30 Facts About Xernona Clayton

Xernona Clayton Brady is an American civil rights leader and broadcasting executive.

Later, Clayton went into television, where she became the first African American from the southern United States to host a daily prime time talk show.

Xernona Clayton was instrumental in the development of the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame that was developed by the foundation to honor the achievements of African Americans and civil rights advocates.

Xernona Clayton convinced a Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan to denounce the Klan.

Xernona Clayton has been honored by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the city of Atlanta for her work.

Xernona Clayton and her twin sister Xenobia were born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, the daughters of Reverend James and Elliott Brewster.

Xernona Clayton's parents were administrators of Indian affairs in Muskogee, Oklahoma.

In 1952, Xernona Clayton earned her undergraduate degree with honors from Tennessee State Agricultural and Industrial College in Nashville, Tennessee.

At Tennessee State, Xernona Clayton became a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.

Xernona Clayton pursued graduate studies at the University of Chicago.

Xernona Clayton began her career in the Civil Rights Movement with the National Urban League in Chicago, working undercover to investigate racial discrimination committed by employers against African Americans.

Xernona Clayton moved to Atlanta in 1965, where she organized events for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, under the direction of Martin Luther King Jr.

Xernona Clayton developed a deep friendship with Dr King's wife, Coretta Scott King.

In 1966, Xernona Clayton coordinated the Doctors' Committee for Implementation, a group of African American physicians who worked for and achieved the desegregation of all Atlanta hospitals.

Xernona Clayton then headed the Atlanta Model Cities program, a federally funded group dedicated to improving the quality of desegregated neighborhoods.

Xernona Clayton met Calvin Craig, the Grand Dragon of the Georgia Ku Klux Klan, through the Model Cities program, as Craig served in a policy position with the organization.

In 1967, Xernona Clayton became the first Southern African American to host a daily prime time talk show.

Xernona Clayton joined Turner Broadcasting in 1979 as a producer of documentary specials.

Xernona Clayton retired from Turner Broadcasting in 1997, choosing to call the retirement a "professional transition".

Xernona Clayton serves on the board of directors of the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change.

Xernona Clayton served on the Board of Review for the state of Georgia's Department of Labor.

Xernona Clayton serves as the chair, president, and CEO of the Trumpet Awards Foundation that was formed in late 2004.

In early 2004, Xernona Clayton created the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame.

Xernona Clayton was a member of the Ebenezer Baptist Church, where Dr Martin Luther King Jr.

Xernona Clayton was married to Ed Xernona Clayton from 1957 until his death in 1966.

Xernona Clayton co-authored a revised edition of her late husband's biography of Martin Luther King Jr.

Brady and Xernona Clayton have two children from Brady's previous marriage, Laura and Paul Jr.

Xernona Clayton's footprints were added to the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame in 2006.

On May 1,2011, Xernona Clayton received the James Weldon Johnson Lifetime Achievement Award from the Detroit branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Xernona Clayton received the Local Community Service Award from Spelman College in 2004.