William Astor Kirk

William Astor Kirk (October 5, 1922 – August 12, 2011) was a professor, author, a church lay leader and a social activist who worked for racial equality, gay rights, and to end segregation in the United Methodist Church. He also served in the Office of Economic Opportunity, after being appointed by President Lyndon Baines Johnson. A contemporary of Heman Sweatt he sought equal access to higher education at the University of Texas and eventually was the first African-American to be awarded a political science doctorate by UT. rdf:langString