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SAINT LOUIS, Missouri (WABC) A man from the Bronx who became a ground-breaking chess champion at a young age believes in the possibilities that come from playing the game and he s taking his campaign on the road to prisons.
More than 100 inmates at the Saint Louis County Justice Center are playing in the jail s first chess tournament. These guys, they re good. That s what they do, correction officer Mario Reed said. There s some good players in there.
Justus Williams watched it all. He became the youngest African-American Chess Master in history at the age of 12.
Now he is overseeing the tournament he helped make happen.
Justus Williams (center) leads the courses for Black Squares training sessions.
When Justus Williams was about 8 years old, his mom signed him up for a chess program on a whim. Luckily for him, he was a natural. By age 12, the Bronx native became the youngest African American National Master. He’s traveled the world to compete in tournaments and received a full-ride scholarship to Webster University to play chess.
Lara Hamdan
Black Squares hosts free training weekend sessions at the Cortex Innovation Community center.
Now Williams wants to funnel that knowledge to children in St. Louis. He partnered with the Dream Builders 4 Equity nonprofit to create Black Squares. Its mission is to bring Black culture to chess by introducing the game to more Black children. Its initiatives are not limited to Black players, though; anyone with limited access to the game is welcome to participate.
Originally published on February 10, 2021 5:28 pm
When Justus Williams was about 8 years old, his mom signed him up for a chess program on a whim. Luckily for him, he was a natural. By age 12, the Bronx native became the youngest African American National Master. He’s traveled the world to compete in tournaments and received a full-ride scholarship to Webster University to play chess.
Now Williams wants to funnel that knowledge to children in St. Louis. He partnered with the Dream Builders 4 Equity nonprofit to create Black Squares. Its mission is to bring Black culture to chess by introducing the game to more Black children. Its initiatives are not limited to Black players, though; anyone with limited access to the game is welcome to participate.