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From marching with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and warning Malcolm X weeks before his assassination, to working with Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress, to helping illuminate and preserve black antiquity in his native town of East St. Louis, 83-year-old Reginald Petty is a seasoned civil rights leader, activist, educator, author, historian and former Peace Corp director worthy of his own acclaim. 

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville East St. Louis Center’s Learning Resource Center (LRC) featured Petty, who gave a civil rights presentation during Black Heritage Month on Thursday, Feb. 14. He was scheduled to speak at the LRC on Thursday, Feb. 28 regarding his Peace Corp experience, where he was a director of four African countries. The session was canceled due to bad weather. 

“What motivated me to pursue civil rights and justice for black people were some of my earliest memories in East St. Louis and St. Louis,” explained Petty. “I remember going to buy shoes, and I couldn’t try them on. They would measure your feet.” 

“I remember taking a metro bus in East St. Louis and being told I had to sit in the back,” he continued. “I was only four or five, but I knew that wasn’t right.” 

Because Petty’s family stressed education, his main purpose became to learn all he could. He graduated from Lincoln Senior High School in 1952. He earned a bachelor’s in sociology in 1956 from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. He received a master’s in social work in 1961 from the University of Chicago. 

“While in Chicago, I was involved with the African American Heritage Association, where I was the president. That is when I met Malcolm. He was with the Black Muslims,” recalled Petty. “That was when I really got involved and interested in African history and culture.” 

“I remember several weeks before Malcolm was assassinated, and he had returned from Africa,” reported Petty. “Malcolm had met white Muslims and was saying Islam was for everyone. I warned him then to be careful about saying that around the Black Muslims.” 

Later, Petty traveled to Mississippi, where he worked with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) on voters rights. 

“I held the record of 36 arrests in one year in Jackson, Mississippi,” said Petty. 

His travels and equal rights work brought him into contact with some of those who would be giants of the Civil Rights era. 

“I marched with Dr. Martin Luther King and (Rep.) John Lewis across the Edmund Pettus Bridge,” said Petty.  “Martin wasn’t concerned about being the leader. He was committed like all of us – to the cause.” 

Petty also met and developed friendships with Angela Davis, Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture) and Mandela. 

“I met with Mandela several times when he was in jail, and when he got out,” he noted. “I also visited with Winnie Mandela several times.” 

Petty pointed out one racist incident he recalled while in South Africa. “I was in a park in the 1980s, I remember a policeman made me get up from a bench,” said Petty. “Blacks were in the park taking care of white children, but they had to sit on the ground. 

“It was hard times for black people, back then,” he continued. “I still have nightmares about some of the racism we as a people have experienced. If someone told me that we’d still be dealing with some of the same things today, I’d say, ‘No way.’” 

With a focus on empowering people and strengthening communities, the SIUE East St. Louis Center is dedicated to improving the lives of families and individuals—from pre-school through adult—in the Metro East region. The Center offers programs that give the community renewed hope and an opportunity to reach educational, career and life goals. It does so by providing comprehensive programs, services and training in the areas of education, health, social services and the arts. 

Photos: Reginald Petty, activist, educator, author, historian and former Peace Corp director, gave a presentation on civil rights at the SIUE East St. Louis Center Learning Resource Center. 

Edna Patterson-Petty, SIUE alumna, celebrated fabric artist and wife of Petty, joins the discussion on civil rights.