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Biography · Civil Rights

L. Alex Wilson

1909–1960

United States

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Biography

L. Alex Wilson (March 30, 1909–October 11, 1960) was an American journalist and editor who rose to prominence during the civil rights movement. He covered the Emmett Till murder for the African-American-oriented Chicago Defender chain, while serving as the editor of the Memphis-based Tri-State Defender. In 1957, Wilson was covering the federally enforced integration of Central High School by the Little Rock Nine when a white mob assaulted him and two other Black journalists. He survived, continuing as an editor in Chicago, but died three years later from neurological damage caused by the violent segregationists in Little Rock.

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Biography text · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source checked 2026-10-20

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