Richard Claxton Gregory

                                        October 12, 1932-August 19, 2017

 Was an American civil rights activist, social critic, writer, entrepreneur, comedian, conspiracy theorist, and occasional actor. Sunrise: October12, 1932 St. Louis, MO; Sunset: August 19,2017 Washington, D.C. Survived his wife of 58 years Lillian nee Smith Gregory and 11 children, 10 surviving.  Richard Jr., ( who died two months after birth): Michele, Lynne, Pamela, Paula, Stephanie (a.k.a. Xenobia), Gregory, Christian, Miss, Ayanna, and Yohance.

The earliest I remember of a man named Dick Gregory was in my youth about 8 or nine years old seeing how my father responded to him being on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. He sat straight up in his chair and chuckled for the next few minutes, really very hard. I took notice. From then on, I would listen to him and how he would make sense of the struggles of the day back then while doing it with humor. When you would see the Rev. Dr. Martin L. King shortly after that I would notice Mr. Gregory in some compacity speaking, marching, very visible for civil rights of Black People.  I have tried his Bahamian Diet for a while back in the 1980’s to which if I had stuck with I might have lost more weight. With 2 small children, it was impossible for me at least. It was to my recollection a powered drink mix as a meal replacement that had a tropical taste to it. Then came along the slim-quick drink powered drink mixes we know today. He was ahead of his time then.

Mr. Gregory has written several books:

Nigger’, an autobiography written with Robert Lipsyte, E. P. Dutton, September 1964. (one account says 1963) (reprinted, Pocket Books, 1965–present)

‘Write me in!’, Bantam, 1968.

‘From the Back of the Bus’

‘What's Happening?’

‘The Shadow that Scares Me’

‘Dick Gregory's Bible Tales’, with Commentary, a book of Bible-based humor.

‘Dick Gregory's Natural Diet for Folks Who Eat: Cookin' With Mother Nature!’

‘Up from Nigger’

‘No More Lies; The Myth and the Reality of American History’

‘Dick Gregory's political primer

(with Mark Lane), Murder in Memphis: The FBI and the Assassination of Martin Luther King

(with Mel Watkins), African American Humor: The Best Black Comedy from Slavery to Today (Library of Black America)

Robert Lee Green, Dick Gregory, daring Black leader

Forward written by Dick Gregory ‘African American Humor: The Best Black Comedy from Slavery to Today’

"Not Poor, Just Broke", short story

‘Defining Moments in Black History: Reading Between the Lies’, 2017.

All of them are a good read. They address racism with humor to an audience full of white people is very tricky and hard to pull off.

He found with humor we are not that different with our day to day struggles. To shed light on what is mostly misunderstandings helps, if one wants to bridge a gap between communities. You would have to walk in my shoes to understand how it is to walk in a store and be followed around, or to want to feed my family with work and be called names and spat on and it’s okay with you on a Sunday morning? The Civil Rights Movement was about getting rid of the notion we, the Hebrews of the Bible, [ taken from Judah-land for slavery] are more than 1/3^rd human. ‘All men are created equal’ was not meant for us in this country. We had to and still fight for basic human rights today. At most every junction of protests for civil rights Mr. Gregory was there.

In his last days, he was still an Activist for our causes. He spoke about the drinking water, food to better health and need of lack thereof for so much processed garbage we put into our system. If 60 people came right behind me to write something they would be adding another 100 pages or more. Mr. Dick Gregory was a force to be reckoned with intellectually. I will add another picture in my home along with the Rev. Dr.; Malcolm.

Mr. Gregory was and will always be one our greatest leaders of our community.

We give you back to God our Creator

…Pandora