in Africa. It was called the African and African-American Summit. Leon urged black Americans to get involved in the affairs of black Africans. He suggested that African Americans develop a sort of African Peace Corps. People could give a year of their lives to work in Africa. They could teach, build, help and heal.
As a result of the first summit, the United Nations was asked to help with African debt relief. Because of their work, billions of dollars of debt were forgiven by major nations.
Other summits followed. By the fourth summit, nearly every major nation was sending delegates.
The Sullivan Principles Updated
In 1999 the Sullivan Principles were expanded. They did not just apply to South Africa any more. Now they applied to the whole world. The new document was named the Global Sullivan Principles of Corporate Social Responsibility. Companies were to support justice wherever they did business.
The 8 Global Sullivan Principles called on companies to protect human rights, provide educational and job opportunities, and create healthy environments. They should improve the quality of life of the people, and encourage business partners to agree to the Principles.
184 American companies have signed the Global Principles. Companies that sign the Principles are asked to report their progress every year.
Personal and Later Life
For many years Leon was happily married to Grace Banks Sullivan. Once President Jimmy Carter came to speak at Leon’s church. He was so impressed with Grace, that he called her “Amazing Grace.”
Leon and Grace had three children. Their names are Julie, Hope, and Howard. All three children have helped in their father’s work.
Leon wrote a book telling the story of his life. He called his autobiography “Moving Mountains.”
Today the Foundation has many programs. They include the Schools for Africa Program, the People’s Investment Fund for Africa, and the Self-Help Investment program. They have sponsored many job-training centers. The OIC is the largest skill-training program for people to who need new or better jobs.
Leon Sullivan died of leukemia on April 25, 2001, at the age of 78. He died in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Awards
Leon was honored for his work many times in his life. Ten universities awarded him honorary degrees. He was also awarded:
The Afro-American Achievement Award, 1956
The Freedom Foundation Award, 1960
The Russwurm Award, 1963
The Philadelphia Bok Award, 1966
The William Penn Award, 1967
The Edwin T. Dahlberg Peace Award, 1968
The Spingarn Award, 1971
The Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bush, 1992 [This is the highest award that the American government can give]
The Eleanor Roosevelt Human Rights Award by President Clinton, 1999
Where we see his name today
Companies all over the world follow the Global Sullivan Principles.
Reading Level 6.4.