By Rachel Spears – Political Editor

Charlotta Spears Bass

(1888-1969)

Longtime editor of The California Eagle, activist, and politician, Charlotta Spears Bass sought to bring racial issues to light. Little is known about her childhood but her career in journalism began at the Providence Watchmen, a Black newspaper where she sold subscriptions before she moved to Los Angeles. There, she bought a newspaper that would become the largest black newspaper on the west coast. Through this, she took on the Klu Klux Klan (KKK) and fought against housing segregation, employment discrimination, and  violence against the African American community. In 1952, she ran for Vice President of the United States with progressive candidate Vincent Hallinan making her the first African American woman to run for that office. “I believe in a world of good. The battle is not won, nor the struggle past. But I know the future will be even better,” she said. “Win or lose — we win by raising the issues,” she added.