Ruth Apilado
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
April 30, 1908
(aged 113 years, 107 days)
- Newspaper editor
- novelist
- anti-racism campaigner for African American civil rights
- magazine founder
- teacher
Ruth Apilado | |
|---|---|
| Born | Ruth Mosselle Mays April 30, 1908 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | August 15, 2021 (aged 113 years, 107 days) Federal Way, Washington, U.S. |
| Education | Chicago State University |
| Occupations |
|
| Known for | Founder of America Intercultural Magazine |
| Spouse | Inosencio Apilado |
| Children | 1 |
| Relatives | Lu Palmer (second cousin) |
Ruth Moselle Apilado (née Mays; April 30, 1908 – August 15, 2021) was an American newspaper editor, novelist, anti-racism campaigner for African American civil rights, magazine founder, teacher, and supercentenarian who founded America's Intercultural Magazine (AIM). Born during the Jim Crow era, she was an African American anti-racism activist for civil and political rights.[1]
Apilado was born on April 30, 1908, in Chicago, Illinois. Her parents were Stewart and Clara (née Whetsel) Mays.[2] Her maternal grandmother had emigrated from Canada to Ohio, and was partly indigenous. Her paternal great-grandfather was a slave owner in Virginia.[3]
Apilado attended McKinley High School, which closed in 1954.[3] She became a teacher in 1928, after graduating from Chicago Normal College (now Chicago State University).[4]
Newspaper publishing and novel
She began her journalistic career in 1942, when she briefly worked as an editor for the newly created Negro Youth Photo Scripts Magazine.[5] In 1945, she wrote a letter to the editor expressing her criticism of Richard Wright's memoir Black Boy, stating that it was an inaccurate depiction of the typical childhood of African-Americans.[6] In 1950, Apilado published a novel called The Joneses, which was about the hardships of a black family living in Chicago.[7]
